As a Christian, one of the things I was curious to see on the USS Kearsarge was the chapel. I was disappointed. I’m not a fan of fancy church buildings. The less money spent on fulfilling the necessity of having a place to worship, the better. So in that sense, I was happy to see the simplicity of the chapel -- a few dozen chairs, a modest lectern, a projection screen, a television. There wasn’t much to see, frankly. I snapped a photo and left. What I don’t like about the chapel is the location. The Navy has it buried in the lower part of the ship, down one of the two steepest ladder wells we’ve seen on the Kearsarge, and in a steamy room. It’s not the most inviting place onboard. People of faith undoubtedly will trek their way to the chapel on a regular basis. But such people clearly are not a priority for the Navy. Even worse, those who are curious about Christ are less likely to go searching if they have to trek to one of the least welcoming places on the ship. I hope the Kearsarge is the exception to the Navy rule about onboard chapel locations.
