Category Archives: Religion and Culture

USAFA Grads, Fighter Pilots, Christians Pilot Space Shuttle

The Air Force was proud to point out that Colonel Terry Virts Jr, a 1989 graduate of the US Air Force Academy, was the pilot for the Endeavor STS-130 shuttle mission (originally scheduled for February 7th, weather delayed to the 8th).  The announcement allowed the Air Force to highlight an awesome opportunity for Airmen that may motivate them to follow in Virts’ footsteps.  Embry Riddle did the same thing, as Virts is an alumnus, allowing Embry Riddle to highlight the success of its graduates and motivate others to attend its courses.  Notably, Virts was also a fighter pilot and test pilot.

He is also a Christian:  Read more

MRFF Threatens Trijicon with Legal Action

The notoriously blunt-speaking Michael Weinstein recently demonstrated an unusually thin skin when he threatened legal action against a potential critic of his organization.  The statement at issue occurred in the original ABC News article on the Trijicon gun sights:

Tom Munson, director of sales and marketing for Trijicon, which is based in Wixom, Michigan, said the inscriptions “have always been there” and said there was nothing wrong or illegal with adding them. Munson said the issue was being raised by a group that is “not Christian.”

Apparently, the MRFF is offended by that characterization, though the MRFF isn’t explicitly named and the quote itself is paraphrased.  Weinstein’s organization took the unusual step of releasing its legal correspondence to an internet blogger, who quoted the following paragraph from a legal letter in response to the statement above:

Referring to the Foundation as a group which is “not Christian” is not only inaccurate and shamelessly false, but demonstrably contrary to fact. Approximately 96 percent of the Foundation’s nearly 16,000 active duty military clients and enumerable additional supporters are in fact practicing Christians by faith. To state otherwise not only slanders the Foundation, but also all of its clients. Further, the Foundation’s largest supporter is the California Council of Churches IMPACT, which is comprised of 5,500 Christian congregations, 21 distinct Christian denominations, and, directly and indirectly, millions of individual Christians.

The “legal letter” came from the same law firm that Weinstein is currently employing in Weinstein v Ammerman.

The stern rebuke from Weinstein’s MRFF is laughable.  Consider the ramifications Read more

In Defense of Religious Freedom

In several articles on this site, the premise has been repeated that true religious freedom is not the suppression of differing ideas, but the encouragement of them.  Sometimes this is a cautionary tale to Christians who feel that other religions should not have the same freedoms as Christians.  More often, however, it is a rebuttal to those who would silence or restrict Christians in order to avoid offense or exposure to a differing moral stance.

Hugh Hewitt has a similar explanation on his site, in his criticisms of those who criticized CBS for allowing Tim Tebow and his mother to air a “Celebrate Life” ad during the SuperBowl:

Most people of faith are strong proponents of religious liberty because they are very acquainted with the stories of religious persecution in almost every other part of the globe.  The answer to religious intolerance Read more

Christian Soldier: Greater Love Hath No Man than This

A touching local news article reports a father’s reaction to his son’s death in Afghanistan.  The father, J.D. Hickman, was a former military man himself.  Of his son, he said

“Jason was a man of faith, he was a Christian…Being former military, I can say if you’re going to die, there’s no better way of dying than dying for your country, for your people.”

The faith of these two men was important enough that it was a prominent part of a father’s intimate eulogy of his son.  His legacy was that of a man of faith, even as he served his country in the US military.

When asked if there’s anything else he’d like to share regarding his son, Hickman is quiet for a moment. Then his voice cracks, “John 15:13.”

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

Nothing more needs to be said.

Soldiers See Once in a Lifetime Sights

The US Navy used to have a slogan that said, “Join the Navy, see the world.”  While the catch phrase has long since been abandoned, “seeing the world” remains a significant reason that some people join the US military.  Within just a few months of starting their military service, they may be sent to places as widely varied as Europe, Asia, and Africa.  It is true, too, that in this present time many will likely soon see Iraq, Afghanistan, and the surrounding regions.

An Army press release notes the experiences of a group of soldiers who were given the opportunity to see the ruins of Ur in Iraq.  Ur is the historical birthplace of Abraham, Read more

Hasan’s Fort Hood Victims: 13, or 14?

The Alliance Defense Fund has been calling on the US military to charge Maj Nadil Malik Hasan with 14 murders, not 13.  

Private Francheska Velez was three months pregnant when Hasan allegedly killed her and her unborn child.  If her child was included, the massacre would have claimed 14 lives.

The ADF accurately notes that the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) reflects the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, and specifically cites the death of unborn children Read more

Happy Thanksgiving from ChristianFighterPilot.com

In the United States of America, we have an abundance of things for which to be thankful.  We enjoy the practice of our human liberties to a degree unparalleled in the world.  We rest in the security provided by the world’s best military.  Despite vast ideological differences, we continue a tradition of peaceful debate and peaceful transitions of power.

Remember those who have sacrificed, and continue to sacrifice, to protect those sacred trusts for which we are so grateful.  Thank God for our freedoms, our nation, and the troops who protect it–even as they celebrate while separated from their families back home.

Have a joyous and enjoyable Thanksgiving.

Read the message from the Secretary of Defense.

Weinstein and the Court Martial of Maj Nidal Hasan

Michael Weinstein and his Military Religious Freedom Foundation have been repeatedly called out over the past few weeks for displaying an odious double standard:  Weinstein has demanded various military Christians be court-martialed, accusing them of using their positions of power to proselytize and coercing subordinates based on their religion.  He has failed to make any similar call against accused Fort Hood gunman Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, even though Hasan has been accused of doing exactly the same things.

However, Michael Weinstein has finally asked, “Should Hasan be court-martialed?”  Oddly, he never answers his own question.

To his credit, Weinstein does make a (qualified) statement that Hasan should have been court-martialed.  That would be the most serious, if parsed, statement Weinstein has made against a person not of the Christian faith in the military.  However, Read more

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