Travis AFB

Dear Mr. Weinstein,

I was totally dismayed to read in local papers that your organization is demanding Travis AFB take down the beautiful nativity scene and menorah located near a big intersection. How dare you try to ruin Christmas and Hanukkah for the families who live and work on base. Shame on your organization. So many of these families have husbands and wives overseas- why would you want to take symbols down that try to bring good cheer to the base? If people don’t like it, dont look at it. It’s pathetic that this country, especially the military, cannot show displays of some of the biggest and fondest holidays of the year. It doesn’t feel much like the holidays anymore because groups like yours ruin it for everyone by bending the constitution to fit what you think. It’s freedom to speak your mind and have your religion. So let’s the majority of the people on base speak and leave their nativity and menorah up.

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Hi (name withheld),

Thank you for contacting the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF). When an email is sent to MRFF its forwarded on to Mikey, the Board and the Advisory Board. I am on the Advisory Board and also an ordained minister in the Assemblies of God.

I understand your reasoning concerning the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) but if the media would do their job and report the stories accurately, people would see that we’re not anti-Christian in any way. If that were so, I wouldn’t be here nor would the California Council of Churches/IMPACT with its 5,500 churches and numerous individual churches and Christian volunteers.

Let me first state that we are grateful to and honor our soldiers. In fact, many on our Advisory Board are retired and active duty military whose expertise in military affairs we rely on. Plus, I have 3 generations of soldiers in my family and I used to work for the military under contract.

Mikey Weinstein, the founder of the MRFF, is an honor graduate of the Air Force Academy, held the position of Judge Advocate for 10 years at the Air Force Academy and was a Presidential Counsel to President Reagan for 3 years.

We are not bending the Constitution but are its most ardent defenders.

The first amendment in the Constitution states;
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion (establishment clause), or prohibiting the free exercise thereof (free exercise clause).”

Our military cannot favor one religion over any others (Establishment Clause) and cannot stop our soldiers from practicing whatever religion they want or if they want to practice no religion (Free Exercise Clause).

The Commander is responsible for ensuring that soldiers and their families have the opportunity for the free exercise of religion under the Chaplaincy Corp.

The Chaplain is a special staff officer to the Commander and soldiers who want religious support and it is the Chaplain’s duty to carry out all religious activities inherent in that religion.

Complaints came in to MRFF when the Nativity scene was put at the front gate instead of on Chapel grounds. When MRFF contacted Travis, 3 days later they put up the Menorah to see if Mikey, who is Jewish, would fight against his own faith, which MRFF did. Then over a period of days other Christmas items were put out.

Here’s the part where the media has not done its journalistic duty—they left out the memorandum by Gen. Schwartz—the Chief of Staff to the Air Force—which I have attached.

The Air Force bases are rampant on its egregious attacks against both the establishment clause and the free exercise clause by favoring one extreme form of Christianity (which is another story) so Gen. Schwartz was forced to go to the USAFA in Colorado to reprimand them. Lt. Gen. Gould of the USAFA continued to defy the General—which borders on insubordination. So, in September of this year, Gen. Schwartz was forced to issue a memorandum to all Air Force bases on the military’s role concerning religion and religious activities. Here are two quotes from that memorandum.

Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz issued a memo to commanders that told them to avoid mixing religion with their military roles.
They must refrain from appearing to officially endorse religion generally or any particular religion,” Schwartz wrote.”

We are doing nothing more than backing what the General told them to do. All we ask is that they move the Nativity scene and Menorah 2 blocks away on the Chapel grounds where they always were. The Commander at Travis AFB is also defying his superior’s order—again, close to insubordination under military law.

You see, this battle is not really between the military and MRFF. It’s between the Chief of Staff standing up for the Constitution and the Commanders. Because MRFF is the most vocal, we are demonized and used to win the support of the public. The people are being used as pawns and don’t even realize it in order to override the Constitution where our government entities are concerned. Period.

We are NOT anti-Christian nor trying to take Christmas out of the military. We are only asking that they be put back in the hands of the Chaplains—not the Commanders at the front gate—where they belong.

Just imagine the outcry if the Muslims were allowed to put up symbols of Ramadan at the front gate, giving the appearance of supporting that religion. There are many Muslims and other faiths in our military who fight for our freedoms under the Constitution who find this not only against the Constitution but against their faith.

Remember, our military is secular. Anyone who wants to don the uniform of our military and fight for our freedoms under the Constitution are free to do so.

I hope this clarifies our stance in support of Gen. Schwartz, who is defending the Constitution—not bending it, and that we are not the hate group we are made out to be.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas!

Pastor Joan