Tag Archives: Prayer

Air Force General Lorenz on “Necessary” Prayer

US Air Force General Stephen R. Lorenz recently retired as the head of Air Education and Training Command.  (He is also a former Commandant of the US Air Force Academy.)  He frequently wrote commentaries alliteratively entitled “Lorenz on Leadership.”  On July 19th, the Air Force published his most recent article, in which he recounted a Chaplain’s run-in over pre-mission prayer:

As the troops were preparing to board the helicopters to an FOB that had recently been under attack, several Soldiers asked the chaplain if he could lead them in a prayer. A lieutenant colonel happened to be with the group and the chaplain, who was a captain, thought as a common courtesy he would ask the senior officer for permission to say a prayer for the troops about to enter combat. The lieutenant colonel replied to the chaplain that, “It would not be necessary” and walked away. The chaplain followed this senior officer’s guidance and did not lead the men in a prayer.

General Lorenz took the Lieutenant Colonel to task:  Read more

Chaplains Create Portable “Sacred Shelter”

An Army article notes an innovative attempt at supporting the religious free exercise of US servicemembers in the field:

The easily deployable tent structure, also known as a “sacred shelter” by developers at the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Systems Center, provides units with a small worship facility that can be set up rapidly in the field.
 
“This provides a facility for spiritual fitness, whether or not a chaplain is available, in an austere environment,” said Chaplain (Capt.) Andrew Shriver, 421st Multifunctional Medical Battalion chaplain.

The “portable chapels” were based on Chaplain Shriver’s own design from 2007 in Afghanistan for Soldiers who were constructing new FOBs.  They are designed to be cheap, easy to assemble, and even have partitions so separate faiths can be exercised simultaneously.

Interestingly, when the unit at Wiesbaden, Germany, tested out the prototype, the tent had a demo set up.  While a “stereotypical” religious demo might have included something like a cross, Chaplain Shriver showed a setup for an Islamic prayer room:  Read more

Medal of Honor Ceremony Marked by Prayer

On 12 July 2011, Sergeant First Class Leroy Petry received the Medal of Honor in a ceremony at the White House.  SFC Petry was honored for his selfless actions when he picked up and threw an enemy grenade that had fallen among his team.  The grenade discharged and catastrophically amputated his hand.

SFC Petry has remained humble throughout, thanking his family and asking for prayers for the sacrifice of military families in support of the US’s mission:  Read more

Senator Calls for Investigation into VA Censorship, Atheists Defend

Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison has asked the Department of Veterans Affairs to investigate allegations that a VA cemetery in Texas has been censoring “God” and “Jesus” from ceremonies.  From the Senator’s letter to VA Secretary Erik Shineski:

I am…greatly concerned by the complaints my office has received from veterans and their families that the Houston National Cemetery Director has forbidden the name of God or Jesus to be used during funeral services at the cemetery, even if the family wishes to do so. Our veterans swore to uphold the Constitution with their lives, and they and their families’ religious freedom should be honored, not prohibited. [emphasis added]

I am requesting that you look into this situation to determine if there are indeed any religious prohibitions or restrictions on speech or religious expression at the Houston National Cemetery. I would also ask that you determine if this situation is unique to the Houston Cemetery or if there are policies in place that might lead to religious prohibitions or restricted speech at other veteran cemeteries.

The controversy started around Memorial Day, when it took a court injunction to allow a local preacher to say “Jesus” when he prayed.  Now the complaint has Read more

Military Chief Faces Criticism over Role of God in Military Funerals

The head of the armed forces is embroiled in a controversy over the proper place of “God” in military funeral rites — but its likely not the problem you think.

The Israeli military is embroiled in a public battle over whether God ought to be mentioned at memorial rites for fallen soldiers…

The controversy is over whether Yizkor, the Hebrew prayer of remembrance, should begin at military ceremonies with the words “May God remember” or “May the people of Israel remember.”

Military policy calls for the version mentioning God to be used, but enforcement has been patchy in an apparent nod to the sentiments of the Jewish state’s secular majority.

It is a seemingly odd controversy for a nation that is often assumed to be religious in some form.

Back home in the US, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs in Texas is Read more

Navy Chaplain Impacts Marines in Afghanistan

A US military news release documents the story of US Navy Chaplain (LT) James Ragain, currently deployed to Afghanistan.  While much of the article covers the standard mantras of Chaplains and their roles, Ragain’s story demonstrates the strengths of having a military Chaplain integrated with a combat unit:

“He’s probably the greatest secret weapon I have here in my squadron,” said Marine Corps Lt. Col. Clarence Harper, the squadron’s commanding officer. “The way he goes about building religious Read more

Judge Rules Government Cannot Control Prayer…Twice

Many have now heard of the Texas High School graduation that received a court-ordered ban on prayer, including the specific words “amen, invocation,” and the like.  U.S. District Judge Fred Biery had ruled against the Medina Valley Independent School District in a lawsuit brought by the Schultz family.  Biery had determined they would “suffer irreparable harm” if they heard to a prayer at the ceremony.  The ruling was appealed, overturned, and the graduation went on as a celebration of freedom of speech and religion.

That wasn’t the first controversial ruling on prayer in Texas.

In a ruling that was largely under the radar, Texas Judge Lynn N. Hughes said the Department of Veteran’s Affairs could not control the content of an invited Pastor’s prayer.  The Reverend Scott Rainey, pastor at Living Word Church of the Nazerene, had been invited to give an invocation at a Memorial Day event, and was asked to provide Read more

Naval Academy Noon Meal Prayer at Issue. Again.

The US Naval Academy practice of conducting a noon-meal prayer is making its near-annual trek through the media.  This time, Talbot Manvel, an “adjunct instructor” at Annapolis, wrote an article in the Baltimore Sun saying the USNA puts “tradition ahead of the Constitution.”

So how is the academy defying the Constitution? It has established a religious practice: prayer at its mandatory noon meal for its midshipmen (students). They are marched into the mess hall, called to attention to listen to announcements, and then to prayer by a chaplain before sitting to eat. They are not permitted to leave, and thus they are forced to listen.

(Manvel becomes the latest Naval Academy instructor to publicly malign his employer.)  Manvel’s article is rife with error.  He cites Mellen v. Bunting, in which the 4th District Court held mealtime prayers at VMI were unConstitutional — a ruling the Supreme Court declined to review.  However, he ignores the ruling’s own qualifier:  Read more

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