Fort Carson

Published On: February 2, 2016|Categories: MRFF's Inbox|3 Comments|

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Read about you below.  How long have you hated Christians and loved muslims?  You do know they want to annihilate Jews as well as Christians.
“The enemy that Army and Air Force personnel at Fort Carson are trained to fight has now formed a battle with them on their own turf in Colorado Springs, Colorado. All it took was a couple of complaints from irate Muslims and those who support them, and officials at the base bowed down to Islam.”

 

(name withheld)


 

Hi (name withheld),

I know where bigotry comes from, but I’ve never been clear about willful ignorance. Now, thanks to you, I have a bit more clarity about the latter. I suppose if a person treats himself to a steady diet of stupidity, arrogance and fear, it can become kind of hypnotizing.

If you’re at all open to things like facts, I’d be happy to help you. I fear, however, that you may have chosen to lose yourself in the hypnotizing trio mentioned above. However, since I tend to be an optimist, I like to say true things because sometimes they pierce the veil of willful ignorance. Here are some:

No one here hates Christians. We believe Christians have the right to practice their faith.

Everyone here believes Muslims also have the right to practice their faith just as believers in other faiths have. And, in addition, everyone here believes people who subscribe to no faith at all have the same right.

BUT – and this is important – people in the military who want to practice their faith or belief system must do so in the proper time, place and manner.

We also know that Muslims do not want to annihilate Jews, Christians or anyone else. You are confusing, apparently, radical extremists who do not represent Islam, for all Muslims. That is as wrong as it would be to assume all Christians are represented by the man who murdered Dr. Tiller, or Robert Dear, the man who killed people in Colorado Springs, or Timothy McVeigh.

You see, Jim, there are facts and there is ignorant bigotry. You’ve taken your pick, but it’s not too late to do a little clear thinking.

Best,

Mike Farrell

(MRFF Board of Advisors)


 

Dear (name withheld),

 

Don’t believe everything you read because this article isn’t telling the truth. It wasn’t irate Muslims that contact MRFF but the spouse (non-Muslim) of a soldier (non-Muslim) stationed there who had it taken care of right away.
 
“Good morning! I saw this shirt (attached photo) at a vendor inside our PX and spoke to authorities who actually had the situation resolved by this morning”
If you read the whole article you sent you would have seen that it was taken care of before Mikey was contacted.
“But before Weinstein gets his own religious garb in a wad on behalf of one of his clients who filed a complaint about the T-shirt, he should see that the exchange service on base already sided with him, before he came out with his scathing list of demands. In a double slap to the face for soldiers, the Army and Air Force Exchange Service told Merica Apparel to stop selling the shirts because they “violated military rules against merchandise with religious or political messages,” Opposing Views reported.”
 
This isn’t a “double slap to the face for soldiers” but military rules and the law according to the Supreme Court:
 
Parker v. Levy: 
 “This Court has long recognized that the military is, by necessity, a specialized society separate from civilian society… While the members of the military are not excluded from the protection granted by the First Amendment, the different character of the military community and of the military mission requires a different application of those protections. … The fundamental necessity for obedience, and the consequent necessity for imposition of discipline, may render permissible within the military that which would be constitutionally impermissible outside it… Speech [in any form] that is protected in the civil population may nonetheless undermine the effectiveness of response to command.  If it does, it is constitutionally unprotected.” (Emphasis added) Parker v. Levy, 417 U.S. 733, 1974
 
The T-shirt being sold at the PX (government property) is “constitutionally unprotected.”
 
We are neither an atheist organization nor are we anti-Christian. Mikey is Jewish (and prays to the same Father we do 3 times a day) and 80% of the Board, Advisory Board, volunteers and supporters (244 in total) of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) are Christians. In fact, 96% of our 43,200+ soldier clients (1 can represent many) are Christians – Catholics, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Methodist, Lutherans, Baptists, etc. We fight for the rights of these Christians more than any other religion but it never makes the news. 
Mikey was a JAG (lawyer) at the Air Force Academy for 10 years, worked in the West Wing under Ronald Reagan, and held positions in private practice.
As defenders of the Constitution we fight for the separation of church and state.
“…but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.” (Article I, III)
This means that from the President to Congress to the military – no one’s job is based on their religion.
 
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion (Establishment Clause), or prohibiting the free exercise thereof (Free Exercise Clause).”(First Amendment)
 
The Establishment Clause means that you cannot favor one religion over another even though it is in the majority. This clause respects the RIGHTS of all religions. Our military is SECULAR and there are people of other faiths that don the uniform that love this country. 
 
The Free Exercise Clause (which is subservient to the Establishment Clause) means that our soldiers are free to exercise any religion they want or no religion at all but cannot elevate one God above others.
 
“Because religious belief, or non-belief, is such an important part of every person’s life, freedom of religion affects every individual. Religious institutions that use government power in support of themselves and force their views on persons of other faiths, or of no faith, undermine all our civil rights. Moreover, state support of an established religion tends to make the clergy unresponsive to their own people, and leads to corruption within religion itself. Erecting the “wall of separation between church and state,” therefore, is absolutely essential in a free society.” Thomas Jefferson, to the Virginia Baptists (1808) ME 16:320. 
This is his second known use of the term “wall of separation,” here quoting his own use in the Danbury Baptist letter.
This wording of the original was several times upheld by the Supreme Court as an accurate description of the Establishment Clause.
Jefferson’s concept of “separation of church and state” first became a part of Establishment Clause jurisprudence in Reynolds v. U.S., 98 U.S. 145 (1878). In that case, the court examined the history of religious liberty in the US, determining that while the constitution guarantees religious freedom, “The word ‘religion’ is not defined in the Constitution. We must go elsewhere, therefore, to ascertain its meaning and nowhere more appropriately, we think, than to the history of the times in the midst of which the provision was adopted.” The court found that the leaders in advocating and formulating the constitutional guarantee of religious liberty were James Madison and Thomas Jefferson. Quoting the “separation” paragraph from Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists, the court concluded that, “coming as this does from an acknowledged leader of the advocates of the measure, it may be accepted almost as an authoritative declaration of the scope and effect of the amendment thus secured.
In 1878 “separation of church and state” became part of the Establishment Clause BY LAW.
The Supreme Court heard the Lemon v. Kurtzman case in 1971 and ruled in favor of the Establishment Clause.
Subsequent to this decision, the Supreme Court has applied a three-pronged test to determine whether government action comports with the Establishment Clause, known as the Lemon Test:
Government action violates the Establishment Clause unless it:
1. Has a significant secular (i.e., non-religious) purpose,
2. Does not have the primary effect of advancing or inhibiting religion
3. Does not foster excessive entanglement between government and religion
The T-shirt fits into all 3 of the Lemon Test and therefore it is a violation of the Establishment Clause.
Check out the honorable and distinguished military personnel that we rely on for their expertise concerning religion in the military and people from all walks of life that support the Military Religious Freedom Foundation.
 
If the military obeyed the laws and regulations listed above, we wouldn’t be having this fight.
Pastor Joan
MRFF Advisory Board Member

Mike,

I take offense at you idea of “stupidity, arrogance and fear”.  As far a stupidity, have you read the Koran and the references of “killing” all unbelievers?  Over 100 times it says this.  Maybe the stupidity is on your part unless you can explain those references.  This is the guide all these people believe and live by.  Why haven’t they condemned the killings by “extremists” the way Christians condemned Tiller, Dear and McVeigh? I believe the “ignorant bigotry” is on your part, not mine.  Arrogance?  I am a retired teacher who wants to live a long life in the country I love.  My arrogance left me a long time ago and I wonder if the arrogance might be on the part of MRFF in “dictating” how someone should or should not believe.  Fear?  Are you afraid you might lose your job if you found the truth and it didn’t agree with your colleagues?

“It’s not too late to do a little clear thinking.”

(name withheld)


 

Oh (name withheld), please. You’re happy to spout nonsense, but when called on it the result is you “take offense”?

Actually I have not only read the book but I know many Muslims, none of whom hate you or me. Nor are any of them about to dedicate themselves to annihilating Jews, Christians or others who don’t share their faith.

Have you bothered to read the Bible? Does stoning children at the city gates appeal to you? Has it occurred to you that things change as people grow?

Do yourself a favor. Visit a mosque and ask people there about their need to murder nonbelievers. If you’re open to trying something daring like that it might wake you up.

The fact that you choose to believe that Muslims haven’t condemned the behavior of the extremists who defile their religion demonstrates your unwillingness to actually reach out and find the truth of what’s happening. And frankly, it makes me tired. The idea that one who was once a teacher, presumably of children, is so full of fear and hatred that he’s willing to spew this kind of garbage is terrifying. Xenophobes and demagogues should be barred from teaching. It’s a relief to think you’re retired, but it’s horrifying to think about the damage you may have done before you left.

No one at the MRFF is dictating how someone should or should not believe. You may cling to your sad and sick convictions as long as you’d like, but fortunately people in authority in the military are not always as blind as you choose to be.

Mike Farrell

(MRFF Board of Advisors)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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3 Comments

  1. Yeshua Warrior February 2, 2016 at 12:30 pm

    Mr. Farrell,

    I am afraid you are the one whose is ignorant of Islam and what it teaches and stands for. Radical extremists do represent Islam and what the Koran teaches as well as the Hadith. What are we to make of these verses from the Koran?

    Quran (3:56) – “As to those who reject faith, I will punish them with terrible agony in this world and in the Hereafter, nor will they have anyone to help.”

    Quran (3:151) – “Soon shall We cast terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers, for that they joined companions with Allah, for which He had sent no authority”. This speaks directly of polytheists, yet it also includes Christians, since they believe in the Trinity

    Quran (5:33) – “The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement”

    Quran (8:12) – “I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them”

    Quran (9:29) – “Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.” “People of the Book” refers to Christians and Jews.

    Quran (9:30) – “And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!” Hmm, destroy the Jews and Christians!

    This is from the Hadith and Sira:

    Bukhari (52:177) – Allah’s Apostle said, “The Hour will not be established until you fight with the Jews, and the stone behind which a Jew will be hiding will say. “O Muslim! There is a Jew hiding behind me, so kill him.”

    Muslim (1:33) – the Messenger of Allah said: I have been commanded to fight against people till they testify that there is no god but Allah, that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah

    Muslim (19:4321-4323) – Three separate hadith in which Muhammad shrugs over the news that innocent children were killed in a raid by his men against unbelievers. His response: “They are of them (meaning the enemy).”

    Tabari 7:97 The morning after the murder of Ashraf, the Prophet declared, “Kill any Jew who falls under your power.” Ashraf was a poet, killed by Muhammad’s men because he insulted Islam.

    All these versed Mr. Farrell is in every Koran and Hadith and Sira that every Muslim reads, whether radicalized or not, so please tell me again that Muslims do not want to annihilate Christians and Jews??

    You say that Muslims should be able to practice their faith, does that also mean it is okay for them to perform honor killings, chopping off hands for stealing or heads for being an infidel all here in the United States. Did you know that over 90% of all honor killings done here in the US are by Muslims?

    Mr. Farrell, may I suggest that you brush up on what Islam stands for. It has proven time and time again throughout all the centuries it is not a religion of peace, but one of conquest, domination and control. You say that Christians want to set up a theocracy here, but in reality that is what Muslims want to do, set up a caliphate and turn the US into theocracy all based upon the teachings of the Koran and Hadith.

  2. Paula February 3, 2016 at 4:31 pm

    Gee, YW! You can certainly spout that Muslim rhetoric, can’t you. In fact, now that I really look at it, you talk about it like one who is very, very familiar with it, maybe has even memorized it. That’s it! You are a Muslim, aren’t you? You know so much, obviously it is because you are of the Islamic faith! Oh, you try to distract with your rantings and ravings, but the indisputable fact remains: you are a radical, extremist Muslim, no doubt about it!

  3. Yeshua Warrior February 3, 2016 at 7:45 pm

    Dear Paula,

    You are so funny Paula, you make me laugh! I am as far as being a Muslim as I am being a Catholic! I have been a born again evangelical Christian for over 40 years and I am also an ordained minister as well. I just know how to do my research, plus I have heard apologists speak on Islam and listened to the testimonies of those who were once Muslims and are now Christians as to what Islam teaches and what they believe.

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