Rabbi To The 'Heroes of Afghanistan'

A tragic story really from the darkest corners of ignorance in the US. What they really need in Kandahar right now is a US National Guard rabbi with a yamakka, bleating about 9/11. It is from pits of darkness like this that springs the lack of any cultural awareness of muslim peoples or their cultures that typifies US foreign policy. The full gamut of the madness is here. The good Rabbi is totally unaware of any crassness on his part or that of the people cheering him off. Surreal it is. But all too real at the same time. The story is sourced from several US local newsfeeds who carried it as a 'stars and stripes' bonanza.

'Rabbi Laurence Bazer remembers seeing blue sky on 9/11. And then he turned around. The World Trade Center's Twin Towers had fallen, and Building 4 was a ring of fire.

"I felt like I was looking into hell," he said.

As a chaplain with the New York Army National Guard, Bazer was called to New York City to help on the day of terror attacks. Almost 10 years later, Bazer, a lieutenant colonel with the Massachusetts National Guard, has been called to serve in Afghanistan.

"I was there at the start of this entire war," Bazer said last week. "It's a full circle feeling that now I'm going."

A Framingham resident, Bazer leads a congregation of 500 families at Temple Beth Sholom on Pamela Road. His six- to seven-month tour in Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, will be his first deployment after 22 years in the military. Parishioners are "very sad that I'm going, very concerned with my safety," Bazer said.

"But what's most comforting is (they're) very proud that I'm serving," he said Wednesday in his office, which is filled with books and decorated with military mementos. A pair of Beanie Babies wearing fatigues sits on a shelf. Bazer, 47, wore a G.I. Joe tie as he talked about his call to duty and having to leave his congregants and family behind. He and his wife, Leslie, have a 13-year-old son, Oren, and 11-year-old daughter, Eliana.

As a joint forces state chaplain, Bazer is usually responsible for recruiting other chaplains to fill deploying units.But for the 26th Yankee Brigade's upcoming deployment in April, "I did not have someone within our ranks - Mass. Guard - to fill the position," he said.

Temple President John Kahn said the rabbi is the fifth person with ties to the temple either serving in or heading to Afghanistan. Another is stationed in Iraq.

"We're pleased we can make this kind of contribution," said Kahn, a Korean War veteran who served with the Navy.

Bazer said he hopes to return home in time for the Jewish high holy days, which start with Rosh Hashanah on Sept. 28. "It's a great sacrifice," said Scott Sokol, the temple's cantor, who will fill in for Bazer.

He frosted red, white and blue cupcakes for a send-off party the congregation is planning for Bazer this Saturday. Bazer starts his annual two-week training today at brigade headquarters in Reading. He leaves Feb. 15 for mobilization training at Fort Hood, Texas.

Lt. Col. George Harrington, executive officer for the Reading-based 26th Yankee Brigade, said Bazer is the first Jewish chaplain in Mass. National Guard history.

"I am actually thankful that he will be coming with us," Harrington said. "He is a good friend as a well as a very good military officer." Bazer has counseled soldiers and their family members, prayed over send-off and welcome-home ceremonies, and served as chaplain on the personal staff of the state guard's adjutant general, Joseph Carter. In Afghanistan, he will work to build morale and support his fellow soldiers.

A chaplain is "someone to be there through sometimes dark times," Bazer said - an ear to bend and a source of guidance. He will specifically serve as the chaplain for the historic Yankee Brigade's Col. John Hammond and all the unit's soldiers.

Bazer has been assigned two other roles, as well: to oversee Jewish religious programs for the Army in Kabul, and to serve as command chaplain for all the Army's military bases in the city - coordinating all services, religious supplies, and other areas.

"As I say," he joked, "I'll be wearing three yamakas." He won't carry a weapon, he said, but will have an assistant who serves as his bodyguard.

"I know my job is not to go find Osama bin Laden in the foothills of Afghanistan," Bazer joked, but instead to bless the soldiers who go out on missions and welcome them back to their base. "That's a role I'm very proud of." Preschool teachers at Beth Sholom have been preparing the children for Bazer's deployment, talking about what he does at the temple and what his job will be in Afghanistan.

The 4- and 5-year-olds came up with a list. In Framingham, "He tells us what songs to sing," leads prayers, talks in Hebrew, works on a computer and makes sure everyone at the temple is safe.

When he is with the Army, the youngsters think Bazer will help people if they have a problem or are in trouble and keep people from getting hurt."One little boy said he's going to be the rabbi for the heroes," preschool director Barbara Davis said. "I thought that was just so beautiful."