By Kester Kenn Klomegah
MOSCOW, Aug 2 2007 (IPS)

Low morale and high crime within the Russian army could be tackled if the interior ministry and the military authorities accept strengthening army chaplaincy as an instrument of change, religious leaders say.

"There is rising suicide in the army because spiritual faith and religious belief continue to shrink," Reverend (Dr) Paul Amara, an expert on Russian history and leader of the Methodist Church in New York told IPS.

Religious services could help establishment a proper chapel, holding worship services, and boosting the morale of soldiers, he said.

Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia has expressed support for establishment of a legal mechanism to regulate relationships between religious organisations and the army.

"I welcome the idea of legitimising the army chaplaincy and believe it will promote fruitful cooperation between religious organisations and the law-enforcement agencies," he said in an interview published by the interior ministry&#39s Schit i Mech newspaper.

Alexy II said a modern army is impossible without a religious component, and that proper life in the army is unthinkable without religious freedom guaranteed by the Russian constitution.

"Unfortunately, a real legal mechanism for ensuring this freedom for the believers who serve in the army has not been developed as yet. Special legislative actions are necessary because the regime existing in military units puts restrictions on the opportunity for servicemen to enjoy spiritual care."

He said many problems in other armies had been solved through chaplaincy supported by the state. This practice has long existed in Britain, Germany, Canada, France and the United States. The Baltic countries and Armenia have taken a similar path. A decision to establish army chaplaincy has also been taken by Ukraine and Georgia.

Archpriest Dmitry Smirnov of the Patriarchate Synod department told the Trud (Workers) newspaper that there are already some parish priests who work in the Russian army on a more or less regular basis. Many soldiers were baptised in the army, especially in "hot spots" or military zones, he said. The situation could be improved by further intensifying religious activity in the institution, he said.

The Holy See&#39s representative in Russia Archbishop Antonio Mennini has also backed the idea of instituting chaplaincy in the Russian army, and introducing basic Christian Orthodox culture in the secondary schools educational curriculum.

"Christian education in schools and pastoral service in the army is a long tradition in the Catholic Church. Therefore, we cannot but sympathise with the plans to develop both in Russia," Mennini said in an interview with Interfax news agency.

President of the Washington-based Institute for Global Engagement, Dr Chris Seiple, told IPS that religious services can be good for the military.

"I came to this conclusion through my experience when leading marine infantrymen. Of course, there was clear authority, but I found that when I took time to address the issues and concerns – foremost among the concerns is spiritual – a better unit emerged."

The military should be able to freely choose any faith as a fundamental human right, he said, but when religion is a component of the state, the two inevitably become mixed.

According to official data, 83 percent of those who serve in the Russian armed forces are Orthodox, eight percent are Muslims and nine percent are followers of other faiths.

This means that the state should take reasonable measures to provide ministers proportionate to the differing faiths, Seiple said. That would mean large numbers of the Orthodox Christians in the Russian army. But, he said, it would be important to give Jews and Muslims and other minority faiths fair representation.

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