Looking after matters of the spirit for FOB Marez Soldiers

Photo By Dustin Gautney | Maj. Sid A. Taylor, a 15-year Army veteran, is a National Baptist minister and U.S. Army Chaplain. As the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, chaplain, it's his responsibility to meet the spiritual needs of more than 4,000 Soldiers serving throughout the Ninewa region of Iraq.  

MOSUL, IRAQ

01.23.2010

Story by Master Sgt. Duff E. Mcfadden 

2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs

FORWARD OPERATING BASE MAREZ, Iraq — While U.S. Soldiers concentrate on training Iraqi security forces to provide a safe and secure environment for themselves, one Richmond, Va., resident is just as busy, providing a welcome respite for matters of the spirit.

Maj. Sid A. Taylor, a 15-year Army veteran, is a National Baptist minister and U.S. Army chaplain. As the chaplain for 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, it's his responsibility to meet the spiritual needs of more than 4,000 Soldiers serving throughout Iraq's Ninewa Province.

"Here in the brigade, chaplains are like crazy glue," Taylor said with a smile, "They're spread thin, but they secretly hold the organization together."

While not everyone here has the time nor the desire to attend the service of his or her choice, within FOBs Marez and Diamonback, there are six protestant services, five masses, one Latter-Day Saints service, an Islamic Prayer Room and a Jewish meeting held each week. Services can range from as many as 80 attendees to a small handful.

As always, the emphasis is on the "being" of a Soldier and not necessarily his profession.

"While we support their profession, we wish they were out of business." Taylor said. "However, it's what we do. Much like a lawyer, or a businessman, a Soldier not only needs, but deserves, to have his soul and emotions cared for."

In the military, a chaplain must maintain their devotional focus, so they can serve as God's representative, both to their Soldiers and to the command. It's imperative they sustain a single-minded purpose, when it comes to matters of the spirit.

"In the Bible, when the Angel Gabriel told Mary her son would be the light of the world, her response was 'I am the Lord's servant. May it be unto me as you have said," Taylor said. "My theme, my credo, is that very same response."

A 1982 graduate of Hopewell, Va., High School, Taylor played football and basketball and sang tenor in the school chorus. He feels his spiritual growth began as early as junior high, where his church, school and social experiences provided a rich foundation.

This growth continued after earning his bachelor's degree (1986) and master's degree (1988) in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University and then serving as a social worker and a member of the Virginia National Guard.

It was then that he began seeing a clearer picture of what God had in store for him.

"For me, it was more of a gradual acceptance," he said. "God was providing me with all these people skills and a love of people helped prepare me for work as a pastor, or chaplain."

Once there was acceptance, his focus became a matter of training.

"I needed to be trained and properly equipped to do the work of the Lord, and with the aid of the Holy Spirit, to do so competently and efficiently," Taylor noted.

His journey led him onward to the Virginia Union University School of Theology where, as a weekend seminary student, he continued working as a social worker. He also accepted the call into the Army Reserve's Chaplain Candidate Program. Three years later, he earned his Master of Divinity and was commissioned as an Army chaplain.

Since then, he's added a Master of Arts degree in Christian Education from Union-PSCE (2002) and a Doctor of Ministry degree from the Erskine School of Theology (2006).

In August 2008, he assumed duties as the 2BCT Chaplain, deploying to Iraq with the brigade in October 2009.

Taylor said one of the biggest tasks before a chaplain is "ensuring the spiritual and human dimensions of what we do are not lost."

"The Army understands the importance of values, morals and integrity in everything we do. Soldiers have emotions and families. They also have a soul that needs to be sustained in order to do what they do."

According to Taylor, there are three concise concepts which help drive him as a chaplain.

"First of all, I personally, as a chaplain, do not fight. A pastor does not engage in battle. Secondly, I believe in the defense of our nation. Unfortunately, evil exists. We should defend ourselves against that evil.

"And finally, for those Soldiers who actually do the defending, they have souls. Their souls need to be balanced so they can not only fight, but they can regroup after the fight and have the opportunity to recover. They need pastors to help them prepare, be sustained during battle, then regroup afterwards"

Taylor is married to another Army chaplain, Maj. Grace R. Hollis-Taylor, who is currently deployed to Afghanistan with a Combat Aviation Brigade. They have two teenage sons.

• Date Taken: 01.23.2010
• Date Posted: 01.23.2010 20:10
• Story ID: 44348
• Location: MOSUL, IQ