Michael Weinstein claims to be an advocate of religious freedom, willing to give his “last drop of blood” even for beliefs with which he disagrees.
Weinstein was recently proud to point out he had Penn Jillette, of Penn and Tiller, as a visitor at an MRFF rally. Penn had this to say:
Fair enough. More interesting, however, is what Jillette had to say about Christians, the very next day: Read more
Michael Weinstein’s “religious freedom” foundation has raised a hullabaloo over the decision by organizers to cancel the atheist “counter-event” to last year’s Christian “Rock the Fort.” Quoth the ever-eloquent Weinstein:
There is a DoD Directive which says that the Department of Defense may never provide a selective benefit for one entity and not provide the same benefit for another, and the Billy Graham Evangelical Society received a benefit that was not afforded to Rock Beyond Belief. They have treated us horribly.
Weinstein and supporters of the “Rock Beyond Belief” event claim the “horrible” treatment is a result of being treated differently than “Rock the Fort,” or that the military “reneged” on its promise of the “same support” for RBB as RtF. This “disparate” treatment, then, is proof the military is actually trying to promote Christianity.
Then again, Weinstein thinks everything is proof of some sort of Christian conspiracy.
The long and short of it is that there is a process by which Fort Bragg Read more
Apparently, Michael Weinstein of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation thinks atheists need special government support to be considered “equal” with Christians.
The media has had a chance to digest the accusations the US Army post at Fort Bragg discriminated against atheists in their treatment of “Rock Beyond Belief,” and apparently interviewed those involved.
Doesn’t look good for Weinstein and his MRFF crowd.
“I think it all boils down to money,” [Col Stephen] Sicinski said Read more
Being a Christian in the military sometimes creates challenges in situations civilians take for granted. For example, how do you find a church? The concept of a “home church” and steady lifelong attendance takes on a whole new meaning when you move every two to four years.
This is the second article in a series of suggestions and guidance on finding a church as you move about in your military career. The first, Part 1: The Military Chapel, discussed the various perspectives and thoughts on attending services at the base/post military chapel. The topic of Part 2 is local/community churches a military Christian might choose to visit at a new or temporary assignment.
Attending a Local Church Read more
Rabbi Heather Borshof was commissioned as a US Army Chaplain in December. She was ordained as a rabbi by the Hebrew Union College, and has worked with a Jewish congregation and worked as a Chaplain in the Air Force since then.
Rear Adm. Harold L. Robinson, who is the first rabbi to reach the rank of admiral in the U.S. Navy, commissioned Borshof during the Dec. 3 ceremony at Temple Rodeph Torah. Her first assignment will be at Fort Belvoir in northern Virginia.
Borshof was described by the JCC as a Reform Rabbi and the “first active-duty woman Chaplain in the US Army in a generation.”
Via the Army Chaplaincy blog.
Normally, Michael Weinstein leans on World War II imagery when he attacks Christianity, saying American Christians are banding together to take over the US (under a new government led by James Dobson and Dick Cheney, apparently) to create “oceans and oceans of blood.”
Adding to his repertoire, Weinstein now appropriates terminology from the civil rights era. In response to the US Army approving a planned atheist event on its grounds — but not on the terms Weinstein wanted — Weinstein had this to say:
This is taking North Carolina back to the Jim Crow Read more
Updated with Weinstein quote.
Just a few days after announcing its planned date, the atheist response to the Billy Graham “Rock the Fort,” “Rock Beyond Belief,” has been cancelled — not by the US Army post at Fort Bragg, which had agreed to host it, nor by critics, who have been silent or nonexistent.
“Rock Beyond Belief” cancelled itself. And as predictably as the sun rising in the East, Michael Weinstein has announced plans to sue the US Army as a result.
It almost seems like choreography.
The reasons for the cancellation include an apparent lack Read more
A Buddhist Zen priest living in Austin conducted an interview with 1LT Stephen Hunnewell, an American Soldier and Buddhist who was serving in Afghanistan at the time. In the interview, Lt Hunnewell said that while he was long interested in the eastern religions, he didn’t really begin to practice a faith until returning from a combat tour:
It was not until I returned from my last deployment in Afghanistan, 2008, did I really begin a practice. During my last tour in Afghanistan I began to search for a spiritual path. The old adage, “There are no atheists in foxholes,” could not be more true.
For those who don’t closely follow Buddhist/military discussions, it is interesting to note the vein of pacifism Read more