Chaplain Reyes’ article on JBER website

Dear Mikey,

I just read about your attack on Chaplain Reyes’ article regarding his quote of President Eisenhower’s phrase “no atheists in foxholes,” and I must ask you, aren’t you being profoundly thin-skinned and over-reactive? I read a few of the responses to an email critical of the MRFF reaction, and I must say, using a phrase coined by a former commander-in-chief does not equate at all to a statement calling women ineffective in battle, etc. I believe that Chaplain Reyes’ article was about Chaplains who served in WWII, not about atheists, and therefore your complaint is completely out of context and irrelevant.

For you to label the article “hate speech” is extremely far-fetched, and smacks of bullying on your part.

It is hard to believe there are people in the MRFF who have accepted Jesus Christ into their hearts as their Lord and Savior, as some of your replies to criticism state. There are ways to ensure religious freedom, without shutting down an article on a Chaplain’s webpage.

I appeal to any reason you may possess: drop the demand that Chaplain Reyes be punished. Such vindictiveness only makes you look worse.

(name withheld)

Dear (name withheld),

I am one of those Christians that are with MRFF and on the Advisory Board. You know – one of those “It is hard to believe there are people in the MRFF who have accepted Jesus Christ into their hearts as their Lord and Savior, as some of your replies to criticism state.” I am also an ordained minister in the Assemblies of God.

Do you know that 75% of those on the Board, Advisory Board, volunteers and supporters are Christian?

Do you know that 96% of our soldier clients that currently number over 34,000 (1 represents 100) are Christian?

Do you know that we don’t act on our own at but at the request of soldiers who want to file a complaint?

No, you don’t.

According to you, the soldiers are thin-skinned and bullying for calling this out as hate speech. Why don’t you contact THEM and tell them how you feel instead of placing the blame at Mikey’s feet? While you’re at – why don’t you tell them you know more about military law than they do?

Lt. Col. Chaplain Reyes did not put his article on his OWN WEBITE but on The Official Website of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. This is against military law and borders on insubordination according to Air Force Instruction 1-1.

BY ORDER OF THE SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE
Air Force Instruction 1-1
7 August 2012

2.11. Government Neutrality Regarding Religion. Leaders at all levels must balance constitutional protections for an individual’s free exercise of religion or other personal beliefs and the constitutional prohibition against governmental establishment of religion. For example, they must avoid the actual or apparent use of their position to promote their personal religious beliefs to their subordinates or to extend preferential treatment for any religion. Commanders or supervisors who engage in such behavior may cause members to doubt their impartiality and objectivity. The potential result is a degradation of the unit’s morale, good order, and discipline. Airmen, especially commanders and supervisors, must ensure that in exercising their right of religious free expression, they do not degrade morale, good order, and discipline in the Air Force or degrade the trust and confidence that the public has in the United States Air Force.

Lt. Col. Chaplain Reyes can say and write anything he wants in his church or chapel. He can even pass out flyers on this to his parishioners. But he cannot place it on the official website for the whole base where there are others of different religions or no religion at all. Period.

Pastor Joan