Community invited to “Finding True North in the Midst of Change: Veteran Transition and Moral Injury”
A Spring 2021 webinar series sponsored by the Moral Injury Project of Hendricks Chapel, in affiliation with Le Moyne College, focused on veterans, student veterans, and military personnel “finding true north” in the midst of transitional times.
This three part webinar was part of a year-long exploration of the topic of moral injury and veteran transition. Within the context of military service, particularly regarding the experience of war, “moral injury” refers to the lasting emotional, psychological, social, behavioral, and spiritual impacts of actions that violate a service member’s core moral values and behavioral expectations of self or others (Litz et al., 2009). The first two webinars built a vocabulary and responsive practice for addressing moral injury. The third session addressed that understanding of moral injury in the context of drone warfare.
Programs Recordings
Friday, April 16
The first program in the series, “Diagnosing Moral Injury: Definitions, Deficits, and Development of Understanding,” featured Dr. Zachary Moon, assistant professor of theology and psychology at the Chicago Theology Seminary. He presented the basic foundations of trauma and moral injury studies, revisited operative definitions, and considered implicit conceptualizations of human suffering and healing. The presentation moved from foundations to the growing edges of scholarship and practice in addressing moral injury.
Friday, April 23
The second program, “Rebuilding the House: Reparative Practices and Community-based Efforts Addressing Moral Injury,” again featured Dr. Zachary Moon, assistant professor of theology and psychology at the Chicago Theology Seminary. It addressed the pro-social function of moral distress by considering the role of moral emotions, moral agency and the sense of responsibility.
Friday, April 30
The third program, “Wielding Drone Violence and Risking Moral Injury,” featured Dr. Christian Enemark, professor of international relations in the School of Economic, Social and Political Sciences, and European Research Council (ERC) principal investigator for the DRONETHICS project, both at the University of Southampton, UK. He was joined by his colleague Dr. Lindsay Clark, an ERC research fellow for the DRONETHICS project, to discuss ethical thinking about drone violence and the carried risks of moral injury.