Selections written or enjoyed by Martha Kate Downey [Meanderings of the mind No matter how much it disappoints the ACLU bless they pointy little heads , I get the impression that a sizeable portion of the Army is Christian, and proud of it.
Not, of course, that they would ever admit it publicly. Maybe an appreciation for the spiritual comes with maturity, and a lot of these young men have had to mature in a hurry here. And too many of them never got the chance to mature further, come to think of it.
Any war carries with it the seeds of the worst in man, and the best. Negotiating your way between those two poles sure makes you think about some kind of an anchor to hang on to. On the other hand, if God is good, but can not deter evil, he can not be all powerful and omnipresent. Oh, Lordy, what was I thinking, starting a theological discussion with a bunch of cops?! We were fortunate to have an interpreter with us at the time who is Muslim, so we had the advantage of a little different perspective.
I guess the closest we got to some kind of consensus was that it all boiled down to faith, whether you were Muslim or Christian.
I just know that He is at once God, and good. They ran a small shop behind the Division Headquarters, not much more than a camping trailer with a small refrigerated display case, a sewing machine, cheap cigarettes, and the usual souvenir items. And, most importantly from my point of view, phone cards to keep my cell phone alive. Did I mention that I had the opportunity to meet one of the nicest, best-looking, most generally all-around wonderful guys this past Monday?
