Category Archives: Government and Religion

Supreme Court Restricts Marriage, and No One Notices

Update: As Chief Justice John Roberts predicted: Inspired by SCOTUS ruling, polygamous Montana trio applies for wedding license.

While some have hailed the US Supreme Court‘s ruling last week (available in PDF here) that expanded the legal definition of marriage to include homosexuals, few have noted Justice Anthony Kennedy’s careful wording that actually restricted the definition of marriage:

The Fourteenth Amendment requires a State to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex… Read more

VA Headstones Now Include Thor, Crane, Bicycle?

NPR’s Weekend Edition recently noted the increasing variety of “emblems of belief” that are permitted to adorn headstones provided by the Veterans’ Administration:

Don Murphy spent two decades with the National Cemetery Administration. The VA’s list now has 61 symbols, ranging from crosses to a swirling atom to the hammer of Thor.

MURPHY: If the list continues to grow, that is fine. The VA does not question the individual belief system of any eligible veteran or their spouse or dependent.

There are a few requirements. The icon must be dignified and has to lend itself to being carved in stone, but beyond that, the definition of belief is fairly broad. And according to military chaplain Nickolas Gaines, more and more, that’s how belief is.

VA’s Sandhill Crane

The addition of Thor’s Hammer was noted here a few years ago; that Read more

VA Flies LGBT Flag instead of Old Glory

A local radio host highlighted the Montana Veterans Administration flying a rainbow-colored gay pride flag on its grounds rather than an American flag. Johnny Ginnity, VA director for Montana, said in reply:

I don’t really consider it a flag, it’s really a banner…

I have a mandate that tells me I have to observe the holiday…

Ginnity ultimately defended the gay pride flag in a statement.

The rainbow flag has flown over many US embassies (including Israel, which is relatively liberal on the issue, though the flag has apparently not been raised in any other Middle Eastern country) and even in Afghanistan, as well as in “modified” US flags on US bases.

Also at the Independent Record and the Stars and Stripes.

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Army Offers Yoga to Walter Reed Patients

An official DoD article describes the voluntary use of yoga at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for its psychiatry patients:

It appears centuries-old practice involving postures, stretches, meditation and breathing provides benefits today at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center…

The author may not realize it, but by acknowledging yoga as “ancient” the DoD is acceding to yoga’s spiritual elements, as only in recent years have some tried to disconnect the physical aspect of yoga from its spiritual side. On the contrary, it seems Walter Reed is counting on the “mental” side of yoga as well:  Read more

Air Force Sergeant Joins Homosexual Marriage Protest

The Montgomery Advertiser documented a recent event at the Alabama capital sponsored by the Sanctity of Marriage group, which was organized to support traditional marriage.

The paper recorded approximately 1,000 attendees, which included protesters who were there to support same-sex marriage. Notably, one of the protesters was an Air Force Tech Sgt:

Air Force Tech Sgt. Adria Winlock is also a mother, but she proudly wore a T-shirt that read, “I love my wife.”

“My wife is also in the Air Force stationed in North Carolina … she has two children, I have one, together we have three, we’ve been married for a little under a year,” Winlock said.

Winlock shared her view of those that support marriage as God created it:  Read more

Becket Fund Sides with Military Against Humanist Chaplains

Update: Via The Religion Clause:

[The] Virginia federal district court ultimately allowed Dr. Heap to move ahead with his Establishment Clause and Equal Protection/ Substantive Due Process challenges to the Navy and Department of Defense’s actions.

However the court dismissed challenges brought under other parts of the 1st Amendment, the No Religious Test clause, and RFRA, dismissed The Humanist Society as a plaintiff for lack of standing and on ripeness grounds, and dismissed claims against the individual defendants.

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty has had what might be considered a banner year in its legal support of religious liberty, winning more than one case at the Supreme Court. Moreover, what separates the Becket Fund from some other stereotypical religious liberty groups is their willingness to not just speak but also act in defense of all religious liberty.

While they represented a Christian family when the Supreme Court Read more

Attorneys General Support Marine Court-Martialed over Bible

Five US states have filed a brief in support of court-martialed US Marine Monifa Sterling, whose conviction, in part, included the Court’s conclusion that she was not permitted to put Bible verses on her desk. As announced by Oklahoma State Attorney General Scott Pruitt, the other states include Nevada, Arizona, South Carolina, and West Virginia.

The attorney general said it would be a sad irony if service men and women were not afforded the same liberties for which they risk their lives.

“We have filed this brief supporting Ms. Sterling’s appeal because her case could impact the religious freedom of Oklahomans serving in the military,” Pruitt said. “Oklahoma is keenly interested in the outcome of this case and its interpretation of federal law protecting religious liberty.”

Pruitt is actually echoing a prior Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel, who similarly encouraged US troops to exercise the rights they are serving to protect.

Also at the Stars and Stripes.

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Congress Includes Military Religious Diversity in 2016 NDAA

Last year’s National Defense Authorization Act (2015 NDAA) was notable for what it omitted: It was the first NDAA in several years not to include specific language on the religious liberty of US troops or military chaplains. The 2016 NDAA returns religious language to the NDAA in a unique way [emphasis added]:

SEC. 524. SENSE OF CONGRESS RECOGNIZING THE DIVERSITY OF THE MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.

(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:

(1) The United States military includes individuals with a variety of national, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds that have roots all over the world.

(2) In addition to diverse backgrounds, members of the Armed Forces come from numerous religious traditions, including Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, non-denominational, nonpracticing, and many more.

(3) Members of the Armed Forces from diverse backgrounds and religious traditions have Read more

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