radical Fundamentalist , far right…..

Mike Farrell

Mike Farrell

Good Day, (name withheld) –

Thanks for taking the time to send a couple of notes to the MRFF. For simplicity, I’ve listed the contents of both of your emails below in order to address both in a single response. As for who I am – in addition to being a staunch supporter of the MRFF, I’m also a lifelong, committed and active Christian, a USAF Academy graduate (’85) and a veteran USAF officer.

Here are both of your emails —

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First email –

Second email –

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I must insist that you are very much mistaken about several things. We are not merely spouting “buzz words” but rather are describing a very specific subset of Christians who at times pose a great threat to the Constitutional rights of many in our Armed Forces. If you are dissatisfied with “radical Fundamentalist” being applied to an element of our fellow Christians, I can suggest some appropriate substitutions – “Christian Dominionist” and “Christian Supremacist” are two that immediately come to mind.

And I’d certainly consider anyone who supports efforts to undermine the US Constitution to be a “radical”, irrespective of his or her specific beliefs.

Further, the MRFF in no way wishes to prevent any individual member of the US Armed Forces from holding and practicing their deeply held religious beliefs and traditions.  Our sole focus is to ensure that military leaders act in an appropriate manner with respect to maintaining official neutrality on matters of religion and belief.  As I hope you are aware, our military is comprised of brave and patriotic Americans of every manner of belief and non-belief.  I’d also hope you understand and agree that it is important to respect and protect the rights of all members of the Armed Forces, which includes ensuring that each person’s religious beliefs (including non-belief) are equally respected and protected.

Despite what you may have read about the MRFF, we are neither anti-Christian specifically nor anti-religion generally.  Our supporters and clients include many people of faith including Christians, of whom I am just one example.  We neither support nor oppose any particular belief, doctrine, or creed. Our sole focus is on conduct – specifically, as I’ve already mentioned, the conduct of military leaders. Whether a military leader is Christian or non-Christian, believer or non-believer is of no concern to the MRFF. We only expect that every leader, of every manner of belief and non-belief, will take care to express personal religious beliefs in an appropriate time, place, and manner.  The vast majority of military leaders understand that duty and act appropriately.  A very small but dangerous minority either doesn’t appreciate the importance of this duty or doesn’t believe they have an obligation to fulfill it. Unfortunately, more often than not, it is one of our fellow Christians who crosses that line, but the MRFF stands equally opposed to the same inappropriate conduct on the part of non-Christians and non-believers. We just don’t see it nearly as often from these other groups.

To close, I’d just point out that your second, brief email is also inaccurate. The MRFF has always acted in defense of Constitutional principles, nothing more and nothing less. You may disagree with us, but that does not make us bigots.  And our consistent and steady defense of the Constitution hardly qualifies us as hypocrites.  In fact, I believe that we are very much in step with most Americans, who value both their own beliefs with respect to religion and at the same time understand the critical importance of protecting and defending the beliefs of every other American… even those with whom they don’t agree. Perhaps a day will come when “radical Fundamentalists” of every stripe, who so glibly stomp on the Constitution rights of others, would come to see the importance of that protection. But until that day, the work of the MRFF must continue.

Thanks again for writing.

Peace,

Mike Challman

Christian, USAF veteran, MRFF supporter

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(name withheld)

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Good question, (name withheld) — here are my thoughts……

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I can agree with you completely on the subject of forcing someone to
> > hear something they don’t want to hear .  I don’t  believe anyone should
> > force their faith on any one else or be disrespectful of other faith .
> >
> >    I’ve personally never known a  Dominionist ,   whatever that is .
> > Every Christian I grew up with believed in separation of Church and State ,
> > and
> > freedom of religion.    None of them believed in a State Church .
> >
> >    Aren’t  there Chaplains,  Rabbis , for different faiths ?   And as far
> > a s I understood it ,  the MRFF refuses to
> > allow Christians chaplains to pray in Jesus’s Name , with Christian
> > soldiers . This is a clear violation of religious freedom , if it is true .
> >
> >    Read some of the ugly ,  over the top things Mr. Weinstein says  about
> > Christians  in his newsletters !  I could quote you some , but its
> > disgusting to even repeat them .
> >        If he had mentioned some of  the tremendous
> > good that Christians have contributed to our Country with some
> > reservations about stepping over boundaries ,   that would be different .
> > He doesn’t .  Not one good word !  That , by a dictionary definition , is
> > bigotry , I’m sorry.     He even tried to tie Nazism to the Christian faith
> > !  I’ve heard this before .  It’s completely irrational .  Millions of
> > Christian
> > soldiers , including my father and all of my uncles , fought AGAINST the
> > Nazis in WWII .   Many gave their lives , doing so .   They were definitely
> > opposed to that ideology . So, the truth is the opposite of what he is
> > saying .    If they had not done so and Hitler had prevailed ,  many many
> > more Jews would have been murdered .
> >
> >    You would think the Christians could receive  a little recognition and
> > appreciation , in return

(name withheld)

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Dear (name withheld),

 Glad we can agree on the importance of not forcing one’s beliefs on someone
> else… this is especially important in a very hierarchical environment
> like the US military, where leaders have a tremendous amount of control
> over subordinates, and it’s virtually impossible for subordinates to simply
> walk away or to tell the leader that the proselytizing is unwelcome.
>
> You are correct that the military chaplaincy includes representatives of a
> number of faith traditions.  However, not all religions have a
> representative chaplain in every location, so it’s not uncommon for a
> soldier, sailor, airman, or marine to find himself in a situation where the
> only chaplain available is of another faith.  And for that matter,
> non-religious and non-believing members of the military can still have need
> of the advice, counsel, or support of a military chaplain — it would be
> shameful and wrong if that military chaplain either refused to extend the
> assistance needed by the individual because of a difference in belief. It
> would be even more shameful if that military chaplain were to take
> advantage of the situation by attempting to proselytize the individual.
>
> As to your concern about the MRFF opposing prayer that occurs between
> Christian chaplains and Christian soldiers, you are mistaken about that.
> The MRFF does not oppose the rights of any military member to hold or
> exercise any religious belief or non-belief.  The only thing we ask of
> military leaders, and the military organizations which they lead, is that
> they be respectful of the rights and beliefs of others and that they take
> care to express their personal religious beliefs in an appropriate time,
> place, and manner.
>
> Peace, MC

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Of course,  I agree .  If a Christian chaplains is praying with a Christian soldier ,  they should be free to pray in Jesus’s Name and mention
anything of comfort to that soldier from Christian teaching .

(name withheld)

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Dear (name withheld),

Great, then you and I are in complete agreement on that point.

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(name withheld)

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Not all Christians, (name withheld).

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