Submitted by: Mike Spindell
A young man named Blake Page resigned from West Point this week with five months left to go until graduation. This will no doubt be a life changing event for him and could potentially have drastic consequences. His reason for resigning was his belief that there was a pervasive influence of religious proselytizing at this famed military academy. He and other non-religious cadets are retaliated against for their beliefs and for their refusal to go along with a program that makes Christian Faith the standard for success and for receiving privileges.
He wrote an article for the Huffington Post which I will discuss and link to below. First though I want to add my own thoughts on this because I think this young man is credible and because his charges regarding West Point are not the first complaint of intolerance towards non-religious cadets at a U.S. Armed forces Academy. The U.S. Air force Academy is located in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It is said that this community of 416,000 people can be considered the nexus of Evangelical Christianity in the United States, if not the world.
“Although houses of worship of almost every major world religion can be found in the city, Colorado Springs has in particular attracted a large influx of Evangelical Christians and Christian organizations in recent years. At one time Colorado Springs was counted to be the national headquarters for 81 different religious organizations, earning the city the tongue-in-cheek nickname “the Evangelical Vatican“[57] and “The Christian Mecca”.
Religious groups with regional or international headquarters in Colorado Springs include: the Association of Christian Schools International, the Christian and Missionary Alliance, Compassion International, Every Home for Christ, Focus on the Family, HCJB, the International Bible Society, The Navigators, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Colorado Springs, WAY-FM Media Group, Andrew Wommack Ministries, and Young Life.”
In addition to the Air Force Academy there is Fort Carson and two air force bases located in the City. Twenty percent of this County’s employees work for these facilities. Besides this large military presence: “Colorado Springs is home to the United States Olympic Training Center and the headquarters of the United States Olympic Committee. In addition, a number [15] of United States national federations for individual Olympic sports have their headquarters in Colorado Springs” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Springs,_Colorado#Religious_institutions
Call me paranoid perhaps, but I think that it is no coincidence that this small city, but sixty miles from Denver, at the base of Pikes Peak, has drawn such a large influx of Evangelical Christians and their national organizations. I think it is potentially an ominous sign and I’ll explain my thoughts and feelings.
There has been a long and troubling history of religious proselytizing at the Air Force Academy (ACA). In the last two decades as many Evangelical Christians flocked to this city, their efforts to make contact with both Officers, Professors and Cadets has been constant and quite successful. This outreach has also extended to the military bases and airfields in the area. I don’t believe that this interaction is coincidental and I also believe it is an attempt by the Evangelical Christian movement to increase their power by converting the military. A hall mark of the Evangelical Christian movement today is their militancy and their willingness to not only confront, but to exercise power to coerce people into accepting their beliefs. What better source of coercion than having the U.S. Armed Forces in back of you and perhaps subject to your manipulation of religious ideology. Let some of the evidence speak for itself:
“David Mullin, a former AFA economics professor, said military culture muddies the distinction between encouragement and orders, so only chaplains should speak on religious matters. “When a military commander says ‘you are encouraged to attend,’ whether it is to military officers or civilians, that is an effective order,” Mullin said. This constitutes improper proselytism, he added.
A self-described evangelical, Mullin is one of the few to openly criticize what he calls an unhealthy religious climate in the AFA. He is represented in court by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a legal watchdog. Mullin was one of five academy professors who sued unsuccessfully in January 2011 to stop a school prayer luncheon that would feature as keynote speaker a veteran who calls himself a “U.S. Marine for Christ.” He alleges his dog was poisoned after he protested about the school’s religious climate later that year.
Mullin suggests part of the problem stems from the AFA’s Colorado Springs location. The city hosts many evangelical parachurch organizations, such as James Dobson’s Focus on the Family, as well as New Life Church, an evangelical church founded by its former pastor Ted Haggard. He added that some of these groups have access to the academy, including cards that get them into dorms. “You have very strong encouragement — basically carte blanche access to cadets by the leadership of the academy by these groups,” Mullin said. “It is corruption, and there is substantial religious discrimination as part of this corruption,” he said. The AFA has long struggled with setting boundaries for religious expression.”
Professor Mullin says the problem stems from the proximity of these church groups, but my suspicions are that the proximity of these church groups is o coincidence, but the result of a concerted to make inroads into the military. The result is the kind of situation described in a column on 10/12/11 by Chris Rodda Senior Research Director, Military Religious Freedom Foundation; Author, ‘Liars For Jesus
“A little over a year ago, a cadet at the Air Force Academy emailed the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) to tell us about an “underground” group of about a hundred Academy cadets who, in order to maintain good standing among their peers and superiors at the Academy, were actually pretending to be fundamentalist Christians. Their charade included leaving Bibles, Christian literature, and Christian music CDs laying around their rooms; attending fundamentalist Christian Bible studies; and feigning devoutness at the Academy’s weekly “Special Programs in Religious Education” (SPIRE) programs. This group of cadets had decided to resort to doing whatever they had to do to play the role of the “right kind” of Christian cadets, all the while living in constant fear of being “outed.”
In the words of the cadet who wrote to MRFF last year, who described himself as “kind of the leader” of this underground group: “If any of us gave even the slightest indication that we weren’t one of their number, our lives would be even more miserable than they already are due to the fact that we are all living lies here. Despite the Cadet Honor Code we all lie about our lives. We have to.”
Who makes up this group of over a hundred cadets who feel that they must pretend to be such devoted fundamentalist Christians? Well, surprisingly, they are mostly Christians — both mainline Protestants and Catholics — who aren’t “Christian enough” or the “right kind” of Christians for the AirForceAcademy. The rest of the group is made up of other assorted heathens, which include members of non-Christian religions, agnostics, and atheists.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-rodda/air-force-academy-cadets-_b_1007411.html
Imagine if you will, a Cadet at the AFA, who is a perhaps a Presbyterian, Unitarian, Catholic, or a Jew, who feels this pressure to be seen as faithfully religious. You are already trying to adapt yourself to a hierarchal military system that emphasizes following your superior’s orders. What if your Superior hints strongly that they will think better of you if you are seen to be religiously faithful? What do you do? Obviously, as shown above some people, unable to stand up to the stress and pressures of conformity, in a system which requires it, will “fake it” to get by. What happens though to those who don’t fake it? How do we quantify that number among those who are booted out, ranked at the bottom of their class, or leave the Academy with an unfavorable notation in their permanent military record? It’s really not possible to make such a calculation and so we must infer it. Also from HuffPost and Chris Rodda on 10/29/10:
“The AirForceAcademy reversed course on Friday and released the results of a survey that showed mixed results on the school’s efforts to improve religious and racial tolerance and limit sexual harassment.
The survey, conducted in December and January, showed improvements in making minority groups feel more accepted and in reducing the number who say they feel pressured by others to participate in religious activities.
But it found that many cadets believe that some religious and racial minorities face discrimination and harassment, and an increasing percentage of the faculty and staff believe that sexual harassment occurs at the school.
The academy superintendent, Lt. Gen. Michael Gould, said the survey overall shows that many of the school’s tolerance initiatives are effective but that improvement is needed.
Gould initially declined to make the results public, saying the were a “commander’s tool” best used internally.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/29/air-force-proselytizing-christianity-evangelicals_n_775859.html
The title of the HuffPost article though is “41% of Non-Christian Air Force Cadets Cite Proselytizing” Despite Superintendent Gould’s assurances that things were improving there, more exists in this story:
“Several groups filed Freedom of Information Act requests for the data, including The Associated Press. Rep. Mike Coffman, R-Colo., also pushed Gould to go public.”
“Coffman said Friday he’s still not convinced Gould understands his responsibility to be open with the public. “I think at the Air Force Academy, they need a remedial course in American government,” he said. Coffman said the military as a whole abuses its power to keep secrets and sometimes withholds information from the public because it’s embarrassing, not because of security concerns.
One of the groups that submitted a FOIA request for the survey, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, asked to have a representative at a briefing Gould conducted Friday but was turned down. Academy officials said the briefing was for media and that the foundation would be mailed the documents it requested. Mikey Weinstein, founder and president of the foundation, accused the Air Force of reneging on an invitation it had extended to his foundation and said Gould was trying to muffle opposition. Weinstein said the religious climate at the academy is worse than Gould portrays it. He said he has heard from 172 cadets, faculty and staff at the academy who say they face religious pressure, mostly from evangelical Christians at the school, and are afraid to complain for fear of reprisals.”
Another article also references the situation that exists at the AFA:
“An underground group of cadets says yes, and they say they have to pretend to be fundamentalists so they will be considered cadets in good standing. Mainline Protestant and Catholics, they say, are not considered “Christian enough.” A survery of the climate at the U.S. Air Force Academy, based in Colorado Springs, showed need for improvement. The Military Religious Freedom Foundation says that nearly one in 5 of the cadets questioned reported being the target of unwanted proselytizing, and 23 cadets — 13 of whom are self-identified Christians — say they feared for their physical safety, given their religious beliefs. You can read more here.” http://blogs.courant.com/susan_campbell/2010/09/is-the-air-force-academy-under.html
There is frankly too much material on the religious problems at the AFA for me to present more than all the links listed above. In the interests of fairness I will list some more links below that shows that many Evangelicals have a different viewpoint. If you would like that viewpoint then please click the following links: http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=36782 and: http://www.opposingviews.com/i/religion/christianity/air-force-academy-caves-anti-christian-activist and: http://blog.christianitytoday.com/ctpolitics/2011/11/air_force_acade.html.
The title of this piece is “West Point and Religion” and my opening paragraph dealt with the resignation of Blake Page from West Point five months before he was due to graduate. I’ll let him explain why:
“As the President of the West Point Secular Student Alliance (SSA), a Military Association of Atheists and Freethinkers (MAAF) affiliate, and first Director of Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) Affairs at West Point, I have been in a position to hear countless cadets recount their personal stories of frustration in dealing with the ongoing oppressive and unconstitutional bigotry they face for being non-religious. Cadets often come to me to seek assistance, guidance and reassurance in response to instances of debasing harassment. Many here are regularly told they do not deserve a place in the military. They are shown through policy that the Constitution guarantees their freedom of, but not from religion. Many are publically chastised for seeking out a community of likeminded people because it is such a common belief that Humanism and other non-religious philosophies are inherently immoral and worse. “
“The title West Point Graduate carries a great deal of weight in this world. Those who earn it are given a “golden ticket” and wear a “ring of power” which will certainly carry them to successful careers with doors flung open in the military, in business, even in personal relationships; as so many are seduced by the historic prestige of the United States Military Academy. All of these things seem enticing, but for me personally they are not worth it. As I write this, I am five months from graduation. After nearly three and a half years here, there is no reason to suspect that I would be in any way incapable of completing the final requirements and walking across the stage in Michie Stadium with diploma in hand in another 174 days. Choosing to resign at this point also carries significant risk. The Army may seek recoupment in the form of about $200-300k which I will personally owe, or an additional term of up to 5 years of enlisted service. What could possibly compel me to pass over this incredible opportunity in exchange for such harsh penalties?”
“While there are certainly numerous problems with the developmental program at West Point and all service academies, the tipping point of my decision to resign was the realization that countless officers here and throughout the military are guilty of blatantly violating the oaths they swore to defend the Constitution. These men and women are criminals, complicit in light of day defiance of the Uniform Code of Military Justice through unconstitutional proselytism, discrimination against the non-religious and establishing formal policies to reward, encourage and even at times require sectarian religious participation. These transgressions are nearly always committed in the name of fundamentalist evangelical Christianity. The sparse leaders who object to these egregious violations are relegated to the position of silent bystanders, because they understand all too well the potential ramifications of publically expressing their loyalty to the laws of our country. These are strong words that I do not use lightly, but after years of clear personal observation I am certain that they are true.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/blake-page/west-point-religious-freedom_b_2232279.html
Considering the pressures, possible dangers and the sacrifice this young man is making by resigning from West Point I find his story credible and at the same time by linking it to what is occurring at the Air Force Academy, chilling from a Constitutional perspective. My belief is that many, but not all, of those who are in what is deemed “The Evangelical Christian Movement” are radicals cut from the same cloth as the “Islamic Fanatics” that many in this country fear and despise. This includes the James Dobson’s, Ralph Reeds, Franklin Grahams and Pat Robertson’s. They espouse a form of Christianity that is militant, intolerant and thirsting for power over all. The have amassed great wealth and have supported some of the most regressively radical politicians in this country. As we now see they are trying to extend their tentacles into the Military. If they succeed to any large degree we will indeed be at risk of this country turning into an oppressive theocracy. Will they succeed? Will we let them overturn our Constitution and substitute a Christian simulacrum of “Sharia Law”. What do you think? Am I indeed paranoid?
Submitted by: Michael Spindell, guest blogger.
Mike Spindell 1, December 9, 2012 at 10:01 am
…
Darren,
They have for years waged a “war against women”, or more correctly a “war for male supremacy”.
=====================================
Did I neglect to point out that the doctrine of Mithraism did not allow women to be members of their religion.
As noted in a comment above, Mithraism was quite often noted by many historians for its many “astonishing similarities to Christianity.”
Such as:
1) Mithras was “the Light of the World“ (Jesus said “I am the light of the world.” John 8:12).
2) Mithras was a member of a Holy Trinity (“Christians are baptized ‘in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’ … ‘The faith of all Christians rests on the Trinity.’ St. Caesarius of Arles, Sermo 9, Exp. symb.: CCL 103, 47”; see also Mt 28:19).
3) Mithras was born of a virgin (Jesus was born of a virgin. see Matthew 1:18-25).
4) worshippers of Mithras held strong beliefs in a celestial heaven and an infernal hell (“The Bible speaks clearly of the existence of Heaven … Hell is also spoken of in the Bible, but its nature is even more sketchy. When Jesus described the destiny of sinners who refused to change their ways, he compared it to Gehenna, which was a rubbish dump outside Jerusalem. People in wretched poverty picked their way through it to find scraps, and fires burned”).
5) worshippers of Mithras believed they would be given enless life (“For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality” I Cor 15:53).
6) worshippers of Mithras believed in a final day of judgement in which the dead would resurrect (“But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?” I Cor 15:12).
7) worshippers of Mithras believed in a final conflict that would destroy the existing order of all things (“Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army” Rev 19:19; “Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon” Rev 16:16).
8) Mithras worshippers believed that a ritualistic baptism was required of the faithful (“Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit …'” Matthew 28:18-20).
9) Mithras worshippers took part in a ceremony in which they drank wine and ate bread to symbolize the body and blood of Mithras (“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body'” Matthew 26:26; “And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many” Matthew 26:26-28).
10) Mithras worshippers believed that Sundays were held sacred (“the majority observance of Christian Sabbath is as Sunday rest” Wikipedia).
11) The birth of Mithras was celebrated annually on December the 25th (“Christmas … is an annual commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ and a widely observed holiday, celebrated generally on December 25 by billions of people around the world” Wikipedia).
12) Mithras took part in a Last Supper with his companions before ascending to heaven (“The Last Supper is the final meal that, according to Christian belief, Jesus shared with his Apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion.” Wikipedia; “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” Acts 1:11)
How would young cadets at West Point know how to tell the difference or even contemplate the notion of a difference?
The scary bottom line is the brutality of the soldier worshippers of Mithras:
(Complete Roman Army, 197, see also 172-73). And don’t forget their practice of crucifixion.
Hear of any torture, etc. by the exceptional good guys (“warrior heroes”) in uniform in the past decade?
So, what are they teaching at The War College and other military academies?
http://www.alternet.org/story/67385/the_evangelical_christian_takeover_of_the_military
Colorado Springs is kind of like the state of Texas. Bible thumping christian militaristic republicans are in abundance.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/17/air-force-academy-religion-proselytism_n_1678092.html
Good article Gene….l
If I didn’t say it already Mike great article…..hope it stays on point….
http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/12661-air-force-academys-orwellian-religious-respect-conference-indicates-clear-bias-against-the-non-religious
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4287106 Colorado Springs – A mecca” for evangelical christians.
James Dobson Gives Away the Game, Admits the National Day of Prayer Task Force Prayed for Obama’s Defeat
Submitted by Brian Tashman on Friday, 11/16/2012 1:50 pm
Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, now the host of Family Talk, admitted on his radio program today that the National Day of Prayer Task Force, chaired by his wife Shirley Dobson, were praying for Obama to be defeated on Election Day. Religious Right activists have lambasted Obama with false smears that he had “cancelled” the National Day of Prayer and defended the event as “not politically inclined,” even though it regularly hosted anti-Obama speakers like David Jeremiah and Harry Jackson and both Dobsons are closely tied to the GOP. But during an interview with Concerned Women for America president Penny Nance, Dobson gave away the game and said that his wife and Task Force vice-chair John Bornschein put together an election season prayer effort that they hoped will defeat Obama. Right Wing Watch
Daughter taught debate one summer to high school students at a camp at Colorado College in Colorado Springs so we went to visit. It is a bastion of liberalism amidst Christian republican fundamentalists .My relatives from Chicago came on the trip and were horrified after we went on the tour of the Air Force Academy although the architecture of the chapel was stunning. We traveled on to liberal blue Boulder never to return to Colorado Springs.
So others don’t have to follow links to my blog to read about Mithraism, I am adding this comment to show the striking similarities between Mithraism and Christianity (not my idea, just sayin’ and quotin’).
Mike S already knows this, so for those who want to understand why identifying the actual dynamics of Mithraism is important … it is dictator worship when manifested in a meme complex such as a militant group.
Mike S and other commenters up-thread in this post have recoiled at the manifestation of religion within the U.S. Military, so let’s look at why Mike S and the others are correct to be concerned:
(Univ. Chicago, emphasis added). When Constantine made “Christianity” the religion of the Roman Empire, he was a member of Mithraism, its leader as Caesar, so he was strengthening his following, and allowing Mithraism to compete with Christianity in doctrine and dogma.
In fact, how does on tell the difference? One is militant the other is peaceful, but through the propaganda of fear and the selling of “security” it is quite easy to supplant the one with the other.
Holy wars ensued in the form of the Crusades.
Today, The Virgin MOMCOM carries on and has planted
military basescathedrals in 191 or so countries around the world in our name.Do you grasp the irony of this religion coming from what is now Iran originally, and the worshippers now tooling up to invade the religion’s homeland?
Do you grasp the irony of this religion coming from what is now Iran originally, and the worshippers now tooling up to invade the religion’s homeland?
“When Constantine made “Christianity” the religion of the Roman Empire, he was a member of Mithraism, its leader as Caesar, so he was strengthening his following, and allowing Mithraism to compete with Christianity in doctrine and dogma.”
Dredd,
I think the truth is that Constantine was redefining Christianity into Mithraism. Reading the earlier doctrines and beliefs of Christianity such as “The Gospel of Thomas” and the “Gospel of Mary Magdalene” present a quite different picture of Jesus’ teachings, than that coming out of the “Council of Nicaea”. There have been many books written by Biblical Scholars that see that “Council” and later “Councils” as re-making/re-editing early Christian belief into one that supported the Empire and its extreme militarism. There is some evidence that Constantine himself never became a Christian and that the “Cross in the Sky” dream was a convenient fiction on his part to complete his hold on the Roman Legions. A brief example of that re-making/re-editing is that Pontius Pilate is shown in the gospels as a reasonable man with a conscience. This picture of this historical figure is negated by Roman records from his time showing that he was removed from his position over the land due to his harsh brutality. Considering that this was in the uber-militaristic Roman Empire, the man had to be a really bad person.
Having read the Gospels over again and having read many works on the real beginnings of Christianity, I see a large dichotomy between Jesus teachings, such as remain in those highly edited texts, and what resulted from the “Nicaean Council”. Your contribution here is very valuable in bringing up the cult of Mithra, because there are indeed parallels to be drawn in terms of the situation that I write about.
AY:
The oldest one.
Mespo,
Isn’t power a religion all in of itself…..
The problem with religion is that the faithful actually want other people to believe it too. And their reasons for it are not the most noble as Seneca reminds that, to the powerful, religion is “useful.”
Good job, Mike S.
Gene, Blake Page is the [male] cadet that Mike referenced. Did you mean to post a different link?
Paranoid, you are not. The hazards of a military that thinks or whose leaders claims some special relation with god are visible each and every day. The fact that our government allows and supports this climate explains a lot of things that have been troubling me lately about how the military responds to certain conduct like the rape of female members of the various branches of the service.
When a person or group of persons believes that god has ordained their success, victory or way of life, they often see non believers as nonpersons whose lives and dignity have no value or meaning. Religious zealots also often see their lives and conduct as guided by different rules than others because they are special chosen by god. In view of the enormous power in the hands of our military it i time for the civilian power structure to exercise its control and stop this now.
Why I Don’t Want to Be a West Point Graduate by Blake Page
The tale of a young man who found the religious pressures at West Point to be quite harmful and offensive to his duty to protect the Constitution.
There is NO honor left within the US military establishment – particularly for those permitted to rise… to the level of command… where fighting is really infighting [political intrigue]… and playing the careerist game… is ultimately about who will get to compete for all those fat government contracts upon retirement.
As for the religious component in all this – in looking at the larger picture – I see the heavy hand of [faux] Christian ~Zionism~ here, folks.
And so what’s really happening… is that those Israeli-firsters… are leading a systematic… heavy-handed takedown and actual takeover of this bloated federalist government bureaucracy… whilst also participating mightily in the globalists’ ~communitarian~ agenda… in order to [of course] totally enslave ALL of humanity.
Sure. Let’s all support the troops. And World Socialism too. Check in with Jonathan about that Constitution…
Mike
I toured the Air Force Academy around 1983 or 1984 when I was in Civil Air Patrol. The most prominent building there at the time was the church which most will recognize as the white structure with many points at the top. The church seemed to be the focus of the architecture there.
The cadets we spoke with made much comment about the central part of it being a focus of life there. I don’t know how much this was the case as being a student there or if it has changed since then since I did not attend the school later in life.
I started in Civil Air Patrol when I was about 12 years old until I was 16 and enrolled in the sheriff’s office’s cadet program. Most of the CAP senior leadership at the time consisted of WWII and Korean War veterans mostly pilots. Religion is very much a part of the program then and this was portrayed as being as integral as any other part. Our squadron in Wenatchee had Chaplains that spoke each week at our meetings.
Each month our squadron went for training exercises in Ephrata at was at one time a WWII bomber training base. On Sunday mornings we were as cadets required to attend the church services. Of course it was not a “requirement” but if you didn’t wish to attend you were required to wash dishes for KP or do other unattractive busy work they conjured up for you. Rarely did any of us do the latter. There was also a slight bad light you got cast into if church was not your choice.
The leadership seemed to be of the opinion that Church attendence was of Moral Education that contributed to the betterment of teenagers and others in general. But I also feel that much of it was a reflection of those officers who were veterens and their experiences in the military
I don’t want to say that my experience in CAP back in the early 80’s is anything indicative of the present situation in the real military (which I never served in and know really little about from a hands on experience) But I didn’t see that the religion experience there harmed me in any way. Yet I can see from that experience what happened at the millitary academies you describe and can easly believe what you have reported is true.
I will say that I think that being in that organization was a great experience for a young teenager such as myself. Taught me a great many things about life.
“Of course it was not a “requirement” but if you didn’t wish to attend you were required to wash dishes for KP or do other unattractive busy work they conjured up for you. Rarely did any of us do the latter. There was also a slight bad light you got cast into if church was not your choice.”
Darren,
I have no doubt that your CAP experience was a positive one for your life. If your family background had a strong religious component, which I have no way of knowing, then this more’ of the CAP would seem quite minor to you. There are very religious people among my family and friends whose faith enriches their lives. I am hardly disdainful of their beliefs. Contrary to some here, I actually believe religious belief can play a positive role for those who practice it. The people I know though, who are religious came to it on their own and were not coerced into their practice, even if gently.
From what you write above there was coercion going on in the CAP that from my perspective is wrong, even if not overtly harmful. As a Jew my experiences attending school included have to take part in Christmas activities like singing carols in Assembly and class projects centered around Christmas activity in elementary school. While taking part was more or less not completely mandatory, at Elementary school ages having to decorate a Christmas Tree, taking part in card-making, exchanging “Secret Santa” gifts and classroom discussion of Christmas, was disturbing to me on many levels.
These activities at the AFA and West Point though negatively affected many Christians. As you well know Christianity, like all major religions is not a monolithic faith. The objections at the Academies have in the main come from Catholics, Unitarians, Presbyterians, etc., who are being given the “hard sell” towards the Evangelical branch of Christianity, despite their own core beliefs. The too I touched on the fact that on-believers and atheists are also being coerced into something they find against their own ethical/moral sensitivity.
Finally, the distinction that I also make is that in the CAP, you as a youth were pursuing and avocation, rather then in the midst of building a career. These cadets are involved at an institution that can set the tone for their future success.
That multiplies the coercion factor enormously. Beyond that though there is another thread to my concern with these practices.
Evangelical Christianity, or more precisely “Right Wing Fundamentalist” Christianity, puts forth an agenda that I find inimical to our Constitution and our country. They have been a movement that for many years has tried to make their religious beliefs the “Law of the Land”. They have shown time and again a commitment to do this, while disregarding all outside their belief system as either misguided or evil. They have for years waged a “war against women”, or more correctly a “war for male supremacy”. They also represent a movement to make our criminal law into a harsh, retributive system. They have joined conservative politicians in their battle and have re-made Jesus’ teachings into “Free Market” dogma. For them to get a stranglehold on our military establishment would be a disaster and with it comes the possibility of some point of what would be in effect a civil war between them and what they would term “the forces of evil”.
We have seen this already in some quarters with the election and re-election of President Obama. The attacks he has suffered go far beyond the range of policy disagreements. On his policy there is plenty for reasonable people to disagree with and on some issues I disagree with him strongly myself. However, to characterize this man as an “Islamofascist”, a Muslim, a communist, a NAZI, a traitor and the most “Leftist” of U.S. President is a hyperbole far beyond the pale of political discourse. Much of this hyperbole has come from those intertwined with “Right Wing Fundamentalist” belief. We could well see a time when a demagogue like James Dobson ignites a “Civil War” over some issue and a party to that war may well be elements of the U.S. Armed Forces. As I even said myself in the article, paranoid I may be, but yes this is my paranoia.
>> “[T]he tipping point of my decision to resign was the
>> realization that countless officers here and throughout
>> the military are guilty of blatantly violating the oaths
>> they swore to defend the Constitution. These men and
>> women are criminals, complicit in light of day defiance
>> of the Uniform Code of Military Justice….”
This is the part that will either get Page in the most trouble, or the part that saves him. Accusing officers is considered a “crime”, even when the claims are true. Officers are cowards who hide behind their rank to make statements and abuse people in ways they could never get away with in the general population.
The US military academies should be secular but are instead being turned into christian taliban training and recruiting camps. Page is courageous for speaking up not just for atheists, but for anyone who objects to the harassment going on. If Obama and those taking orders had any decency and were concerned about the money spent, they would immediately ban all proselytizing on the campuses and allow Page to finish the year, then do a thorough investigation.
As for the lie that “no proselytizing is going on”, no one admitted that sexual harassment and rape of female soldiers was commonplace in service academies or in Iraq, but it did happen and happened many times. There’s a culture of impunity, that the accuser has a burden of 100% proof or face both charges and further harassment and abuse. Even if the accuser proves the charges, the harassment will continue or even get worse.
March, above it both clueless and/or proof of the fact that those who approve of the abuse will deny it ever happens, whether sexual, physical or religious harassment.