CNN beliefBLOG – Military backs off threat to pull atheist from ceremony

This morning, a brave young soldier stood up against forced prayer in a military ceremony – in the face of disciplinary threats from superiors and ridicule from fellow soldiers.

When this soldier contacted MRFF, we immediately intervened on his/her behalf, and the threat of disciplinary action was promptly rescinded.

Selected Article Excerpts:

• After almost being pulled from a graduation ceremony for refusal to lower the head during a benediction, a soldier is now allowed to attend but must instead stand at attention. The 20-year-old private first class, a proclaimed atheist, is graduating from Advanced Individual Training at Fort Jackson in South Carolina on Thursday.
• The soldier, who requested that CNN not give a name and gender for fear of repercussions, called the Military Religious Freedom Foundation on Wednesday after taking part in a rehearsal for the graduation. The soldier told the watchdog group that during the rehearsal, officials ordered the soldiers to bow their heads and clasp their hands during the chaplain’s benediction. As an atheist, the soldier refused to do so.
• “When you stand up like this, you make yourself a tarantula on a wedding cake,” said Mikey Weinstein, founder of the foundation. Weinstein said the soldier was “brave” for taking a stand. “This is an absolute perfect example of the separation of church and state, and it takes a 20-year-old to stand up and say no,” Weinstein said.

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