Lt. Col. Kenneth Reyes (with a response from MRFF’s Rick Baker)

I recently read about the situation with Lt. Col. Kenneth Reyes. Personally, I feel you are taking this situation too far in thinking that he should be punished for his saying “No atheists in foxholes.” He had a right to say what he thought as a chaplain. He also has 1st amendment rights, and it is also just not logical for you to take offense to something like this. Basically the statement that he said, I believe, is, in the American language, simply another way of saying that in foxholes everyone is stressed and scared for their life; and therefore everyone is going to be believing in something or some higher power. And in the American language the word atheist means to many that there is simply an absence of belief in anything. Anyways, my point is that it is unnecessary to be so radical in taking offense over this. I believe that your time and money could go to more blatant problems concerning keeping people safe from discrimination and such.

I wish you the best and hope that you will be wise in the battles you choose.

(name withheld)

Hi (name withheld),

Thanks for your note to MRFF.

My name is Rick Baker. I’m a former Air Force Officer  and currently an MRFF volunteer.

I hope to address your concerns and place our actions in a different light.

We have found that in cases where no punishment is suggested for such callous violations of constitutional freedom of religion by persons who should know better, the issue is generally dropped and things continue the same way.

The term “There are no atheists in fox holes,” is a direct insult to those young men and women who hold no religious beliefs and were certainly in foxholes when the saying first emerged and now where over 13,000 declared military Atheists are fox hole ready.

Also I ask you to think about the many thousands  of complaints we receive from military members, over 34,,000 to date most of which deal with being victims of command centered and Christian based proselytizing from superiors. There has to be someone who can ensure that each and every member of the armed forces receives the freedom of religion guaranteed by the constitution.

By trying to make a small example out of the Chaplain we hope to deter other insensitive episodes.  Also it is a case of letting the various chains of command know that someone is watching out for the welfare of the common Soldier, Airman, Sailor, Coast Guardsman, Marine, National Guard  or reservist.

Remember, there are times when free speech can be inflammatory and we all need to be cautious in its application.

Thank you again for your note and I invite you to visit  our web site for a lot of enlightening information. militaryreligiousfreedom.org

Sincerely,

Rick Baker

Capt. USAF (Ret)

MRFF Volunteer.