There’s a saying that life is what happens when you are busily making other plans.

The Rev. J. Wesley Smith, interim rector of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church and a lieutenant colonel in the Army, would agree after the events that have happened in his life over the last month.

First, his family experienced a loss when his daughter’s husband died as a result of a tragic accident. Then Smith realized he needed to be closer to his family as his wife, Kristina, had been given a job in Tennessee. And most re-cently, he received a call from the Department of the Army that he was being recalled to active duty.

“This was quite unexpected,” Smith said.

As a result of his wife’s acceptance of a position with a hospital in Nashville, Smith said, “I had decided I was going to leave St. Mark’s at the end of the calendar year and had accepted a position as a pastoral therapist.” In addition to his duties as an Episcopal priest, the Savannah native had received training and his education in counseling, and had served for more than 20 years as an Army chaplain.

Because of his love of the ministry opportunities at St. Mark’s, Smith said he had a hard time making the decision to leave, “but with Kristina accepting the new position and no longer in LaGrange with me, we both felt we needed to be together.”

Then he got the call from the Pentagon.

“While I was not expecting this, I am an officer in the Army and a soldier, so I have responsibilities to fulfill,” he said.

He said the position he has been assigned to is “a newly created one. There has been an increase in war casualties - what with the events in Afghanistan - and deaths by suicide, and the Army wants to have an Army chaplain available to be involved with the families and any other issues that arise.”

“When a service member dies, the families are flown to Washington and provided meals and lodging and they are escorted to Dover Air Force Base, where they witness their loved one’s casket being transferred from the plane to a waiting hearse - which is called the dignified transfer of the remains. The Department of Defense assists the family in planning a funeral either at Arlington National Cemetery or in their hometown or at another place of the family’s choosing,” Smith said.

“The Army really does care about their soldiers, and in light of the recent events, they decided they really needed a chaplain, their own chaplain, to be there, and be the face of the Army for the family members. I will be there to greet them, escort them, provide them with grief counseling if need be and just be a pastoral presence for them.”

His new responsibilities won’t be taken lightly. With the recent personal grief he has gone through, “Never did I imagine that I would stand beside my daughter as her husband, 28-year-old husband at that, was buried.”

Smith is no stranger in dealing with death, tragedy and grief, but he said, “This is going to be different.”

As to what he will do or say in the situations he will be facing with family members with questions about the death of their loved ones, Smith said, “I really can’t answer that, because I don’t have an answer. Some of them will come to me and ask me about death and why, and I can’t tell them because God is the only one who has that answer, but I just plan on being there for them, to assist them in dealing with their hurts and hopefully, provide some sort of comfort for them.”

“I can’t predict the scenarios, as when people are dealing with death, there are a myriad of reactions,” he said. “Some of them will be angry, and even angry at God, and the Army, and as a priest, I will be there representing God and as an officer in the Army, I will represent the Army. They may be angry with me because of that, but I understand it is all a part of the grieving process.”

To be able to maintain his responsibilities and his own positive attitude with his new role, Smith said, “I will be having a few days off … I try to stay physically fit, and also, spiritually, by being in His word.”

For the separation from his wife, Smith just smiled,.

“We’ve done this before. She is loaning me out again to the Army,” he said.

Thinking for a moment, Smith said,” Religion is for people who are afraid of going to Hell, but spirituality is for people have been there. Hard times allow for us to grow and become deeper people. I won’t see these people after their time of grieving. I won’t see them when they bounce back from the lowest time in their lives - as they are dealing with the loss of their loved one, I can just hope that they will bounce back and while I am with them, just do my best to offer them what they need.”

Smith’s final day as the rector at Saint Mark’s will be No. 30, and he reports for duty at the Pentagon on Dec. 14.

Becky Holland can be reached at bholland@ lagrangenews.com or (706) 884-7311, Ext. 229.