Swords into plowshares

Command Chaplain Arnold E. Resnicoff speaks with Kim Shippey.

Kim Shippey with contributions from Arnold E. Resnicoff

Last week, United States military chaplains throughout the world marked "The Four Chaplains Day"—a day on which they pay homage to four chaplains who died on February 3, 1943, when the SS Dorchester was torpedoed off the coast of Greenland and sank, with the loss of six-hundred lives. The four chaplains—two Protestant, one Catholic, and one Jewish—stayed right to the end, comforting the wounded and caring for those who were trapped. Eventually, they went down, arms linked, each saying a different prayer, after having given up their life jackets to save others.

The person who drew our attention to this special day was Captain Arnold E. Resnicoff, Chaplain Crops, United States Navy. Robbi Resnicoff is Command Chaplain for the U.S. European Command (USEUCOM) and principal advisor to the EUCOM Commander in Chief on religion, ethics, and morals. He is a Vietnam veteran who served on active duty as a Navy line officer from 1969-1972, and he has been a chaplain since 1976.

During a recent visit to Boston, he talked with us about some of the ways in which the chaplaincy has changed in recent years.

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