Tag Archives: Missionary

MRFF: Chaplain’s Sermons Permissible, Sort of

A recent Military Religion Question of the Day involved a sermon delivered in Afghanistan by Chaplain (LtCol) Gary Hensley.  The question and subsequent answer have already been discussed.  The discussion noted that groups used Hensley’s sermon as proof of religious impropriety in the military, though their accusations were demonstrably false.

The relationship of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation to this incident, however, requires further illumination.  Read more

Military Officers and Religious Ideology

As previously discussed, a civilian author recently criticized a military Chaplain for “expressing contempt” for the Constitution when he made “derogatory remarks about Islam:”

When a uniformed officer of the US military makes derogatory remarks about Islam, he’s violating [his] oath and expressing contempt of the First Amendment.

The comment was made by Jeff Sharlet, posting under the moniker Ishmael, on the Daily Kos website.  Sharlet is also the author of The Family, a book that purports to be an expose on a secretive and conspiratorial religious organization (the “Christian Mafia”) attempting to influence the US government.

The comment was in defense of Chris Rodda, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation researcher, when she criticized Camp David Chaplain (LtCdr) Carey Cash for his religious views.  Sharlet’s use of the word “derogatory” notwithstanding, is he right?  Can a religious leader of one faith in the military say nothing negative about another–even if such statements are consistent with the tenets of their faith?

The core question: Can a Chaplain (or any other military officer) espouse specific, even exclusive, religious ideology?

The shortest, most accurate answer: Read more

MAF Responds to Indonesian Earthquake

Missionary Aviation Fellowship, a Christian aviation and missions organization, has already begun to assist in the humanitarian crisis following the magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Indonesia.  The MAF has had aircraft and a small team in the country since the tsunami in 2004, and has already been supporting local governments in response to the crisis.  Their assistance is in demand, with

the phone…ringing off the hook with requests from the Red Cross and others

The MAF has requested prayer support, and financial donations to support the humanitarian relief can be made through their website.

Bibles in the Night Stand

In the vein of the American Atheist’s complaint against NASA, a variety of similarly-minded groups continue to bring accusations of wrongdoing against government-associated religious organizations.  For example, the ACLU has criticized the Gideons providing religious materials while in some association with a government entity (including the Gideons’ interaction with the US military).

Controversies notwithstanding, the ubiquitous nature of the Gideons ministry almost inevitably leads to the never-gets-old joke:

How do they get those Bibles in all those locked hotel rooms?

Well, in 1996 evidence arose that the Gideons were successful in getting a Bible into one of the most inaccessible nightstands in the world; in fact, it’s not even in the world. Read more

Update: Christian Missions Aviation…in Space

On August 26th, NASA published a fairly detailed article on what the astronauts were taking up on Discovery when it finally launched last week, as well as the historical precedent that allowed astronauts to take up personal items (as noted in the previous post).

Two days after that article, American Atheists issued a press release criticizing NASA’s decision to allow Mission Specialist Patrick Forrester to take up a part of Nate Saint’s airplane.  The group said the action was a “violation of the separation of church and state,”  as well as Read more

Doolittle Raider, Christian Missionary Dies

According to an AF.mil article, Staff Sgt. Jacob DeShazer (the bombardier on the last B-25 in the Doolittle Raid) has died. DeShazer was famous not only for his role in the raid, but also for his post-war activities.  The man who once hated his Japanese enemies with a vitriolic passion would become a Christian in their prison and return to evangelize them.  His story led to the conversion of Captain Mitsuo Fuchida, said to be the flight leader of the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Fuchida himself became a missionary in Asia and the United States.

The text of a pamphlet DeShazer wrote, which was widely distributed in Japan after the war, can be seen at the bottom of this website.  His story was also made into a documentary called From Vengeance to Forgiveness.  His story was also chronicled several years ago here.

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