In August, Capt. Rabbi Arnold Noteh Glogauer made Canadian military history as the first Canadian Jewish chaplain to set sail with the Royal Canadian Navy. Aboard HMCS Winnipeg, he spent four months in and around the Pacific Ocean for manoeuvres off of the Philippines, Japan and the Korean Peninsula. Along the way, his frigate kept a lookout for ships smuggling fuel illegally to North Korea and provoked the wrath of the Chinese government by sailing through the disputed straits between China and Taiwan in support of Taipei’s struggle against its powerhouse neighbour.

The Chabad rabbi is a fifth-generation military veteran, with a great-grandfather who served in the First World War. After nearly five years as a military chaplain, during which time Rabbi Glogauer exclusively served on land, he felt an urge to spend time at sea. He wound up ministering to all 257 crew members, most of whom were Catholics and Protestants—though he did discover one sailor of Russian Jewish descent, and coached the man to study for a very belated bar mitzvah.

Now back on dry land and on leave celebrating his birthday with his family in Thornhill, Rabbi Glogauer joins The CJN Daily podcast to share some seafaring stories and describe life as the “padre” on a navy warship.

What we talked about:

• Read “In the Navy: First Jewish chaplain aboard a warship seeks to build relationships” at thecjn.ca
• Watch the unveiling of a mosaic by the Jewish Federation of Edmonton, “Shine a Light on Antisemitism”, on YouTube

Credits

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.