Last 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 the Philippines, Japan and the Korean Peninsula. Along the way, his patrol 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 has spent nearly five years as a military chaplain. Until last year, he exclusively served on land, but felt an urge to spend time at sea. He tried to minister to all 257 crew members, most of whom were Catholics and Protestants—though he did discover one sailor of Russian Jewish descent, and ended up coaching the man to study for a very belated bar mitzvah.

Now back on dry land with his family in Thornhill and celebrating his birthday, Rabbi Glogauer joins to share some seafaring stories and describe life on a navy warship.

What we talked about:

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.