https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/af9e176b-11b4-40a0-9807-a9c96d8c7196 Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCddem5RlB3bQe99wyY49g0g/join Support us on Patreon, visit https://www.patreon.com/PeriscopeFilm Visit our website www.PeriscopeFilm.com View our Amazon store here: https://amzn.to/3XQHsVD Dating to the late 1960s, "Yuletide Reflections" presents the work of the U.S. Navy's Chaplain Corps. It features narration by Navy Chaplain James W. Kelley, and shows Christmas and Hanukkah services in Vietnam during the height of the war. The film presents an overview of chaplains attending to the spiritual needs of sailors and Marines serving aboard ships in the Gulf of Tonkin and in Vietnam. Over 700 Navy Chaplains served with Marine Corps units in Vietnam between 1962 and 1972. With an average age of 37, these chaplains were often twice the age of the young men with whom they served. More than half were veterans of World War II and/or the Korean Conflict. All were volunteers. 0:00: Main titles. Rear Admiral James W. Kelly, Chief of Chaplains, introduces the film. He reports that the "true spirit of Christmas" was present in Vietnam, bridging the span between heart and home. Servicemen do not believe God is dead; on the contrary, they believe God is "vibrantly alive and present." He then shares impressions from his visit to South Vietnam during Christmastime last year. 3:45: On the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk in the Tonkin Gulf, the chaplain observes pilots launching into the uncertainties of air strikes. He references biblical comfort found in Psalm 139: "If I take the wings of the morning... even there shall thy hand lead me." Ashore, men in battle gear take precious moments to turn their thoughts to faith, referencing Psalm 23: "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies." 5:18: The chaplain found sailors "joyously answering that song of David": "How shall we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land?" He notes that the Jewish High Holy Days of Hanukkah were also solemnly observed. He then turns his attention to the children of South Vietnam, including orphans, noting that they often manage to find happiness in their grim daily existence. Servicemen fulfill Christ's admonition: "Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not." 6:31. The chaplain was moved by the "genuine care and sympathy" expressed by American personnel for the sick, hurt, or wounded Vietnamese. Sailors and Marines devote free time and money to the needs of these children, providing love and finding inner satisfaction in "loving their neighbor as themselves." This "ministry of care, compassion, and generosity" transcends religious or racial bounds. Caring includes providing medicine or school supplies, a reassuring word, or a church service. 7:38:. The chaplains recognize their work as a "rugged ministry" but accept it as a challenge of "immense satisfaction." A helmeted chaplain prepares to board his "flying steed." These helicopter-born Navy chaplains are presented as "twentieth-century circuit riders," bringing the ministry of faith to men wherever they are, and bringing God to men and men to God. The men, "battle-scarred," give thanks for deliverance using the words, "I will say of the Lord, he is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in him will I trust." 8:45: Mail from home is described as one of the most potent morale builders, brightening many a day and uplifting many a spirit. Americans carry the characteristic of building houses of worship into the Armed Forces, and it is evident in Vietnam. Often, the house of worship is nothing more than symbols of faith hastily placed on an altar of sandbags or the hood of a Jeep, but it becomes "holy ground" for men who have placed their trust in the Most High. 9:55. The clergy of many churches work together in Vietnam in a "truly a cooperative ministry." The selfless humanitarianism of chaplains and the rank-and-file military is evidenced in countless deeds of compassion, the heart of the Xmas message. The "tinsel and ornaments" are surface manifestations, but the real celebration takes place in the heart. Xmas was not lost in Vietnam, and will never be lost "as long as there are men who reach out with courage and sacrifice to uplift their fellow man." He extends warmest greetings for a blessed Christmas, saying that hope and security will come out of the conflict. 11:45 Santa Claus in Vietnam. Motion picture films don't last forever; many have already been lost or destroyed. If you have endangered films you'd like to have scanned, or wish to donate celluloid to Periscope Film so that we can share them with the world, we'd love to hear from you. Contact us via the weblink below. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. 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