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Suspension of Air Force Class Over Bible Passages 'Misrepresents First Amendment,' Lawmaker Argues
FoxNews ^ | September 05, 2011 | Todd Starnes

Posted on 09/05/2011 1:31:27 PM PDT by Steelfish

Suspension of Air Force Class Over Bible Passages 'Misrepresents First Amendment,' Lawmaker Argues

By Todd Starnes September 05, 2011

A Texas lawmaker is asking for a detailed report from the Air Force over revelations that a “Just War Theory” class was suspended because it included passages from the Bible.

Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican, sent a letter to Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley expressing his concern over the suspension of the class taught at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

“Suspending a course like this because of references to religious texts misrepresents the First Amendment,” Cornyn wrote in a letter provided exclusively to Fox News Radio. “Although our Founding Fathers rightly included language in the Constitution that precludes the Federal government from establishing an official religion, this language does not, as some have argued, protect them from exposure to religious references.”

The course had been taught by chaplains at Vandenberg Air Force Base for more than 20 years and used Scripture from both the Old and New Testaments to show missile launch officers that it can be moral to go to war. But the Military Religious Freedom Foundation said the course violated the constitutional Separation of Church and State. The organization was created to “directly battle the far-right militant radical evangelical fundamentalists” in the military. The MRFF filed a complaint last month on behalf of 31 missile launch officers – both instructors and students, Protestants and Catholics. The group threatened to file a class-action lawsuit had the Air Force not suspended the course.

But Cornyn said he believes the Air Force has a right to teach the course.

(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government
KEYWORDS: airforce; airforcebase; bible

1 posted on 09/05/2011 1:31:30 PM PDT by Steelfish
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To: All
"But the Military Religious Freedom Foundation said the course violated the constitutional Separation of Church and State."

Constitutional???! WHERE in the Constitution is the "separation of church and state", you idiots!

2 posted on 09/05/2011 1:36:38 PM PDT by jackibutterfly (The American Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.)
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To: All
"But the Military Religious Freedom Foundation said the course violated the constitutional Separation of Church and State."

Constitutional???! WHERE in the Constitution is the "separation of church and state", you idiots!

3 posted on 09/05/2011 1:36:38 PM PDT by jackibutterfly (The American Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.)
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To: Steelfish

Michael L. “Mikey” Weinstein

Mikey was named one of the 50 most influential Jews in America by the Forward, one of the nation’s preeminent Jewish publications. He also has received a nomination for the JFK’s Profile in Courage Award and received the Buzzflash Wings of Justice Award. In addition Mikey was honored by a distinguished civil rights organization Jews for Racial and Economic Justice with the Rabbi Marshall T. Meyer Risk-Taker Award, for those who have taken extraordinary risks in the pursuit of justice.

Reviled by the militant radical evangelical fundamentalist Christian far-right, Mikey has been given many names by his enemies including Satan, Satan’s lawyer, the Antichrist, That Godless, Secular Leftist, The Antagonizer of All Christians, The Most Dangerous Man in America and, most recently and perhaps most colorfully, The Field General of the Godless Armies of Satan.

On October 15, 2009, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation was officially nominated for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. The nominator, who wishes to remain anonymous, happens to be the only Christian in the upper chamber of his country’s national parliament; the country is an ally of the United States. Shortly thereafter, another anonymous Qualified Nominator submitted a second official nomination for MRFF for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. On October 13, 2010, for the second consecutive year, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation was officially nominated again for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize.

On November 30, 2010, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State announced that Mikey Weinstein would become AU’s first ever “Person of the Year” in 2011. In their press release, AU describes MRFF as “the leading voice protecting church-state separation in the military.”

http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/about/michael-l-mikey-weinstein/

Appears their leader is a Jew who hates Christians. They are aligned with Barry Lynn.


4 posted on 09/05/2011 1:38:25 PM PDT by ilovesarah2012
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To: Steelfish

The “Military Religious Freedom Foundation” is anti-American and pro-Communist!

It is anti-God and pro-athiest. It is Satanic!

How did America ever come to this state?


5 posted on 09/05/2011 1:39:22 PM PDT by Dogbert41 (http://www.durban3nyc.com/. Go there and learn what those who seek to destroy Israel are up to)
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To: Steelfish

But Weinstein defends muslims:

Advocate for military’s Jews speaking up for Islam in wake of Fort Hood killings

http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/press-releases/jta_advocate.html


6 posted on 09/05/2011 1:44:25 PM PDT by ilovesarah2012
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To: Dogbert41
How did America ever come to this state?

This tells how.

Agenda - Grinding America Down (Documentary)

7 posted on 09/05/2011 1:49:00 PM PDT by DJ MacWoW (America! The wolves are here! What will you do?)
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To: Steelfish

For most folks who end up in the Air Force and faced with these decisions of “pushing the button”...the class didn’t matter. If they received orders to push the button...they would push it. Those folks didn’t need a Bible class telling them the ethical reason for this. I suspect that the students and instructors involved in this class came to a point where they figured out that the vast number of students just didn’t need this class. If a guy is the type to question things and want justification for “pushing the button”, then this simply isn’t the job for him and he’d best find a different occupation.


8 posted on 09/05/2011 1:51:04 PM PDT by pepsionice
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To: ilovesarah2012
Thanks for the background info. As soon as I saw the article title “Mikey” was my first thought.

He seems to be making a career out of doing little good, but aggravating many people along the way. I'm ashamed to admit he is also a USAFA graduate.

9 posted on 09/05/2011 1:53:26 PM PDT by ken in texas (Can't Afford a Tagline... send money.)
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To: ken in texas

He has a lot of conservative credentials but is obviously liberal in many ways. He worked for Reagan. But he is doing everything he can to work against Christians, including supporting muslims.


10 posted on 09/05/2011 1:57:19 PM PDT by ilovesarah2012
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To: Steelfish
“Just War Theory”

What constitutes a "just war" from the US military's civilian leadership these days anyway... since we half-fight without "declaring war" so often?

11 posted on 09/05/2011 2:09:24 PM PDT by DTogo (High time to bring back the Sons of Liberty !!)
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To: Steelfish
But Cornyn said he believes the Air Force has a right to teach the course.

True, but only half the story. The individual service member has a right to be informed about the morality of war. They shouldn't have to figure it out for themselves. For over fifteen centuries of Western culture, Christians, Jews, Pagans, and even atheists (such as Michael Walzer, author of Just and Unjust Wars) have contributed to the development of the Just War Doctrine. There is nothing in the Doctrine that depends in any way on any specific religious tradition. To deny knowledge of this tradition to our service members, on the specious grounds of separation of church and state, is utterly ridiculous.

Full disclosure: I teach Just War Doctrine at Yorktown University, and have written books and articles on it, but have no connection with the courses in question.

12 posted on 09/05/2011 2:09:37 PM PDT by JoeFromSidney (New book: RESISTANCE TO TYRANNY. A primer on armed revolt. Available form Amazon.)
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