In the debate on the policy commonly known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” some have taken to saying service by open homosexuals is no morally different to religion than is service by those who have divorced and/or remarried. That argument fails, however, because the military works actively to support marriages and prevent divorce: Read more
First Lady Michelle Obama christened the US Coast Guard Cutter Stratton last Friday. There was a slight groan from the crowd when the first swing failed to break the bottle; the second was successful. Maritime tradition considers the failure of the bottle to break on christening “bad luck.” In one recent example, the Queen Victoria was reported to be a victim of the “Camilla curse” when a virus broke out on the cruise ship’s maiden voyage after the Duchess of Cornwall failed to break the bottle on the ship’s christening.
Maritime superstition notwithstanding, of course, it is laudable the First Lady would take the time to support the Coast Guard and the longstanding tradition of christening sea-going vessels.
Perhaps someday such celebrations will be overcome by events. After all, ship christening has a long and historied spiritual connection, and even the term christening is ripe with religious connotation. (See the US Navy’s official history on ship christening.) Those who want to strip any vestige of religious association from the US military will undoubtedly claim the blessing or christening of military equipment violates the Constitution and endangers American servicemembers fighting in our nation’s wars. Such a critique would be ridiculous, of course, but that hasn’t stopped similar ones made to date.
On the continuing theme of military papers discussing religion in the military comes Lt Col Jimmy M. Browning’s “Religious Expression or Religious Coercion: Commanders Caught in the Crossfire.” LtCol Browning, a Colonel-select, was an Air War College student when he published the paper in February of this year. He is also a USAF Chaplain.
The paper brings an interesting perspective to the “conflict” between those who believe in a right to religious expression and those who believe religious expression is de facto coercion in a military environment:
[The] Military Religion [sic] Freedom Foundation (MRFF) is one group that describes itself as a watchdog against religious coercion…These groups are especially leery of evangelical Read more
Rabbi Daniel Lapin, an interesting and sometimes controversial American orthodox rabbi, has a fascinating interview at the Jewish Press that touches on Christianity in America. He discusses everything from the “threat” to Judaism of Christianity in America to his encouragement to wish Christians a “Merry Christmas” rather than Happy Holidays:
I think America has provided the most tranquil, prosperous, and durable haven for Jews in the last 2,000 years because it is a [religious] Protestant country, not in spite of it. Read more
The Alliance Defense Fund’s Speak Up website has an article entitled “Faith Under Fire: DADT and Religious Liberty” that summarizes and includes links to the variety of organizations and individuals who have opposed the repeal of the policy commonly known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
The site also includes a video of a half dozen retired Chaplains — ranging from Lt Commander to Brigadier General — addressing the issue of normalizing homosexual behavior and its impact on religious freedom in the US military.
US Army Chaplain (1LT) Thomas Dyer — the Baptist-Pastor-turned-Buddhist-Priest who became the US Army’s first Buddhist Chaplain — led 200 people in a celebration of the holiest day of the Buddhist calendar while deployed to Iraq in May.
US military members from across Iraq were invited to the celebration and were allowed to travel to the base specifically for the observance.
The official effort the US military puts into allowing — even encouraging — its members to participate in the religious services of their choosing is significant. Military members can take comfort in knowing that their leadership has their spiritual resiliency in mind and will, to the extent the mission allows, protect their free exercise.
Still, all is not without controversy. Read more
A few months ago the Chaplain for the Spring Hill Fire Department came under fire for having a webpage, on the department’s website, with religious-specific content. Ken Fagan, a local citizen, complained that Chaplain Jack Martin broke rules with his page:
The matter was brought to the attention of the Florida Department of Community Affairs in January after resident Ken Fagan complained Martin broke “ethics rules” with his website and that he has “crossed the line regarding the separation of church and state.”
Now, the assistant attorney general for Florida has said the website (here) must have a disclaimer, and that it may have “information that arguably Read more
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