Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Michael Levesque | At Chaplain (Lt. Cmdr.) Saejeong Kim's promotion ceremony Sept. 1 in Iksan, South...... read more read more
The mind wanders aimlessly when you are at sea for weeks or months on end, or when you are just 30 days into your seemingly endless nine-month deployment on stranger shores. You feel isolated and disarrayed because the Internet does not work most of the time, you miss your comfort foods, and your sleep is fitful due to the cold draft and constant noise throughout the night. You feel a sense of suffering creeping through your mind, body, and spirit.
Guess what? “Suffering occurs. Suffering comes with being human,” said Chaplain (Lt. Cmdr.) Saejeong Kim, a chaplain for Combat Logistics Regiment 3, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Camp Foster, Okinawa, Japan, who was the first female Buddhist chaplain promoted to her current rank during a Sept. 1 ceremony in her family hometown of Iksan, Republic of Korea (ROK).
At first blush, Kim’s statement seems resigned and capitulating. But as explained by the 2006-ordained Won Buddhist priest, “the sooner we recognize and become aware of the suffering with such turbulent emotions as fear, worry, restlessness, frustration, repeating thoughts and patterns, helplessness, anxiety, anger, isolation, and sadness in our lives, the better such awareness or mindfulness helps us create a path to a peaceful space in ourselves and access stillness amid uncertain challenges.”
Kim, who wrote the dissertation, “A Study on the Generalized Direction of Mindfulness in Won Buddhism with Special Reference to Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction," for her Doctor of Philosophy degree from Won Kwang University in 2016, assists Sailors and Marines in recognizing that suffering and using mindful breathing as a foundational approach. “Our breath is always with us wherever we are, but focusing on our breath is incredibly difficult. Learning how to do so can anchor our mind in the present moment to draw ourself into inner stillness anywhere anytime.”
The practice of mindfulness, a present-centered, nonjudgmental awareness, improves sleep quality and self-regulation, relieves stress, and reduces anxiety, she said. And it works. “I still remember the comments by one of British Royal Navy sailors when I taught this class during my assignment at Chaplains Religious Enrichment Development Operation (CREDO) Detachment Bahrain from 2018 to 2021,” recounted Kim, who was born in Chicago and moved to Iksan when she was five. “The sailor told me, ‘Chaps, after your class last week, I slept like a baby for the first time in this six-month deployment. Thank you!’”
Charting her career as one of the very few Buddhist chaplains, let alone a female, is a practice of mindfulness in and of itself. “I have been either a unicorn or an alien in my military journey,” said Kim, whose father is an ordained Won Buddhist priest and grandfather, Venerable Daesan, was the 3rd head dharma master of Won Buddhism.
“I am usually the only woman, Asian, officer, and Buddhist chaplain in the room," she continued. "My presence represents the diversity of our Navy and provides hope for those afraid of asking for a seat at the table. Our system has been established to accommodate diverse individuals. Of course, there is always more we can do to improve our military culture, but the system allows minorities to progress and succeed.”
This very system presented Kim the opportunity she never would have contemplated of joining the Navy. When a Navy Reserve recruiter asked her in an unsolicited email, “Are you interested in Buddhist chaplaincy in the Navy?” right around her grandfather’s 18th memorial in September 2016, she took it as a sign. “I decided to give it a try, though if that Reservist chaplain opportunity had not been offered, I would not have joined since I thought I was never mentally or physically prepared for the military.” A little over a year later, she switched from Reserve to Active Duty in late 2018 to devote herself full time to taking care of Sailors and Marines’ spiritual needs.
Career success and fulfillment takes time and demands perseverance, and it does come to fruition. For instance, the U.S. Navy flew its newest official pennant in observance of the Buddhist Dharma service Kim held Sept. 11, 2022, aboard USS McFaul (DDG 74), thanks to the effort spearheaded by Kim. “I always remember the moment I witnessed the first Buddhist pennant ever flown underway. It had taken six months of approval, development, and production for this historical moment.” The Navy now maintains four religious pennants: Jewish, Christian, Buddhist, and Muslim.
Kim’s other memorable career event happened this spring “when I held a USMC Buddhist Chaplain subdued collar insignia at the Camp Foster uniform store in Okinawa, Japan,” recalled Kim. “It had taken 10 months for this insignia to be authorized, approved, produced, and delivered to the uniform store. This was the first time I had been able to purchase a Buddhist insignia offline, instead of having to place a special online orders for 10 of them. I feel like I have done something to help future Buddhist chaplains.”
Upon her promotion to O-4, Kim vows to follow the path of Buddha and sets her sight on higher aims. “My immediate goal is to obtain my Fleet Marine Force Qualified Officer pin,” she said. “Then I want to create a Buddhist Chaplaincy curriculum to establish the operational foundation for future Buddhist chaplains.”
For now, Kim continues to practice what she preaches – being mindful of the here and now. “My mantra is to be fully present wherever I am with acceptance, gratitude, generosity, and dedication,” she said. “I create for myself, and you can do this as well, an intentional zone of ‘no rush, no hurry, and no worry’ whenever and wherever I am.”
| Date Taken: | 09.01.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 09.26.2024 19:15 |
| Story ID: | 481585 |
| Location: | KR |
| Hometown: | IKSAN, JEONRABUGDO [CHOLLABUK-DO], KR |
| Hometown: | CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 1,722 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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