First in the army: First chaplain of the Muslim army calls for prayer

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It’s a first. On Wednesday, an army chaplain rolled out the prayer rug for the first time. Muris Begovic (41) is the army’s first Muslim chaplain. A photo shows how Begovic bows towards Mecca during field prayers, a dozen soldiers do the same.

The prayer took place on the occasion of the Muslim Feast of Sacrifice in Bayram in eastern Switzerland. Some army members of the Muslim faith would have liked to pray together. About two dozen members of other faiths from the companies of Mountain Rifle Battalion 6 also attended the ceremony.

He is there for everyone

Prayer is historic. Until about a year ago, only Catholics, Reformed and members of a free church were allowed to work as chaplains in the army.

Begovic is a trained imam. But as a preacher, he cares not only for his fellow Muslims, but also for all members of the army. Because every military troop is assigned a pastor, regardless of religious background. According to the military, ideological issues usually play a minor role when a member of the military turns to the pastor. On the contrary, they care for the well-being of the soldiers and even stand by their side when they are heartbroken.

People were afraid of negative reactions

In addition to Begovic as the first Muslim pastor, there are now two representatives of the Jewish faith in the army chaplaincy. Talks with other religious communities are ongoing. So there may soon be Buddhist and Hindu chaplains. The army spoke out in favor of inclusion, the army announced on request. It is therefore our responsibility to “promote a culture in which diversity is conscious, respectful and profitable”.

But the military is clearly still struggling to publicly support inclusion. Fearing negative reactions – apparently also from right-wing politicians – the army hesitated for a long time to make the first Muslim field prayer public, Blick knows. A request from Blick went unanswered for several days. Only when other media got wind of the ceremony did the military finally send a short statement on Thursday afternoon. (rba)

Source:Blick