Hi, I am a Christ-follower

Published On: April 30, 2013|Categories: MRFF's Inbox|1 Comment|

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I wish I could tell Mr. Weinstein how sorry I am at the horrible things that were said to his sons in the Air Force Academy – or anywhere for that matter. I know that I, and all my TRUE Christian friends would never have said such things. We love the Jewish people because our Lord Jesus was a Jew! There are a lot of things that go on in the world in the name of so-called Christianity, that simply are perpetrated by people who claim to be Christian-people who kill abortion doctors, spout hate at anyone of a different religion-that’s not what Christians are called to do.

So, while I disagree with Mr. Weinsteins vehemence against any religion in the armed services – I understand it.

(name withheld)

For I am not ashamed
of the Gospel, for it is the
power of God for salvation
to everyone who believes,
to the Jew first and also
to the Greek. Romans 1:16


Dear (name withheld),

Your attempt at Christian understanding and your apologies for those who call themselves “Christians” while heaping vitriol on anyone who does not share their extreme belief are very much appreciated. However, I hope you will look a bit further into the work of the MRFF and understand that neither Mr. Weinstein nor anyone associated with the organization has or expresses “vehemence against any religion in the armed forces.” Everyone understands that members of the military have the same right as does any other citizen to her or his religious beliefs. What we oppose is the attempt to force a particular belief, in this case a certain sect of Christian fundamentalism, on others in the military. This is often done by those in superior ranks and is too often tacitly endorsed by silence and apparent consent on the part of the command structure.

We believe the Constitution’s requirement of a separation of church and state means that those in power and those in leadership of the U.S. Military must be rigorous in maintaining that there can be no proselytizing and there can be no denunciation of the religious faith or lack of faith of any member of the Armed Forces of our country.

So please do not attempt to “understand” what you call Mr. Weinstein’s “vehemence against any religion in armed services,” because it does not exist. What he and we oppose is religious bigotry and intolerance.

Mike Farrell

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One Comment

  1. MW April 30, 2013 at 9:51 pm

    I, too, feel terrible about the horrible things that have been said to Mikey Weinstein and his family in the name of Jesus. Clearly, there is an extreme fringe of people who call themselves Christian who have lost sight of Jesus’s teachings and commands. But to compare some misguided military leaders to the members of the Westboro Baptist church is unbalanced and unfair.

    I cannot reconcile the mission of the MRFF, which I agree with, to Mr. Weinstein’s comments in multiple articles from various sources. The vitriole and outright hate pour out of his writings and speeches. He uses a wide variety of terms of violence, blood and death to describe his battle with fundamentalists. He labels his opponents as Taliban and Al Qaeda, the most extremely intolerant people on the planet, whose primary method of proselytizing is bloody terror and murder of anyone who doesn’t adhere to their rigid principles.

    He has gone way beyond his stated mission of changing the culture of components of the military, such as the Air Force Academy. He is now alienating a wide swath of Christians. While proselytizing at work is clearly inappropriate, even more so between a superior and subordinate, court martialing people who proselytize at all while in the military is extreme.

    I am a Christian and I agree with the stated mission of the MFAA, but I shudder in fear when I read anything by or about Mr. Weinstein. There has never been a “wall” between church and state. The phrase “separation of church and state” is nowhere in the Constitution. It is an opinion written by a Supreme Court Justice. The Constitution was never intended to remove religion from anything and everything assoicated with government, nor was it intended to remove religion from the public sphere.

    Mr. Weinstein has turned into an extremist himself, an extreme anti-religion atheist with a particular hatred for Christians. He has become like the people he hates, vilifying them and trying to use government to shut them down.

    It is impossible to remove religion from all public life without becoming tyrannically anti-religion. Just look at the Taliban as an example. His cries to rebuild the wall sound antithetical to freedom. Just look at the people who built the Berlin Wall as an example. Walls don’t make us free. Walls are a way for one group to enslave another.

    The military should not tolerate any pressure whatsoever on any member of the military to participate in a religious activity. But neither should an atheist become unrecoverably offended when someone else mentions their spiritual beliefs, be they Muslim, Christian, Wiccan, or anything else. The military needs to enforce the laws and regulations that already exist.

    [Sarcasm alert!] But if they’re going to criminalize talking about one’s faith, they’ll have to criminalize discussion of alcohol with a non-drinker, too. A former alcoholic might feel “raped” when invited to a bar by his coworkers.

    Mr. Weinstein needs to remove his need for vengeance from his mission, which serves only to fan the flames of hatred on both sides. If he focused on being an ombudsman for those who feel uncomfortable with any aspect of spirituality in the context of their service, and he worked to change a culture that is at times insensitive to non-Christians, he might find less resistance and less conflict. But when he proactively tries to criminalize Christian activity, and demonizes Christians with hate filled rants, he goes too far.

    I am a Christian and I am appalled by both the fundamentalist extremists Mr. Weinstein is battling and Mr. Weinstein himself. We all lose if either side triumphs. The answer lies somewhere in between where people of all faiths feel comfortable in the military without abrogating anyone’s Constitutional rights.

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