LRAFB Drops Christian Elective in Effort to be “Inclusive,” Gay-Friendly

Religious Freedom, ,

Winter Wingman Day at Little Rock Air Force Day provided classes to develop service members mentally, physically, socially, and spiritually. While attendance at the event was mandatory, members could choose which three of the offered classes they would attend. The spiritual component of the event, in the chapel, was scheduled to include sessions from “The Art of Marriage,” a video conference developed by FamilyLife, a Christian family ministry headquartered in Little Rock.

When at least one airman complained to the chain of command and sent a letter to Mikey Weinstein, founder of Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), the class was dropped. The group’s website states that “Mikey and MRFF have been actively and aggressively protecting members of the U.S. Military from unconstitutional religious influence . . . the only organization dedicated solely to the protection of the religious freedoms and dignity of ALL members of the U.S. Military.”

It appears, however, that Weinstein’s main goal is to silence Christians whom he calls intolerant, a threat, and “Dominionists”—“fundamentalist Christians whose beliefs, tenets, and practices threaten the separation between church and state embedded in the U.S. Constitution.”

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Same-Sex Marriage Increases Potential Conflicts with Religious Freedom

Religious Freedom, , ,

Justice Scalia in his dissenting opinion on the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2013 DOMA ruling.

Heritage Foundation has published a research piece examining the potential for conflict between religious liberty and same-sex “marriage.”

We have written about examples of this conflict before–specifically when it comes to bakers, florists, and photographers forced by courts to participate in same-sex weddings or face severe penalties. In fact, this loss of religious liberty was called by one judge, “the price of citizenship.”

Heritage Foundation writes,

“Legal recognition of same-sex marriage will increase the potential for conflicts with religious freedom. The recent Supreme Court ruling in United States v. Windsor intensifies these concerns by characterizing traditional marriage policy as a form of irrational prejudice.”

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Updated Policy for Religious Expression in the Military

Religious Freedom, ,

Last week the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) approved a new policy to allow accommodation for religious expression in the military.

“The new policy states that military departments will accommodate religious requests of service members, unless a request would have an adverse effect on military readiness, mission accomplishment, unit cohesion,” U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Nathan Christensen, a Pentagon spokesman, said.

The policy was mainly expected to affect Sikhs, Muslims, Jews, and members of other groups that wear beards or articles of clothing as part of their religion.  Accommodation will have to be requested with each change in assignment and will be determined by the new unit’s commander to assure that physical appearances “do not interfere with good order and discipline.”

Many are cautiously optimistic that the DOD’s new directive will protect service members’ freedom to practice and express their faith.

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