WEBVTT 00:00.790 --> 00:02.027 - Semper fi, Marines. 00:02.027 --> 00:04.267 Chaplain Cash here from Headquarters Marine Corps. 00:04.655 --> 00:06.855 Over the past few weeks, I've sent out two messages 00:06.855 --> 00:08.720 dealing with the fight against despair, 00:08.720 --> 00:11.218 depression, and for some, suicide. 00:11.218 --> 00:13.861 The key points from these messages were, one, 00:13.861 --> 00:15.151 this is a fight. 00:15.151 --> 00:18.275 And Marines and Sailors, you need powerful weapons with which to fight. 00:18.275 --> 00:20.195 Weapons like faith and hope. 00:20.195 --> 00:22.282 Mental health and clinical professionals, 00:22.282 --> 00:24.805 while very important, are not alone sufficient 00:24.805 --> 00:26.651 to help us overcome these battles. 00:26.651 --> 00:29.216 So fight, but fight with powerful weapons. 00:29.720 --> 00:31.711 Another point we raised was that leaders, 00:31.711 --> 00:34.709 small unit leaders, you are the main effort. 00:34.709 --> 00:37.604 Your willingness to lean into the life of that Marine or Sailor 00:37.604 --> 00:39.322 can make the biggest difference, 00:39.322 --> 00:41.873 which is to say outsourcing Marines to mental health 00:41.873 --> 00:43.410 as our first response 00:43.410 --> 00:45.527 is not necessarily the right answer. 00:45.527 --> 00:47.284 For some, yes. 00:47.284 --> 00:49.378 For emergent situations, absolutely. 00:49.378 --> 00:51.459 But for many, perhaps most, 00:51.459 --> 00:53.968 what that Marine needs is a leader in their life 00:53.968 --> 00:55.582 asking good questions 00:55.582 --> 00:57.425 and helping them see a way ahead. 00:57.425 --> 00:59.771 This brings me to the focus for this message: 00:59.771 --> 01:02.032 commanders and sergeants major. 01:02.032 --> 01:04.294 Senior leaders, this message is for you. 01:04.294 --> 01:06.109 I think you know that when it comes to helping 01:06.109 --> 01:08.225 your Marines win the battles of life, 01:08.225 --> 01:09.601 you set conditions. 01:09.601 --> 01:12.444 No one has as much influence in the command as you do. 01:12.444 --> 01:14.073 It's why you're in the position you're in. 01:14.664 --> 01:16.563 Let me first say that setting the conditions 01:16.563 --> 01:18.590 for your Marines and Sailors to overcome in life 01:18.590 --> 01:21.131 is absolutely about warfighting. 01:21.131 --> 01:23.612 It's not a sideshow or a distraction. 01:23.612 --> 01:25.567 It's a key element of the mission. 01:25.567 --> 01:27.202 It's been said before, 01:27.202 --> 01:29.376 a man or a woman of character at peace 01:29.376 --> 01:32.329 is a man or a woman of courage in war. 01:32.329 --> 01:34.553 This means the inner workings of one's life, 01:34.553 --> 01:36.283 our habits, thoughts, 01:36.283 --> 01:39.309 how we spend our time, all of that comes to the surface 01:39.309 --> 01:42.781 in combat for good or for ill. 01:43.882 --> 01:45.556 So any amount of time you spend on 01:45.556 --> 01:48.031 setting conditions for resilience and spiritual strength 01:48.031 --> 01:51.263 will pay big dividends when the rounds start flying. 01:51.827 --> 01:54.913 How can you set better conditions to help your Marines overcome? 01:54.913 --> 01:56.824 Two quick points from me. 01:57.820 --> 02:00.740 First, enculturate your Marines and Sailors. 02:00.740 --> 02:03.376 Last count, nearly 70% of Marines 02:03.376 --> 02:05.165 who died by suicide this year 02:05.165 --> 02:07.797 were between the ages of 17 to 21 years old, 02:07.797 --> 02:10.824 and over 80% of them had never deployed. 02:10.824 --> 02:13.273 While many commands have local policies 02:13.273 --> 02:14.830 for check-in and assimilation, 02:14.830 --> 02:16.905 I think we can all agree that at best 02:16.905 --> 02:18.787 this happens sporadically. 02:18.787 --> 02:21.012 Marines who check into your command should be 02:21.012 --> 02:23.379 entering a well-lit and deliberate path 02:23.379 --> 02:25.991 of assimilation that is planned and reinforced 02:25.991 --> 02:27.773 at multiple stages. 02:27.773 --> 02:30.712 Seeing a chaplain within the first few days is crucial. 02:30.712 --> 02:32.475 I would even say the first few hours. 02:32.475 --> 02:35.258 Follow-ups where a leader asks good questions 02:35.258 --> 02:37.435 about that Marine's background 02:37.435 --> 02:39.461 and gets them life-changing resources, 02:39.461 --> 02:41.490 also crucial. 02:41.490 --> 02:43.803 Planned events for those first tour Marines 02:43.803 --> 02:46.884 at the 1-, 3-, 5-month juncture 02:46.884 --> 02:48.723 that emphasize higher purpose, 02:48.723 --> 02:51.090 spiritual strength, and relationships, 02:51.090 --> 02:53.010 also crucial 02:53.010 --> 02:55.175 to enculturating that Marine into the command 02:55.175 --> 02:57.340 and more importantly welcoming them 02:57.340 --> 02:59.302 into a new kind of family. 03:00.247 --> 03:02.104 The specifics on this kind of thing will vary 03:02.104 --> 03:03.725 based on your command type and mission. 03:03.725 --> 03:05.313 We leave that to you. 03:05.313 --> 03:06.621 But however you do it, 03:06.621 --> 03:09.017 enculturate and assimilate your young Marines. 03:09.017 --> 03:11.086 Make it a priority and let me just say, 03:11.086 --> 03:13.079 get your chaplains working on this. 03:13.079 --> 03:15.433 It will be lifesaving to your Marines and Sailors, 03:13.080 --> 03:12.940 your chaplains working on this . It 03:15.433 --> 03:17.917 and combat multiplying for your mission. 03:17.917 --> 03:20.551 The other point on setting conditions is this: 03:21.550 --> 03:22.909 counterattack. 03:22.909 --> 03:24.875 That's right, counterattack. 03:24.875 --> 03:26.895 I'm talking about your championing 03:26.895 --> 03:29.019 of spiritual fitness among your Marines. 03:29.019 --> 03:31.149 Let me dispel some myths. 03:31.149 --> 03:33.468 Spiritual fitness is not a feeling. 03:33.468 --> 03:36.471 It's not a warm cup of tea and positive thoughts. 03:36.471 --> 03:38.597 It's not merely optimism 03:38.597 --> 03:40.605 or an emotional self-talk in front of a mirror. 03:40.605 --> 03:41.750 No. 03:41.750 --> 03:44.165 Marine Corps spiritual fitness is a counterattack 03:44.165 --> 03:45.793 to a loss of meaning and purpose 03:45.793 --> 03:47.544 among young adults today. 03:47.544 --> 03:49.458 Almost six out of 10 young people 03:49.458 --> 03:52.355 cannot even state they have a meaning or purpose. 03:52.355 --> 03:53.838 That's a Harvard study. 03:53.838 --> 03:56.895 Spiritual fitness is a deliberate reply and answer 03:56.895 --> 03:59.418 to the loss of hope that is overwhelming young people 03:59.418 --> 04:00.990 and many of your Marines. 04:00.990 --> 04:03.168 And look, we've made this very easy. 04:03.168 --> 04:04.804 We describe it in five words. 04:04.804 --> 04:06.510 Read the commandant's ALMAR. 04:06.510 --> 04:07.918 What is spiritual fitness? 04:08.543 --> 04:10.789 Inner strength from higher purpose. 04:10.789 --> 04:12.089 That's it. 04:12.089 --> 04:14.177 In other words, I'm stronger here 04:14.177 --> 04:17.140 when I'm connecting to something bigger than me. 04:17.140 --> 04:19.863 And it carries all the freight of our faith traditions, 04:19.863 --> 04:22.423 the wisdom and power of sacred scriptures, 04:22.423 --> 04:25.026 and the evidence from the clinical sciences. 04:25.026 --> 04:27.075 When a young adult practices faith, 04:27.075 --> 04:28.710 holds to a religious tradition, 04:28.710 --> 04:30.726 engaging in spiritual disciplines, 04:30.726 --> 04:33.064 they are overwhelmingly better off. 04:33.064 --> 04:36.210 They are up to 80% less likely to take their lives, 04:36.210 --> 04:38.258 which means they are 80% more likely 04:38.258 --> 04:40.887 to be ready for the mission and ready for the fight. 04:40.887 --> 04:42.393 They're also happier, 04:42.393 --> 04:44.160 more fulfilled in their jobs, 04:44.160 --> 04:46.104 more faithful to their relationships, 04:46.104 --> 04:49.855 and more likely to serve and, if necessary, sacrifice. 04:49.855 --> 04:52.244 Commanders, sergeants major, 04:52.244 --> 04:54.531 you set the conditions for this. 04:54.531 --> 04:56.541 As your chaplain, let me say, 04:56.541 --> 04:59.123 every one of you should be talking about spiritual fitness 04:59.123 --> 05:01.307 in clear and compelling ways. 05:01.307 --> 05:04.428 I'm talking about the leader's role in advocating for programs, 05:04.428 --> 05:06.563 leveraging your chaplains, 05:06.563 --> 05:09.564 and lifting up the place of the human soul in your command. 05:10.331 --> 05:12.922 We are more than atoms and electrical impulses 05:12.922 --> 05:14.648 firing off one another. 05:14.648 --> 05:17.458 We are mind, we are body, and we are spirit. 05:17.458 --> 05:20.439 And the best leaders don't dismiss the spirit. 05:20.439 --> 05:23.231 They call it forth, they cultivate it, 05:23.231 --> 05:24.808 and they inspire it. 05:24.808 --> 05:27.053 Remember what our 13th commandant said. 05:27.732 --> 05:30.639 "There is no substitute for the spiritual in war." 05:31.368 --> 05:34.148 Leaders, how do you speak to the soul of your Marines? 05:34.148 --> 05:36.391 Here's an example I've heard from a leader. 05:36.391 --> 05:38.262 He'd say, Marines, 05:38.262 --> 05:41.523 spiritual fitness is inner strength from higher purpose. 05:41.523 --> 05:43.825 Let me tell you what brings me higher purpose. 05:43.825 --> 05:45.710 Faith, family, 05:45.710 --> 05:47.871 country, and Corps. 05:47.871 --> 05:49.620 What an example. 05:49.620 --> 05:51.687 What a vision to set before your people. 05:51.687 --> 05:53.258 And they'll need it. 05:53.258 --> 05:55.433 In my experience in Iraq and Afghanistan, 05:55.433 --> 05:58.802 Marines and Sailors face death for one of two reasons. 05:59.897 --> 06:01.703 First, they do it for one another 06:01.703 --> 06:04.946 and the love and loyalty they have to their fellow Marine and Sailor. 06:04.946 --> 06:07.689 And second, many dare to believe 06:07.689 --> 06:09.388 there is a God who goes with them 06:09.388 --> 06:11.173 and they're not alone. 06:11.173 --> 06:12.908 I think of those famous words 06:12.908 --> 06:15.619 of Colonel David Shupe in the early hours 06:15.619 --> 06:17.167 of bloody Tarawa. 06:17.167 --> 06:18.806 "Casualties, many. 06:18.806 --> 06:21.280 "Percentage of dead, unknown. 06:21.280 --> 06:24.470 "Combat efficiency, we are winning." 06:25.637 --> 06:27.645 That is spiritual fitness. 06:28.029 --> 06:30.191 A Marine who not only sees death 06:30.191 --> 06:33.535 but sees through it to the greater reward. 06:34.677 --> 06:35.987 Enough from me. 06:35.987 --> 06:38.861 Leaders, set conditions for what matters the most 06:38.861 --> 06:41.983 and let's help our men and women fight the good fight together. 06:41.983 --> 06:43.989 Semper fi.