Tag Archives: Islam

Muslim Soldier Validates Fears of “Political Correctness”

After the Fort Hood massacre, there were reports that people saw Maj Nidal Malik Hasan’s conduct that they did not report because they did not want to be viewed as biased against his faith or culture.  Two recent news articles highlighted the contrast in reactions to those allegations.

The first encouraged people to report such conduct: a Congressman is proposing a law to extend “whistleblower” protection to people who make those reports.

The second proved such concerns about “political correctness” valid: a Muslim soldier has implied he was the recipient of inappropriate special attention by the military because of his faith or culture–the very perception Hasan’s peers remained silent to avoid.

First, Rep. John Carter, R-Texas, the Congressman from the district that includes Read more

Military Aviation, God Willing

Stars and Stripes penchant for finding religion in a story continues with its headline “Wing and a prayer.”  The title is evidently a reference to the Islamic “cultural view” cited in the article:

The members of the air corps are “the cream of the cream of the crop” when it comes to the Afghan army, Rennell said. Still, an “inshallah” (God willing) mind-set dominates the ranks, a cultural view that clashes with the strict protocols required for operating highly technical aircraft.

While insha’allah is traditionally compared with the Southern Baptist “Lord willin’,” others have considered it more a statement of realism or fatalism.  In what may be an urban legend based on stereotype, stories have been told about Islamic pilots Read more

US Military Provides Diverse Spiritual Support

A legitimate question that all new members of the military (or those aspiring to be) have is to what degree they will be able to exercise their religious faith while in the service.  Regardless of the service, the role of the US military corps of Chaplains is to ensure the troops’ access to free exercise of their religion, as well as act as a focal point for the protection of religious freedom within the military.  Such freedoms are restricted only as necessary by the needs of the military mission.

While an occasional complaint makes the news implying that the military supports only a single religion, a veritable plethora of counterexamples undermine that claim.  Recently, the Pulaski County Daily Read more

Academy Hosts ‘Religious Warrior Weekend’

The US Military Academy at West Point recently hosted civilian college students and fellow military academy cadets at its annual religious Warrior Weekend at the cadet chapel.  Designed to give the civilians a sense of their religious military heritage, it also gave the military cadets the opportunity to “immerse” themselves in their culture.

The event, described below, is an admirable effort by cadets and officers to do two important things: convey to civilians that their faith is not inconsistent with military service; and remind military cadets of the depth of Read more

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

Separation of Church and Sports, Part 2

A recent set of articles bemoaned the lack of a “separation of church and sports” in the United States, an idea espoused by those who are tired of players “mixing” their faith and their athletics (see Tim Tebow, Fisher Deberry, Tony Dungy, Chad Hennings, etc.)

Time magazine recently covered the subject from a different perspective.  In “God and Football” they cover the various roles of Chaplains in the NFL.  Some of the comments are oddly similar to those faced by Chaplains and religious adherents in the military.  Read more

MRFF: Chaplain’s Sermons Permissible, Sort of

A recent Military Religion Question of the Day involved a sermon delivered in Afghanistan by Chaplain (LtCol) Gary Hensley.  The question and subsequent answer have already been discussed.  The discussion noted that groups used Hensley’s sermon as proof of religious impropriety in the military, though their accusations were demonstrably false.

The relationship of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation to this incident, however, requires further illumination.  Read more

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