Photo By Melissa Buckley | Fort Leonard Wood’s Family Life Center is located within the Religious Support...... read more read more
FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — The role of a U.S. Army chaplain is multifaceted; at times they not only help Soldiers spiritually but also holistically. As part of this holistic approach, chaplains across Fort Leonard Wood came together June 17, 2026, to gain an understanding of moral injury, adding it to their list of helping tools. Maneuver Support Center of Excellence Command Chaplain Eric Light said he has been working toward bringing the training here for a year after asking himself how the post’s religious support team could best help someone dealing with moral injury. His work led to an overview presented by Bob Waldrep with Crosswinds Foundation. “This material doesn’t tell you what to do, it gives you the tools to help that person to work it out for themselves,” Light said. “When we talk about health and holistic fitness, there are a lot of different disciplines that go into the whole picture of health, and this just sharpens our ability to help people in this particular area.” He said chaplains can help people find hope in times when they otherwise struggle to see the future. “Your future is incredibly important and there is potential in every person regardless of what their past is like,” Light said. “Sometimes they can’t see it, and I felt like this is the kind of program that helps them to overcome that and get to a place where they can see it.” Since chaplains are typically the first advisors many turn to first when seeking help, he said this added knowledge will be valuable. “Many times, when things are not going well, command and other Soldiers think of chaplains, and I feel like it’s important that we have tools and abilities that speak into their problems. That’s why this is important,” Light said. What is moral injury? To briefly summarize the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD’s explanation, moral injury occurs when a person does, fails to prevent, witnesses or is betrayed by actions that violate the values and beliefs that person holds and considers. They explain further that while PTSD and moral injury can overlap, the difference is PTSD is typically rooted in fear and danger, while moral injury is rooted in guilt, shame, anger, betrayal, or a loss of trust, which could be in oneself, others or even the higher power in which they believe. Light describes it as, “dealing with things that you wish were different in life and can’t control. Many times, it’s guilt by association, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, or even being in the wrong family.” Family Life Chaplain Christopher Weinrich said many service members and families forged their lives with moments of suffering and pain. “We look back at those moments and try to find meaning and purpose. We want to find purpose,” he said. “I reflect on my life in the Army — the numerous deployments, trainings and missions brought some painful moments in life impacting my moral injuries.” He said no one should deal with it alone. “I try to walk alone through these moments, but I need other people. I need to hear my battle buddies’ stories to find healing with my moral injury,” Weinrich said. “These moments develop my life and make me a stronger chaplain and person.” Light said, “acceptance is powerful. Soldiers will seek out the company of those who understand them in order to feel the belonging they need. The ideal situation is one where communities seek to understand the cost of the Soldier’s sacrifice and extend acceptance and gratitude to them. Self-forgiveness plays a crucial part in the spiritual healing process, according to Light. “(We) start by helping them see that forgiveness is at the center of a healthy self-concept and ask them if they would hold someone else close to them by the same standard they are judging themselves,” he said. “Ultimately, this cannot be forced but there are so many examples of people who found freedom through self-forgiveness.” Those struggling and wishing to speak to a chaplain, or to receive counseling through the Family Life Center, should call 573.596.2695. Fort Leonard Wood’s Chaplain Family Life Center is located in Bldg. 340 and offers free, confidential counseling for marriage; individual; family; children; premarital; life/stress; trauma/PTSD; and addictions; to military ID card holders, dependents and Department of Army civilians. More information on the Chaplain Family Life Center can be found at https://home.army.mil/wood/5716/9817/4275/Family_Life_Flyer_2022.pdf. “We’re taking a step in the right direction when it comes to questions that are difficult to answer,” Light said. “It’s common, there’s nothing shameful about it. And life is better when you deal with rather than internalize it.”
| Date Taken: | 06.18.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 06.18.2026 15:11 |
| Story ID: | 568191 |
| Location: | FORT LEONARD WOOD, MISSOURI, US |
| Web Views: | 26 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Healing the soul: FLW chaplains receive 'important' moral injury training, by Dawn Arden, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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