Tag Archives: Public Expression

Chris Rodda: That Word Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means

Chris Rodda, Michael “Mikey” Weinstein’s research assistant, recently took to the internet to make the calm, reasoned statement that Chaplain (Capt) Sonny Hernandez hates women.

She began by claiming ChristianFighterPilot.com has posted a “steady stream of misogynistic” articles for years — which should have made it easy to provide a clear example. Rodda attempted to do so, saying that an article on this site

expressed [the] opinion that female chaplains are not acceptable…

and then quoting this article, which says  Read more

Military Chaplains Exist to Protect Religious Rights

In a fairly bluntly worded official Air Force article, SSgt Shelton Sherrill provided a decent explanation for the sometimes misunderstood role of a military chaplain:

According to the first amendment of the Constitution of the United States, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. For military members, chaplains are one of main advocates to help them protect this right.

Chaplains…provide religious accommodations to ensure everyone is free to exercise their beliefs, provide ethical advice to leadership, unit visitations and confidential counseling.

Edit: Actually, commanders are the ones who provide religious accommodations, not chaplains, as chaplains have no authority to authorize anything. (Chaplains famously have “rank without command.”) However, Read more

Alex McFarland: Mikey Weinstein Debate to Create a Friendship

As previously noted, Dr. Alex McFarland recently participated in a four-person debate with Michael “Mikey” Weinstein. Within the debate, it was refreshing to hear Dr. McFarland articulate a defense of the virtue of religious freedom, including military religious freedom.

Mikey Weinstein didn’t say anything he hasn’t already said a dozen times over the past decade — except to directly contradict Dr. McFarland’s assertion that a Christian who witnesses to another doesn’t do so because they consider them less of a person or otherwise devalue Read more

Congress Lauds Air Force over Military Religious Freedom

Many have grown accustomed to Congress taking the military to task for what it considers breaches of the religious freedom of US troops. Sometimes those congressional reprimands seem to have “fixed” issues. Other times they haven’t — and Congress has decided to pass a law to fix it instead.

It was an interesting turn, then, to see Congress go out of its way not to chide once more, but to laud the Air Force for defending religious liberty:

Congressman Doug Collins (R-Ga.) and Senator James Lankford (R-Okla.) led a bicameral letter of support to Pease Air National Guard Base (ANGB) in response to a complaint that the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) lodged against the base…

As you’ll recall, the FFRF lodged vague, vicarious complaints about chaplains’ prayers during official events. Pease AFB was so unmoved it didn’t even bother to respond to the FFRF.

Congressman Collins, who is also an Air Force Reserve Chaplain, led Read more

Happy Easter, from President Trump

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Commander in Chief:

“America is a nation of believers…

“We are fighting for the right of all citizens to enjoy safety and peace, and to work and live with the dignity that all children of God are entitled to know. As long as we have faith in each other and trust in God, we will succeed.”

Encouraging Read more

Column: Military Chapels Not Barred from Evangelism

Nathan Newman, an Air Force Reserve Officer and George C. Marshall Fellow at The Heritage Foundation, responded to an article in the Colorado Springs Gazette by Tom Roeder discussing the (previously discussed) 4-year closure of the US Air Force Academy Chapel.

In it, Roeder had said:

Religion is a big deal at the academy and other military bases but not for the reasons one might suspect. The services are barred from evangelism, and promotion of faith is restricted, but the academy like the rest of the military must care for the religious needs of troops under federal law.

In the guest column, Newman responded:  Read more

“Breaking”: Mikey Weinstein and the USAFA Commandant’s Homosexuality

by Sonny Hernandez

On Monday, April 3, 2017, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) issued a “breaking” news alert.

The MRFF alleged Christianfighterpilot.com violated the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). As a result, the MRFF demanded an investigation by the Inspector General, claiming CFP called Brig. Gen. (Select) Kristin E. Goodwin a liar. Brig. Gen. (Select) Kristin Goodwin has been chosen to be the newest Commandant of Cadets at the US Air Force Academy, and is reportedly a homosexual with a wife and two kids.

CFP did not call Brig. Gen. (Select) Kristin E. Goodwin a liar. Instead, the CFP commentary posed a rhetorical question – by definition, one whose precise answer isn’t relevant or easy to determine – to inspire discussion on philosophy – by definition, analysis of difficult problems – and morality at the US Air Force Academy and society.

The MRFF’s attempts to incite Read more

Justice Alito: Culture’s Hostility Toward Moral Beliefs

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito recently spoke at a Catholic legal group sponsored by Advocati Christi, noting the hostility of some Americans to religious liberty and the need to “evangelize…religious freedom”:

Alito used his own words from his dissent in the Supreme Court’s landmark same-sex marriage case, telling the gathering he had predicted opposition to the decision would be used to “vilify those who disagree, and treat them as bigots.”

“We are seeing this is coming to pass,” he said, then mentioned Bob Dylan’s famous song lyric, “You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.”

“A wind is picking up that is hostile to those with traditional moral beliefs,” Alito said.

Incidentally, Justice Alito is a former US Army Captain.

The culture has long been in Read more

1 … 25 26 27 28 29 … 147