Tag Archives: military religious freedom foundation

Jewish Chaplain Builds his Congregation

The Stars and Stripes covers the efforts of a US military Jewish Chaplain serving the troops while in Germany.  Chaplain Avi Weiss admirably faces a daunting task as one of the few Jewish Chaplains for members of a faith spread across much of the European theatre.  He has previously served at the equally (or more) challenging Army facilities in South Korea, as well as Army bases in the United States.

The Chaplain already has a religious newsletter and has been called upon for an interesting reason Read more

Christian Military Leaders Targeted, Intimidated

Michael Weinstein and his Military Religious Freedom Foundation have routinely called for court martial, punishment, and have even implied harm against military members publicly associated with expressions of religious thought.  Weinstein has reserved particular vitriol for senior officers, including the Chief Chaplains of both the Army and Air Force, the Secretary of the Army, the members (and Chairman) of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, military academy leadership, and others.  His intent appears to be to silence or exclude Christians by changing military policy and public opinion where he can, and intimidation using public excoriation where he cannot.

It is likely that the MRFF’s criticisms of military leadership will continue.  They have already leveled criticism at the Obama administration’s selection for the new Secretary of the Army, New York Republican Congressman John McHugh.

Michael Weinstein called McHugh “suboptimal” Read more

Outgoing Army Secretary Still Criticized

“Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then, I said, Here am I; Send me.”  – Isaiah 6:8

From a recent article by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation’s researcher:

[This] Bible verse…was the theme of Secretary of the Army Pete Geren’s commencement address at West Point last year. Geren opened and closed his speech by quoting the verse, and, throughout his speech, painted the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as a religious struggle.

The entire text of Geren’s commencement speech, given to the US Military Academy in 2008, is available online. He mentions a religious topic four times, none as conspiratorial as the MRFF asserts.  Each citation follows: Read more

AU, Liberty Trade IRS Complaints

Americans United for the Separation of Church and State filed a complaint with the IRS claiming that Liberty University was violating the federal tax code (as a tax-exempt entity) by “banning” a Democratic group while allowing a Republican one.

Liberty Counsel, the legal arm of the Falwell associated group that includes Liberty University, has responded by filing its own complaint to the IRS, claiming that AU uses IRS complaints as a means to “intimidate, silence, and harm” those with whom it disagrees. Read more

US Military Chaplains & al Jazeera, Redux

The internet is awash with people calling for court-martial and other repercussions for the soldiers shown on al Jazeera (as discussed previously).  Some have even said their actions are evidence of a larger conspiracy, and that they have endangered their fellow troops.

Problem is, they’re talking about fictional events Read more

National Day of Prayer, 7 May 09

Updated: Obama’s proclamation can be read here.  Text below the fold. 

This year’s National Day of Prayer is Thursday, 7 May 2009.  As discussed every year at about this time, the President proclaims a National Day of Prayer on the first Thursday in May in accordance with Public Law 100-307 (history).

Much ado was made of President Obama’s failure thus far to make the proclamation, in addition to questions that circulated over whether he would continue the tradition of hosting an observance at the White House.  (Former proclamations by President Bush, which normally preceded the day by several weeks, have been removed from the White House website.) It has now been reported that Obama will make the proclamation, as required by law, but not host a White House observance of the day.

Last year Michael Weinstein’s Military Religious Freedom Foundation threatened to add military associations with the National Day of Prayer task force (a private group) to his DoD lawsuit, though he never followed through on his threat. Read more

Updated: More al Jazeera Chaplain Video

In an apparent response to the claims that it took things out of context, al Jazeera has posted a seven minute unedited video clip of the “Bible study group” in which the local language Bibles were shown.  The original video, discussed here, was severely edited and has caused an internet uproar calling for court martial for the Chaplains and discharge for all the military members involved.

The fuller video is somewhat vindicating, and demonstrates that the al Jazeera clip did, in fact, take the Chaplain’s and soldiers’ words out of context. The Chaplain, accused in some places of illegal action, gives very good, very legal advice, and talks about the “hearts and minds” of the Afghani and Muslim culture.  He very specifically, and very emphatically, says violating General Order number one is not the “sword they want to fall on.” Read more

US Military Chaplains on al Jazeera

As noted at the Huffington Post, al Jazeera has posted a news article and segment (video on YouTube) showing military Chaplains in the Middle East with Bibles in the local language and preaching “conversion.”

While seemingly inflammatory on its face (as evidenced by the outrage in subsequent comments on the websites), the newsreel is actually an “exercise in context.”  For example, it highlights this quote, also re-posted in both the al Jazeera and Huffington Post articles:

[T]he chaplains appear to have found a way around the regulation known as General Order Number One.

“Do we know what it means to proselytise?” Captain Emmit Furner, a military chaplain, says to the gathering.

“It is General Order Number One,” an unidentified soldier replies.

But [another soldier] says “you can’t proselytise but you can give gifts.”

The voiceover then continues, and the Huffington article goes on to emphasize the crime of conversion in Afghanistan.

Both ignore the significance of the very next statement by the Chaplain, which is almost obscured by the al Jazeera narrator. Read more

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