Tag Archives: chapel

Navy Cancels Some Boot Camp Chapel Services

In early April, the Navy commander of Recruit Training Command at Great Lakes — the basic training site for all incoming Sailors — told civilian volunteers they were no longer permitted to conduct religious services for recruits.

On the orders of Capt. Doug Pfeifle, the commanding officer of RTC, civilian volunteers for seven minority religious communities have been asked to stop conducting services.

An RTC official who spoke on background said the volunteers were asked to leave in accordance with Navy guidance, which stipulates that a uniformed chaplain or a religiously accredited military member should conduct the service before the service pursues other avenues.

Viewed optimistically, it appears to be a sincere action poorly executed or communicated. It seems the volunteer system had “gotten away from” the RTC leadership, and they found themselves unable to justify the program under Navy guidelines. It seems the RTC program was suffering from some logistical issues, including a formal way to control who could and could not conduct recruit services.

To be clear, the US military is not Read more

Chris Rodda Caught in Lie over Military Religious Freedom

For a person who practically makes a living calling people “liars,” you’d think Chris Rodda would be more careful not to put herself in the position of being perceived as untruthful.  But that’s precisely where she found herself just last week.

In a lackluster article that explained the MRFF’s objection to the “odious” missionary trip of US Air Force SMSgt Larry Gallo (discussed previously), Rodda goes after FoxNews’ Todd Starnes for his statement that George Washington would have been “thrown in the brig” for praying at Valley Forge, were he to do so today. The MRFF wouldn’t have objected to Washington’s prayer, Rodda exclaimed,

just as [the] MRFF would never object to any member of today’s military…privately engaging in any religious activity.

While “never object[ing]” is a bit less enthusiastic than “supporting” or “defending,” it is at least a non-confrontational position that acknowledges the rights of military members.

The problem is, Chris Rodda’s statement isn’t true.

One of the more Read more

Mikey Weinstein Attacks Military Church Services

Remember the inspirational video of US Marines praising God with Days of Elijah during a Sunday worship service last September?

That is what Mikey Weinstein says he is “up against.”

When Mikey Weinstein objects to Christians attending church, can there be any doubt that he’s not really interested in “religious freedom?”

This is what we at MRFF are up against… the Dominionist “Holy Warrior” indoctrination of U.S. service personnel!

(The normally critical atheist Jason Torpy Read more

Chaplain Provides Church Away from Home in Liberia

Chaplain (Major) Alfred Grondski is currently serving troops in Liberia in support of Operation United Assistance (the anti-Ebola “military operation”). Chaplain Grondski notes that troops are often closer in faith while deployed than at home:

I minister closely with people I work with…That usually doesn’t happen back in the states like it is here, because in garrison a lot of the Soldiers go to their home church; there isn’t a home church here. This gives us an opportunity to come together as a Family and worship.

He also made an interesting obersvation about the host Liberians:

I see smiles on their faces, lots of places of worship – their spiritual morale is very high.

Read more. Read more

Mikey Weinstein’s Words, Actions, and Religious Freedom

We think — and the Constitution and Supreme Court caselaw supports us — that the right of the men and women in our armed forces to their personal choice, the right to their personal belief, the right to their religious or non-religious preference, cannot be abrogated by the government, by their superior officers, or by the Pentagon.

That sounds like a statement most could agree with — and those words come from MRFF board member Mike Farrell in their annual end-of-year fundraising letter.

Regrettably, the actions of Farrell’s boss, Michael “Mikey” Weinstein, contradict his noble words.  Contrary to Farrell’s gilded semantics, Weinstein has attacked the personal faiths of Christian chaplains and troops — even going so far as to attack Christian chapel services — in what can only be described as an attempt to deny “the men and women in our armed forces” their religious liberties through the force of government.

More tellingly, Weinstein — a Read more

Robins AFB Chaplains Protect Religious Freedom by Supporting It (Video)

An interesting story at the local news to Robins AFB, Georgia, notes that one of the roles of the Air Force chaplaincy is to protect troops’ right to religious freedom — but it doesn’t have to stifle religious exercise to do so [emphasis added]:

They defend the right to worship freely, even if other airmen’s views conflict with their own beliefs.

At the Robins Air Force Base tree lighting ceremony in early December, you would not have heard utterances of ‘”Seasons Greetings”, no mentions of “holiday trees” or talk about celebrations of a “winter solstice”.

That gathering of the troops, complete with hymns and prayers, was undeniably Christian.

That is protection of religious freedom. Religious freedom is not Read more

Klingenschmitt Loses Appeal of Military Discharge

In November, former Navy Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt lost his Federal appeal (filed in 2011) of his discharge from the Navy, which had stemmed from his 2006 court-martial.

“I sued the domestic enemies of the Constitution in the DC Court of Claims to redeem my career [and] to redeem my pension after I was robbed by people who punished me for quoting the Bible in chapel,” he tells OneNewsNow. “[I was robbed] by people who punished me for praying in Jesus’ name in uniform outside of chapel.”

The ruling can be read here.  Klingenschmitt has indicated he plans to appeal.

As a side note, Read more

Chaplains Serve All during Ebola Deployment

US Soldiers deployed in support of Operation United Assistance (deployment to Africa in response to the Ebola outbreak) have many of the same — if not more — logistical challenges as those deployed further downrange. Chaplain (LtCol) David Bowlus described conducting outdoor worship services in Monrovia, Liberia, as the chapel tent ended up being requisitioned to house other Soldiers.

The article on the chaplains in Africa noted they are Read more

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