Navy denies application from former minister who sought to be the first atheist chaplain

By Eric W. Dolan
Saturday, May 31, 2014 11:00 EDT

The Navy Chief of Chaplains has denied the application of a candidate who sought to become the first atheist chaplain in the military.

Jason Heap earned degrees from the University of Oxford and of Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University. He was licensed as a Christian minister, but ended up abandoning his faith and becoming a secular humanist.

In 2013, Heap filed an application to become the Navy’s first humanist chaplain. He told the Los Angeles Times that he wished to provide philosophical and spiritual aid to both faithful and faithless service members.

“As both a humanist and a scholar of religion, I have a deep knowledge and understanding of world religions,” Heap said. “My purpose and focus as a chaplain will be for holistic well-being of anyone who is in need of pastoral care.”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/05/31/navy-denies-application-from-former-minister-who-sought-to-be-the-first-atheist-chaplain/

http://articles.latimes.com/2013/aug/17/nation/la-na-humanist-chaplain-20130818