Disappointed

Dear Military Religious Freedom Foundation:

First of all I would like to say that I liked your approach of using “selected” messages from both supporters and detractors. It shows that you are a completely open and forthcoming organization that only wants the truth. And I would also like to say that I’m being completely sarcastic.

The one and true principle that this country stands for and people come from far and wide to experience…..is freedom.

Freedom to live where you want, freedom to wear what you want, freedom to eat what you want, to say what you want, to believe what you want. And for that reason I am disappointed that someone like Mr. Weinstein, a man who from his info page has fought for this country and what it stands for.

Why would a website that touts the American Flag stand for anything other than freedom. Why would they try to take away someone’s right to choose anything, let alone the right to take part in one’s religion. Last time I checked reading the bible, even out loud, never hurt anyone. It is one thing to stop someone from wielding a weapon and firing it into a crowd of innocent people, but reading the bible is not dangerous.

Why would we not want to let our men and women, who are making the sacrifice to fight for you and me, choose for themselves whether or not to practice their faith?

The last history book I picked up told me that our founding fathers entered a clause into their constitution about the separation of church and state not to remove religion (you’ll note our dollar bill states “In GOD We Trust”) but to remove religious persecution. To be very honest in my mind you are the one’s persecuting other’s in this scenario. Is your group not dedicated to removing the choice of an individual from practicing a religion of their choice?

I think it’s about time you stand back, take a look at yourselves, and ask what are you really trying to accomplish and what is it that you really stand for? Last time I checked the group you are looking to remove from our military’s men and women, or more appropriately, boys and girls is one that displays love, compassion, pity, honesty, and forgiveness.

I finish with one comment, if we are to truly remove religion from our military then should we also remove the option for one’s last rites? How far are you willing to take this? And how much of your values are you willing to sacrifice?

Yours Truely,

(name withheld)

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The following is a response to the above email:

Dear (name withheld)

Mikey Weinstein asked me to respond since we are a large faith organization representing Protestant and Orthodox denominations.

I’m fully in support of your letter – until paragraph 6! You are absolutely correct that freedom of religion is essential. That IS our point. MRFF does not seek the removal of religion at ALL (or for SURE we would not support the work!) but the end of coercion from a handful of people against others. It serves no one well when any view of religion is forced on anyone else. Otherwise your points in paragraphs 1-5 could not, would not, exist.

What has happened to our men and women (yup – boys and girls) is too often forced participation in a view of faith that they do not share. Our members have written us to say their sons and daughters in the military or academies were commanded to attend religious events where the issues of how one sees Christianity are totally inconsistent with their own, and that they have been publicly ridiculed and sometimes humiliated by being told they are not “Christian enough” or not “good Christians”. That is utterly unacceptable.

Reading the Bible is your business – it is not up to military command structure to do that and to tell you what to believe. It is not up to them to tell you how to feel, think, believe about faith. A few years ago in the anger on FOX over “happy holidays” vs. “Merry Christmas” a large carpet cleaning company took out a full page ad with a creche and the words: “Jesus – the Reason for the Season”. Well – I happen to agree since I’m Christian and adore Christmas. But I will NEVER patronize that company because I do NOT take my faith from a carpet cleaning business! I found that deeply offensive as I find military leaders sworn to uphold the Constitution offensive for shoving their views onto our troops.

Same principle – our young people are in the military to defend the Constitution not the Bible. They defend the RIGHT to the Bible – any version, any interpretation – but not the Bible as the only view.

My forebears were MA Puritans who were notoriously hostile to Roger Williams and Baptists in general, and the founding fathers created the separation of church and state precisely to STOP my ancestors from imposing THEIR views about predestination and ministerial intervention between you and God. If we had NOT done that, you might NOT be free today to read the Bible and worship as you see fit. I’m proud of my ancestors for a lot of things, but that is NOT one of them. Religious mandates are un-American.

That is why MRFF works to give every man and woman, boy and girl in our military freedom of their own faith and conscience. There is nobody in the military including the chaplains, who should force YOUR kids into religious services they don’t believe.

I hope this helps clarify why we support MRFF as a huge voice for religious freedom. I hope you will read more about their work and understand how much they fight for YOUR rights, too.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Sholes
Director of Public Policy
California Council of Churches/California Church IMPACT