God and Country

A local article notes the service of Maj. Kamal Kalsi, a US Army doctor granted an exception to policy to allow the wear of a Sikh turban, beard, and other items specific to their faith.

He is one of three Sikh soldiers serving in the U.S. Army, and the only one at Fort Bragg.

Kalsi says he serves because of his love for the United States; his favorite holiday is even July 4th.

Despite the uniqueness of his faith in the Army, he says his similarities with his fellow Soldiers have “outweighed his differences:”  Read more…

A US Army article again highlights SPC Simranpreet Singh, the sole non-medical Sikh Soldier granted a waiver of uniform standards so he may adhere to his religious dress requirements.

The article again documents the difficulty Singh had in having his enlistment accepted.  It also repeats the prior news that Singh has had no significant issues either with the institutional Army or with individual Soldiers, despite his (significantly) minority faith:  Read more…

A local paper notes the training of SPC Simram Lamba, the first observant Sikh to serve as an enlisted line Soldier in decades.  For his part, Lamba seems to find it a non-event:

Lamba…said the most frequently asked question by his fellow soldiers is about his unshorn hair and beard.

Lamba said both are considered Sikh articles of faith. He called them a “natural gift from God, and we’re not going to destroy it.”

Lamba added the soldiers at his side treat him like any Read more…

Mad Padre, a blogging Canadian military Chaplain, posted a link to an interesting article in The Maple Leaf, the Canadian military paper.  Entitled “Duty to accommodate in the CF,” the short article touches on the Canadian Forces’ policies on religious (and other) accommodation.

The article includes a picture of a Sikh Army officer.  The US Army has currently made few uniform exceptions for Sikhs within its ranks, both enlisted and officer.

As noted earlier this year, Rabbi Menachem Stern has been trying for some time to become a US military Chaplain, but has faced resistance over his orthodox appearance.  He has apparently been unable to obtain a waiver for his beard.

He is now reportedly suing the Army for “denying him a commission” because of his religious tenets.  His lawsuit specifically cites the recent waivers given to Sikhs — men who were not Chaplains — and a bearded Muslim intern Read more…

Newly enlisted US Army SPC Simran Preet Singh Lamba has become the first non-medical officer observant Sikh to enter the US Army in decades (previously noted).  Lamba is permitted to keep his beard and wear a turban.  Outside of his hair and beard, the Army didn’t treat Lamba uniquely:  Read more…

An article by Agence France-Presse, published at Military.com, notes the recent exceptions provided to three Sikh applicants to the US military.  An anecdote tells of Kamaljeet Singh Kalsi’s experience in initial training:

On his first day of training at Fort Sam Houston in Texas, a first sergeant pulled [Kalsi] out of the crowd and Read more…

The Sikh Coalition announced that the US Army had granted an exception to dress and appearance policies allowing Simran Preet Singh Lamba, an observant Sikh, to enter the Army and maintain his religious standards of appearance.

Lamba was reportedly recruited for his language skills.  He is the third Sikh behind Captains Tejdeep Singh Rattan and Kamaljeet Singh Kalsi to be granted such exceptions over the past year.

The Sikh Coalition notes that it is continuing to work to eliminate the policy altogether, so that Sikhs may serve without the necessity of seeking a special waiver.

Also noted at the Religion Clause.

The Air Force announced the visit of senior Indian Air Force leaders to Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, in late July.  The officers were reportedly in Kirtland to observe the USAF use of simulators for flight training.

A picture of an officer accepting a gift from the visiting leaders was interesting for its demonstration of the integration of religion not only with the Indian culture, but also its military:

Air Commodore J.S. Walia is evidently a Sikh, as he wears the religious articles of a member of that faith.  Currently, the US military has granted only a few exceptions to uniform wear to allow Sikhs to serve.

Also interesting is the gift chosen.  The gift is a replica of the Read more…

The Sikh Times notes the continuing struggle of minority religions in Afghanistan, focusing primarily on Sikhs and Hindus.  One Sikh, Awtar Singh, is the only non-Islamic member of Afghanistan’s parliament, and he feels powerless to support those of his or other minority faiths:

“No one in the government listens to us, but we have to be patient, because we have no other options,” says Singh…

While tens of thousands of Muslim Afghans have [similar] problems, they at least have politicians or leaders fighting their corner.

The article also noted a fascinating highlight of the differing cultural understandings and acceptance of religious freedom:

Afghan Hindus were baffled by Western outrage at one Taliban decree – ordering them to wear a yellow tag to identify their religion Read more…

Updated with NPR story.

Capt Tejdeep Singh Rattan recently completed US Army officer basic training.  He and Dr. Kamaljeet Singh Kalsi are Sikhs who have been granted waivers to Army uniform standards allowing them to keep their beard, hair, and turbans, as required by their religious faith.

Two of the more interesting parts of the story are Rattan’s perspective on others’ perceptions, as well as the steps his trainers took to prevent misconceptions about who Rattan was.  Rattan said:  Read more…

Rabbi Menachem Stern answered a 2008 ad for military chaplains, “went through all the hoops,” and in July 2009 was told

that the Accession Board had approved him, and at one point “I actually got orders to appear. I received a letter saying that if I agreed to a commission, I should report for swearing-in.”

Subsequently, that invitation was revoked because Stern, who represents an Orthodox sect of Judaism, wears a beard.

“For me, my beard is part of my religious garb,” he explained. “…By not trimming my beard, I show that I represent the unadulterated view of the holy Torah. While there would be ways around it, and many of these ways are kosher, keeping to the original version of the Torah is the only way we as members of the Chabad Lubavitch community believe a person should live.”

According to the Aleph Institute, the Army Chaplaincy isn’t opposed Read more…

The White House blog details the Sikh celebration of the “540th anniversary of the birth of Guru Nanak Dev Ji” that took place on November 13th.  President Obama did not attend (he was on the first leg of his Asia trip), and it does not appear he made a statement on the celebration.

The White House notes that this is the first Sikh celebration to occur in the White House.  It is not, however, the first time this event has been recognized Read more…

Groups and individuals (and there are several) who have recently proposed banning Muslims from serving in the US military as a result of the Fort Hood massacre are demonstrating naivete and an incorrect understanding of both the military and the US Constitution.

No American citizen should be prohibited from any government role, including military service, purely because of his religious beliefs.

Besides being ludicrous on its face, the enforcement of such a religious ban Read more…

Update: A letter to the editor of the Stars and Stripes calls this a “bad decision,” saying other officers will have to “pick up the slack” when the Sikh soldier cannot be deployed due to his religious gear being incompatible with the chemical defense ensemble.

Earlier this year two Sikh medical students who had joined the US Army appealed the Army regulation that prevents them from wearing their articles of faith, including their beard, turban, and kirpan.  As discussed previously, a US appeals court had upheld the Army regulation.

The Sikh Coalition now reports that one of the physicians has been granted an exception to the uniform policy.  Notably, this is not the change in policy Read more…