Attention anyone

Dear Michael, (or anyone reading)

I just want you to know that throughout my life I have been persecuted for my faith. There is no place on earth that is free from harsh words or hurtful people. I just want to say that I have forgiven those who hurt me and cursed me and called me stupid for believing in a God. I don’t hold it against them, I am not a victim. I just want you to know not an ounce of my being believes what you are doing is right, for all intents and purposes I should be against you. However, I am not against you, I love you good sir. Just as God loves you. I know that what you do is not from you. I know you have needs in your body and I would like to pray for you to be healed and anyone in your staff.

I pray that God will fill you with his love, I pray dear Lord that you would show Michael Weinstein your peace and your comfort and your healing.

Even if you hate me and ridicule my pathetic attempt at an email. That’s ok my offer still stands.

(name withheld)

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Dear (name withheld),

You are not being persecuted for your faith nor do we hate you.

I am an ordained minister and on the Advisory Board of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF). I and others will be responding to you.

Mikey and the MRFF DO NOT act on their own but on the complaints of soldiers who see the blatant disregard for the Constitution and military law where religion is concerned.

We are neither anti-God nor anti-Christian. Mikey is Jewish and prays 3 times a day to the same Father we do. A full 75% or more of the Board, Advisory Board, volunteers and supporters with the MRFF are Christian. Out of our 37,100+ military clients (1 can represent 50 and 1 represents 100) are Christian – Catholic, Episcopalians, Methodists, Lutherans, Baptists, Evangelicals, etc. If anything, we represent Christians more than any other religion but that doesn’t make the news.

Dominionist Christianity (google it) is what we fight against – not all Christians. They believe that they must cleanse the world of all Christians not of their sect, those of other faiths and those will no faith, in order for Jesus to come back thus throwing out the Book of Revelation.

Christians listed above are under emotional distress and persecution by an extreme fringe of Christianity better as known Dominionists. Though this sect only makes up about 10% of the Air Force Academy, they are the most vocal and allowed to run roughshod over the other 90%. They crave media attention in the hopes of drawing in those mainline Christians – which THEY persecute – outside of the academy to come to their defense and it’s working very well.

This is what Dominionists in the military think of the faith of those Christian denominations listed above:

US Army chaplain MAJ James Linzey, who, in a 1999 video, described mainstream Protestant churches as “demonic, dastardly creatures from the pit of hell “that should be “stomped out.”

If you are not a Dominionist and belong to a mainline Christian denomination, then we are fighting for you.

When one joins the military, he/she gives up some rights in order to have cohesion and good order in the unit. They are not allowed to speak back to their superior or disparage the President. They are not to speak about politics or religion in public while in uniform. They are to obey every rule and command even if they disagree with it.

The Air Force has strict rules on religious neutrality. This is binding on everyone at the academy.

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.

The Cadets just went through training on religious neutrality (AFI 1-1) but this one Cadet decided to ignore it.

No Cadet has to give up their Christianity. They are still free to talk about it in the hallway with a friend, go to chapel, attend a Bible study, bow their head in prayer at meal time, etc. We encourage this.

Go to this link and read the REAL story and the comment by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh III regarding this incident.
https://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/press-releases/2014/Bible_Verse_3-13-14.html

You wrote:

I know that what you do is not from you.

Is this a veiled reference to Satan? If so, you are sadly mistaken.

We Christians with the MRFF take God’s Word on obeying our “governing authorities” very seriously.

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. Romans 13:1-2

I do not want judgment brought on myself because I didn’t uphold and fight for our laws.

I suggest you go to our website www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org click on “About” and then click on “Foundation Voices.” Scroll through and see the honorable and distinguished military personnel that we rely on for their expertise in military law.

Pastor Joan
MRFF Advisory Board Member

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Dear (name withheld),

Thanks very much for your message. It’s frustrating, I must say, to hear that you’ve been persecuted for your faith. That shouldn’t happen to anyone, anywhere. And while it is true that “there is no place on earth that is free from harsh words or hurtful people,” it is fortunate that here in America we enjoy Constitutionally protected freedom of religion along with our other rights. Because I don’t know where you live I can only offer my sympathy for your plight, but it sounds as though you have found a way to persevere in your belief, and that is as it should be.

Our organization, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, is dedicated to protecting that very right, the freedom of choice of religious belief, or of course its corollary, non-belief, in the United States military, where that freedom has run into some difficulty. We believe, as you apparently do, that every woman and man in the military should be free to believe however she or he chooses. The problem we’re dealing with in our military, as it happens, is that some who have a very fervent belief in a particular religious view feel it is appropriate to impose that belief on others, especially those below them in rank or station. That, of course, can’t be allowed in this country.

Given your experience, I’m sure you agree with us that that sort of thing is not appropriate in any situation, but it’s especially wrong when it happens in an organization associated with the government, such as the U. S. military. For us, our dedication to American law and tradition insists that we do everything we can to protect the right of free choice of belief of all military servicewomen and men. Because our staff, founder and our thousands of supporters are of every faith, we of course oppose no belief system and feel that everyone should enjoy fully the very freedom that you have held to so dearly.

So with thanks for your kind thoughts and prayers, we remain ready to help those in the military avoid the very persecution you have experienced. It’s unfortunate that you’re not in the American military where we could lend our efforts on your behalf, but we wish you well.

Best,

Mike Farrell
(MRFF Board of Advisors)

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Good Day, (name withheld) —

Mikey shared your email with me and I would like to respond directly to you. I’m sorry to hear that you have felt persecuted for your faith throughout your life, and that people have hurt you, cursed you and called you stupid for being a person of faith.

I, too, am a Christian. While I have been blessed not to have been subject to the sort of abuse that you describe, I do know the feeling of being apart from others because of my faith. I’m glad that you are responding to your experiences with love and not hate. You reflect the love of God when you do that. I’m reminded of one of my favorite Scripture verses, Isaiah 43:4 — “You are precious in My eyes, and honored, and I love you.”

There is no one at MRFF that hates you or ridicules you. In fact, most supporters and clients are Christians. We join together with other people of different beliefs, as well as people with no belief in God, to work together to help protect the rights of military members of all beliefs (including no belief). That work is not contrary to Christian values — in fact, it is eminently Christian to stand up for people who may not be able to stand up for themselves. I believe that is what we do at MRFF.

So your prayers for Mikey and others are appreciated —– but if you’d be so kind, I have another prayer request….

Please pray for the Christians who believe that their faith and fervor allows them to violate the rights of others. These types of Christians, often called Dominionists, are convinced that the laws and rules that guide and protect our Constitutional rights do not apply to them.

There are such people, even in our military. And in our military that sort of injustice is especially heinous, because the strict rank structure of a military organization gives tremendous power and control to leaders. If that authority is misused, the damage to subordinates can be awful. Even though these Dominionist Christians believe their actions are justified, even ordained by God, they are mistaken.

So if you want to pray for someone who truly needs God’s guidance, pray for those fellow Christians of ours who need to understand that their faith is not threatened just because someone else’s rights are protected.

Thanks again for writing.

Peace,

Mike Challman
Christian, AF veteran, MRFF supporter

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Dear Sirs,

Well I apologize for some false assumptions I might have made. I am glad to hear that many of your staff are believers. I would like to further extend my offer for prayer towards your staff and organization. I realize that you are probably very busy I would just like to ask one more thing if you would send me a list of people that need healing in their bodies I would be very happy to pray for them. Christian, Atheist, Muslim, Hindu it doesn’t matter anyone on your staff or in their families. Anything from cancer to illness or chronic disease or just head aches or other small things. I warn you though, God loves to heal and your office might be short on complaints if you send me all their problems listed in an email. :)

If you were at all interested in sending me this I would ask you to be as specific as possible because general prayers are answered generally, but specific prayers are answered specifically.

Thank you,

(name withheld)

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Hi (name withheld) –

You are kind to make such an offer. However, we really don’t give out personal information. I encourage you to learn more about this important civil rights issue. And if you get an opportunity to tell others what you now know about MRFF, its members and its goals – that is, to defend the rights of all service members – I hope you will let them know what you’ve learned.

Peace, Mike

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Hmm I figured as much but it is no issue.

I am very passionate, to a certain extent, about the rights guaranteed us by the constitution. The problems I have with all these issues is that the constitution, namely the 1st amendment, seem to be open to interpretation and thus are subject to debate and change with public opinion.

One hundred years ago your organization would never have existed because the masses would have largely been people confessing some sort of faith, namely a Christian faith.(whether they lived it out is an entirely different story) So Christian dominance in the military would not have been a big deal. Today, however with atheism on the rise and other people trying to rebel against what they think is the establishment, which is only human nature. Some kid putting a harmless little scripture on his wall, is all of the sudden a government issue. It is my personal belief that the 1st Amendment does not protect ‘people against religion’ but protects ‘religion against government.’ If someone has issues with harassment or assault or other things done by religious fanatics then those are civil offenses and should be handled by the local authorities.

I understand however you are not the ACLU and only represent those Honorable men and women of our armed forces, which I respect and admire for their service. That being said I strongly disagree with the statements, methods and lingo of your founder using words like “Christian Taliban” and “Christian Terrorism” it seems as though he has declared war on Christians in the military. I have heard of several cases of people’s rights in the military being threatened and violated by superior officers on the other side of the spectrum which I mentioned before. I would like to see these people being defended as well as people of other religions.

I must say though I am so tired of America being the “Sue Capital of the World” that’s when you know that you have to many lawyers in one nation. To many organizations with so many resources just waiting to see who they can take to court next. Other nations make fun of us because we can’t even agree on our own laws passed by our own elected officials. I know I have been to many other countries.
The state of my nation saddens me and I am going to make a prediction to you and tell you that it is only going to get worse not for you and for your goals, but for me and my ability to openly practice my faith is threatened all the time with every piece of legislation that passes.

I am not so sure this “Domination Christianity” actually exists either. In all my years as a believer I have never heard of such a thing and I am very up to date in the trends and doctrines of the church. I rebuke false teaching and I give credit to the truth. A common misconception people have with the Bible is that it is open to interpretation. You see truth is not a teaching or a doctrine or a viewpoint or a mindset. Truth is a person. “I am the truth and the life, and none get to the father except through me.” John 14:16 No matter how persecution comes or by whom it comes It always comes to every part of the globe during nearly every part of history there has always been persecution somewhere by someone. Some think it will never come to “The land of the free and the home of the brave” but I believe that the open persecution of Christians will come to this nation soon. Whether its 10 years or 20 years public opinion is swaying and the constitution is nothing more than a piece of paper in the wake of public opinion.

But it is wonderful that every morning I wake up I don’t have to be afraid because my Jesus said, “If they did this to me, what do think they will do to you?” My constitutional rights are nothing at the feet of the suffering of the world. So why would I bother defending them against people who don’t care about a piece of paper anyway? All I want is for you and your organization to know this peace that I have. To know this love that my father gives me everyday. Maybe then you wouldn’t care so much about pieces of paper that say this or that or guarantee this etc. Maybe you would care more about people and less about law. Maybe then Mr. Weinstein wouldn’t sound so upset all the time. Maybe his job would be a lot easier and yours too.

Thank you for your time good Mr. Challman

May you know his peace, may you know his love,
(name withheld)

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> (name withheld)- thanks for sharing some additional thoughts. Don’t be offended that I cannot provide personal information to you. I’m sure you can appreciate that everyone has an expectation of privacy and it’s not my place to reveal the personal information of others.
>
> Your observation about today’s demographics in America versus what the landscape looked like 100 years ago is valid, but you may want to consider whether women and minorities also long for those days. Remember, women did not have the right to vote 100 yeas ago, and minorities faced many threats to their civil and human rights. I’m also not sure what you mean when you see that “Christian dominance in the military would not have been a big deal.” Certainly you are aware that our military has always included service members who are not Christian. Are you aware that Jewish soldiers have been recognized with the Medal of Honor as far back as the Civil War? And that today’s US military ranks include over 40,000 soldiers, sailors and airmen who do not believe in God? Everyone is entitled to equal protection under the law in performance of their military duties, whether the individual is Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Agnostic, Atheist or any other category you can think of — and for the many who are non-Christians, “Christian dominance in the military” is a VERY big deal.
>
> As for your suspicion that there is no such thing as Christian Dominionism, I wish you were right but I know that you are mistaken. It’s important to note that this label does not apply to all Christians, but only to a small but active minority who believe that it is their mission to make our nation an explicitly Christian nation. Even as a Christian, I can see the tremendous danger posed by that way of thinking and I hope that you can, too.
>
> For evidence that this sort of thinking does truly exist, consider the following —
>
> Some years ago, I think during the Reagan era, a Christian named George Grant wrote a book called The Changing of the Guard: Biblical Principles for Political Action. In it, he provides a very clear definition of what Dominionism means to some Christians. These are his own words, not those of a a critic or non-Christian:
>
> “Christians have an obligation, a mandate, a commission, a holy responsibility to reclaim the land for Jesus Christ — to have dominion in the civil structures, just as in every other aspect of life and godliness. But it is dominion that we are after. Not just a voice. It is dominion we are after. Not just influence. It is dominion we are after. Not just equal time. It is dominion we are after. World conquest. That’s what Christ has commissioned us to accomplish. We must win the world with the power of the Gospel. And we must never settle for anything less. If Jesus Christ is indeed Lord, as the Bible says, and if our commission is to bring the land into subjection to His Lordship, as the Bible says, then all our activities, all our witnessing, all our preaching, all our craftsmanship, all our stewardship, and all our political action will aim at nothing short of that sacred purpose. Thus, Christian politics has as its primary intent the conquest of the land — of men, families, institutions, bureaucracies, courts, and governments for the Kingdom of Christ. It is to re-institute the authority of God’s Word as supreme over all judgments, over all legislation, over all declarations, constitutions, and confederations.”
>
> You seem to be the sort of Christian who has a strong grasp of Scripture, so I’d ask you to consider how this thinking relates to the obligations of all Christians to obey civil authorities, as described in at the beginning of Romans 13. For Air Force leaders in particular, there is a rule described in Air Force Instruction 1-1 which requires all leaders to avoid “the actual or apparent use of their position to promote their personal religious beliefs to their subordinates.” That means that leaders do not have unfettered freedom to share their religious beliefs. And those who do, even knowing that AFI 1-1 prohibits it, don’t seem to be living in accordance with Romans 13.
>
> Brandon, the bottom line from my perspective, as both a Christian and an AF veteran, is that people must understand and accept that respecting the rights of all military members, even those who believe things that we think are misguided or false, does not take away any of our own religious liberty.
>
> Peace,
>
> Mike Challman