Biography

This is a very helpful address. For me as a chaplain underlines the need for be ready to help bolster character and ethics. LTGEN Stuart did not refer to Spiritual Conditioning itself but his words set conditions for its imperative.

I appreciated how the Chief began with affirming RMC-D’s role in preparing leaders for land combat (with a current class present for his address the Australian War Memorial). He celebrated bravery in Army’s bloody history yet also acknowledged the dark shadows when soldiers have ‘surrendered to the dark moments of war’. He appeals for renewed attention to our character and purpose as experts in land combat. He warns the price of under preparedness is the blood of soldiers and imperilled missions.

Re Army’s jurisdiction and unique service to society, LTGEN Stuart urges investing in soldier’s identity and an open dialogue (including hard discussions) with society and government. His appeal for a renaissance in civil-military relationships prompted me to re-consider how chaplains engage with churches, as one stream of society on whom we would further depend in war.

Re Army’s expertise the Chief underlined the importance of the character and leadership of soldiering. He comments training for combat needs to be hard and as realistic as possible. His update was that he has directed ab-initio training be changed to be as long as necessary, including extending Kapooka and RMC-D and changing ADFA’s curriculum to focus on war studies.

The Chief urges rewiring our professional body of knowledge for rapid adaptation given pace of change is measured in days not year with resulting ethical challenges:

‘Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shows how the exigencies and momentum of war will override the concerns of international ethics, law and the illusion of control. Machines that make autonomous decisions to apply violence to kill are coming. Whether we like it or not we will face them even if we choose not to use them. Our Army must be rewired to adapt to this reality. We will need to be ready to tread the exceptionally fine line between military expediency, adaptation and our ethics. This may well test the judgment of our profession further than it has ever been tested before.’

Re Army’s capacity for self-regulation, and the need to address the ‘long shadow of Afghanistan’, LTGEN Stuart referred to the need to maintain standards in the face of warfare’s corrupting influence but also stressed the need for Command accountability. The Chief referred to further reading to instil a virtue ethic and arm us against war’s corrupting nature in the Essentials of Land Warfare’s ‘The Soldier’ on battlefield realities and ethical challenges and ‘The Sword and Baton’ as an accountability code of honour and conduct expected of Generals.

A penultimate comment addressed command responsibility and trust via compassion and tenderness for soldiers:

‘Army commanders are expected to extend a duty of care for their soldiers that goes well beyond the norms of our society. This duty counts whether our soldiers are in or out of uniform, in sickness or in health, and extends to the wellbeing of their families. This is wholly appropriate and we would not have it any other way. It is central to trust and our will to fight.’

The Chief said he will give more authority and resources for Commanders to have agency to look after soldiers in their units alongside their mates, and to lead with discipline not complex administrative remedies.

I listed to the address twice yesterday. It leaves me challenged and curious – both about what Army will do differently and what we as chaplains can best contribute into the mix for the future of the Army profession.

To the Chief - thank you Sir for your thought leadership/ organisational leadership/ Command leadership. I'll be pondering implications in days to come.