Uncle Sam is uncertain no longer. We are moving ahead with the Active Duty Army Chaplaincy. Some highlights that led to this transition: Throughout the winter, I was in the process of transferring to the North Dakota National Guard to make my military service more compatible with ministry here in Buffalo. The trickiest part of this was getting my chain of command to release me from the Reserves. It took months, so hold that thought until we get a few bullet points down. In April, I performed some Annual Training days at Fort Lewis near Seattle, WA. Curiously, the particular chain of command to which I was assigned had a majority of Presbyterian chaplains (this doesn't happen). Each one took me aside to tell me that I should go into Active Duty, that this is who I am and I need to get with the program. Not news I wanted to hear, but these are elders in the church who had nothing to gain by telling me this, so I had to listen. By mid-May, I could no longer wrestle with the guida...