Tag Archives: Religion

Some Government Prayers Bring Lawsuits, Others Ignored

The city of Lancaster, California, has been criticized by the ACLU and sued by the Jewish Defense League for “sectarian Christian prayers” at city meetings.  In an interesting contrast, it does not appear either the ACLU or the JDL have said anything about the city of Vacaville doing the same thing in Sanskrit:

Acclaimed Hindu leader Rajan Zed will deliver invocation from Sanskrit scriptures before Vacaville City Council on [July 27th]. After Sanskrit delivery, he then will read the English translation of the prayer.

Sanskrit is considered a sacred language in Hinduism Read more

Catholic Prelate Asks Congress to Keep Ban on Military Abortions

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo is chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities for the US Bishop’s conference has asked Congress not to approve language in the Defense Authorization Act that would permit US military facilities to conduct abortions.

The Cardinal noted that federal policies have prohibited military facilities from performing abortions since 1988, with the exception of 1993-1995 when Clinton overturned the policy (it was later re-instituted by Congress).

The Cardinal joined with military diocese Archbishop Broglio Read more

The Authentic Witness of the Soldier Christian

Col (Dr) Don Snider (USA, Ret) has a well thought-out article on the Christian military witness at Journal of Faith and War.  He notes the complexity of the issue with a single opening phrase:

There are no formulas, Christ only said: “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, and unto God what is God’s.”

His points fall under the following categories:

Mastering the Context
“…you are not to compartment your life and its varied roles (supposing that you actually could do so psychologically which is, of course, quite debatable). You may not choose to be a Soldier leader in some settings and a Christian in others.” 

“You are, in addition, free to witness appropriately to your faith, Read more

Wall Street Journal Highlights Faith in Battle

A frontpage photo on the Wall Street Journal a few weeks ago highlighted the presence of faith even in the struggle of war.  From the caption:

RESCUE AND PROTECT: Staff Sgt. Edward Rosa reads the Bible and extends a cigarette to Pfc. Jorge Rostra Obando, who was stunned by an explosion in Afghanistan’s Arghanab Valley. One comrade was killed and two injured in the blast. Pfc. Rostran asked the sergeant to read Psalm 91, a favorite from his childhood. (Ricardo Garcia Vilanova for The Wall Street Journal)

Wall Street Journal photo

Wall Street Journal photo

In the comments on the WSJ site, a poster who said he was Obando’s father chimed in with pride for his son’s faith; someone who said they were a Gideon even pointed out the fact it was a freely distributed (and well worn) Gideon Bible the two Soldiers were sharing.

Of course, some organizations have demanded that the military “close their doors” to the Gideons, and the publication of the photo brought out similar detractors:  Read more

Michael Weinstein: Christian Bigotry “Can Lead to Genocide”

In a vaguely related article that purports to highlight potentially “false” converts from radical Islam, the author quotes the MRFF’s Michael Weinstein in a provocative statement:

With the U.S. engaged in active combat in the heart of the Islamic world, Weinstein believes Christian fundamentalists in the U.S. military are actively promoting terrorists-turned-Christians — with potentially deadly consequences.

“These guys are spewing Islamophobic hatred, and the Pentagon laps it up. This is the kind of prejudice and bigotry that can lead to genocide,” said Weinstein.

So Weinstein is suggesting that someone — American military Christians? the Pentagon? — is leading the way to “genocide?”  Weinstein leaves no clue as to how he jumped to such a melodramatic conclusion (though perhaps he believes it will be committed by the “shadow government” the MRFF believes is actually running the country).  Insane conspiracy theory though it is, it isn’t the first time he has made the accusation.  From 2007:

In Plan A, evangelical Christians with a smile on their face will ask you to please, please, please accept their biblical worldview of Jesus. The problem with that is, inevitably, Plan A morphs into Plan B. They stop asking so nicely, and then you have the Holocaust, Read more

Chaplain Brings Religious Perspective to Trainees

Chaplain (Ens) Asif Balbale is a Muslim Chaplain — in fact, the only one — at Camp Pendleton.  He shares his unique religious position at the base with Chaplain Shin, the Navy’s only Buddhist Chaplain.

The Chaplain seems to have a solid grasp of his role, which includes religious training of military members:

Part of my job is to educate people on what it means to be a Muslim.

He’s absolutely correct, of course, just as other Chaplains’ jobs include Read more

Muslim Joins Military Because of His Faith

The Youngstown (Ohio) news covers the story of local Falak Mir Shafi, an immigrant from Pakistan who became a US citizen in the fast-track process provided by service in the US military. The article notes Shafi’s faith — he is a Sunni Muslim — and also attempts to highlight the “problems” of being a Muslim in the US military:

In some cases, Muslims and noncitizens have filed discrimination complaints against military branches. Atty. Mikey Weinstein, director of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, says such discrimination is as omnipresent as gravity.

The discrimination is so ubiquitous, apparently, that there are precisely zero examples provided in the article.  In fact, the counterexample is presented instead:  Read more

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