The Role of the Chaplain in Tactical and Strategic Military Operations - George Youstra

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Today we have a unique and very interesting Combat Story with former Green Beret and later Command Chaplain at Special Operations Command, George Youstra. George accumulated over 400 flight hours, primarily in the F-16, at the urging of his boss at the time, General Breedlove, so he could better connect with and serve the pilots and airmen he was assigned to. After building his reputation as a Chaplain within the Air Force fighter community, he was given a call sign, “Saul,” which is perfectly suited given his role and stature.

In his career, George was a personal advisor to eight Four Star Generals and helped drive religious efforts at both tactical and strategic levels in multiple combat theaters, particularly within the Special Operations community. I had no idea how critical the Chaplain’s role would be for combatant commands at the strategic level, which is something we dive into in this episode, in addition to the tactical experience just being present for soldiers and airmen about to go into harm’s way, on the verge of taking their own lives, supporting brothers-in-arms who just lost a best friend, and wrestling with their spirituality in the heat of combat.

At SOCOM, George served as the principal and personal staff advisor to the Commander, Directors, and headquarters staff in areas related to morale, ethics and spirituality, to include advising on the role and impact of religion in the strategic environment.

With that, I hope you enjoy this incredibly insightful and moving conversation with one of the few Chaplains to have seen combat himself as a Special Forces officer, as much as I did.

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Show Notes:
00:00 - Intro
00:44 - Guest Introduction (George Youstra)
02:12 - Interview begins
02:45 - Childhood
04:45 - George's Marine Father
06:18 - Religion and the Military
08:48 - Path to the Chapalain Core
12:24 - Time in the Army
13:08 - Strom Thurmond
22:30 - Time in Special Forces
24:27 - Time in South America
29:30 - Challenging Operations as a Green Beret
34:30 - Going down the Chaplain path
37:16 - Training as a Chaplain
39:34 - Differences between Army and Air Force
42:21 - What makes a good Chaplain
50:04 - Day in the life of a Chaplain downrange
54:59 - Goals of a Chaplain
01:02:28 - Assistance with Mental Health
01:08:31 - "Saul" callsign
01:10:10 - Working with Fighter Pilots
01:18:47 - Perspective of leadership
01:22:40 - Leadership lessons
01:26:04 - Different religions in combat
01:37:58 - Most courageous act
01:41:37 - Sentimental items
01:43:03 - Do it all again
01:44:35 - Administering last rights
01:45:18 - Closing thoughts
01:46:19 - Listener comments and shout outs