The Tennessean today profiles the first Buddhist Army chaplain, Thomas Dyer of Memphis.
Recruiting chaplains from diverse faiths is a challenge, in part because the recruiting system favors Christians and Jews.
A potential chaplain must have a master's degree in religion. But some faiths, such as Buddhism and Wicca, don't have seminaries, so they struggle to find chaplain candidates. Dyer qualified as a chaplain because already he had earned a master's degree as a Baptist pastor before converting to Buddhism.
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Dyer says he's ready for whatever comes. And he believes being knowledgeable about Christianity and Buddhism will make him a better chaplain. Most of all, he wants to be there."If I have a Church of Christ or more conservative soldier, he certainly does not need to know about dharma or things like that," he said. "But if he is in pain, or his child back home is sick, I need to be compassionate and help him through that moment. We both need to forget at that moment that I am a Buddhist."
