Support for “Free Day Away” Approved by IG

In an interesting turn of events, the Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF) undermined Americans United for the Separation of Church and State (AU) in its recent effort to complain about Fort Leonard Wood’s “Free Day Away” (discussed here).

In July, the AU requested an IG investigation…something the MAAF did two years ago.  The MAAF also complained again last January, and received a reply (which noted that the IG had already investigated their complaint) at nearly the same time the AU made their IG request.  From the DOD reply:

The [IG] found that the program does not violate Army policy in that participation is voluntary…The IG determined that…soldiers have opportunities to participate in non-religious morale, welfare, and recreation programs.  More specifically, during the Free Day Away program,…soldiers can remain in the barracks or go to an on-post facility, such as a Post Exchange Annex.

The Free Day Away event has also featured prominently in the MRFF lawsuit against the Department of Defense.

Coming Soon: AtheistFighterPilot.com

Some who have visited ChristianFighterPilot.com have made accusations of exclusivism, favoritism, and even violation of the Constitution for mixing “church and state.”  At the extreme, conspiracy theorists have accused ChristianFighterPilot.com of being bent on world domination.  After all, only Christians would have the gall to so publicly mix their military service and religious faith, right? 

Actually, Christians aren’t the only ones integrating their faith and their service, and others, too, have “exclusive” websites featuring their faiths. Read more

The New Year & Challenges Ahead

Happy New Year from ChristianFighterPilot.com. 

Each year is a unique challenge to a military Christian.  Deployment schedules vary, family situations change, new faith challenges arise, and the rules on religious practice and expression in the military change.  ChristianFighterPilot.com has attempted to remain a viable and valuable resource for information as varied as “how to become a fighter pilot” and “military Christians and ‘church/state separation.'”  Many people have contacted CFP; some were like-minded active duty military, some were ROTC cadets wanting to know how to secure a pilot’s slot, and some were high school students wanting to understand the relationship between Christ and the military profession.  Chaplains, Army soldiers in Iraq, and even atheists and opponents to religion in the military have corresponded with and commented on the site.  Though small, the presence and ministry of ChristianFighterPilot.com is being felt.

As always, ChristianFighterPilot.com seeks to improve and expand.  If you would like to contribute content or commentary, or if you have suggestions for the site or ministry, please feel free to contact CFP, either through the form or email.  If you know of others who may be interested in the newsletter, site, or topics, please let them know about the website or forward the newsletter to them.

Each new year brings the traditional resolutions and, regrettably, a new wave of controversies.  Weinstein’s lawsuit Read more

Christmas Controversy and Holiday Tantrums

(Updated 31 Dec 07) 

As government officers and followers of Christ, military Christians have a uniquely personal interaction with the sometimes controversial relationship between church and state.  Even something as simple as saying “Merry Christmas” (see earlier post) can require consideration unthinkable in the civilian world.  For each situation, Christians should stand by their beliefs; however, they need not do so polemically.  For an interesting case study, consider some of the recent controversies (and responses) over Christmas displays:

Towns across the country have chosen to place nativity scenes, Christmas trees, and Menorahs on government property.  When lawsuits and other attempts to remove them have failed, opposing groups have “joined” what they could not “beat”–they’ve put up their own displays.  Read more

Guidelines Issued for Islamic Observance in Space

According to reports, Malaysia has issued guidelines for Muslims to observe Islamic rituals while on the International Space Station.  This was brought about by the October 10 launch of a Muslim into space.

The situation is interesting to Christians in the US due to the American take on the same subject.  In 1969, Madalyn Murray O’Hair of the American Atheists sued NASA (O’Hair v. Paine) after the Apollo 8 crew read the first few verses of Genesis over the air during a broacast (mentioned on the Atheist website here).  O’Hair apparently believed that NASA ordered the astronauts to read the Bible in order to show the “godless Communists” that the “Christian US” was better than they, though this ignores the fact that all three Abrahamic religions acknowledge Genesis.

Though the case was dismissed, the “irritant” of the suit caused NASA to advise Buzz Aldrin of the Apollo 11 crew not to mention his observance of communion while in space (IHT).  In a manner of speaking, then, O’Hair achieved her objective.

First reported on the Religion Clause.

Military Christians and the First Priority

“What is the most important thing in your life?”

When asked what takes precedence in their lives, many active Christians have answered that their priorities are God, family, and their job, friends, or others. The answer is often repeated across career and social boundaries. Football players, soldiers, and politicians have all listed similar priorities: God, family, and job. This series of articles will expand on those three priorities, beginning with the first, or “God priority.”

One beginning note, however: A Christian’s priorities should serve as a guide, not necessarily a list of rules engraved in stone. Even if he has his priorities “set,” there are times that sacrifices must be made, and situations in life may require temporary adjustments to priorities to achieve a required goal or fulfill obligations. In the most obvious example, war often demands that soldiers be separated from their families for years at a time, which obviously has a negative impact on a military Christian’s “family priority.” The priority of family, though, does not override a serviceman’s duty to defend his country in time of war. Each situation, then, must be assessed on its own; in many cases, it depends… Read more

New Religious Lawsuit against the US Military

According to a press release, Weinstein’s Military Religious Freedom Foundation has sued the military on behalf of an Army soldier.  According to the announcement, an officer harassed Army Specialist Jeremy Hall when he attempted to convene a meeting of atheists.  (The text of the suit is not yet available.)

Updated 20 September:  The text of the lawsuit is available here.  See the new post for latest commentary.

The lawsuit apparently names the Defense Secretary Robert Gates as defendant because the incident is evidence of “a pattern of military practices that discriminate against non-Christians in the military,” which he allegedly permitted in his role as Defense Secretary.

Much like his Academy lawsuit, it appears that Weinstein is attempting to aggrandize a discrete event into a larger opportunity.  A niche news article on the suit (which has yet to be seen in the mainstream media) indicated that the assertions meandered from the soldier to other unrelated issues, like alleged military support of civilian Christian organizations as well as the recent Pentagon IG report (previous commentary).  Weinstein himself has implied that this goes ‘beyond’ the two men, and said that  Read more

Operation IRAQI FREEDOM

From my arrival in Qatar in February until my departure in April, I spent approximately 70 days in what was classified as a combat area.  During my entire stay I never experienced fear for my life, either in the air or on the ground.  Our base was on a peninsula in the Persian Gulf, relatively distant from the fighting in Iraq and low even in potential terrorist threat.  Prior to the outbreak of hostilities, a small civilian aircraft had approached the airfield undetected, much to the chagrin of the Patriot batteries ringing the base.  During the war, the presence of a light aircraft near the base was the cause of the only increased threat condition during our stay.  The base rapidly went from MOPP 0, a protective posture where no chemical protection gear is worn, to MOPP 4, where full gear—heavy overgarments, boots, gas masks, and gloves—is required.  Whatever it was that approached the base turned out to be no threat, and there were no further reactions while we were there.  In fact, a few days before I returned home they brought the base out of “lock-down” and allowed us to leave the base to see the local area.  So our home was a fairly safe one, particularly when compared to the airbases further north that came under fire from SCUDs and other missiles and were in a MOPP 4 fairly frequently.  Our route to and from the combat area was also a safe one.  While we flew along the gulf we were in range of several other neutral countries, but we could virtually walk along the Navy sea craft from Qatar to Iraq.

The true threat only began once in Iraq, and even then the threat was minimal.  Read more

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