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Tuesday 4 August 2020
IN WHICH GOD DO WE TRUST: Marines Cancel Military Strategy Training Because the Instructor is a Christian: Protesters burn Bible, American flag as tensions rise in Portland
Marines Cancel Military Strategy Training Because the Instructor is a Christian
Posted by Bruce Hausknecht | Jul 31, 2020 |
The U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) has a legendary history of bravery and
esprit de corps when it comes to defending America’s freedom. From the
halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli, the Corps hasn’t shrunk
back from meeting any foe of the United States. So it may surprise some
to learn that recently the Marines surrendered to a single activist who complained that an instructor at an upcoming seminar on strategy and tactics was a Christian.
The USMC scheduled an annual training for military lawyers earlier
this month, at which the Battle of Gettysburg would be discussed. The
instructor for one portion of that training was supposed to be Jay
Lorenzen, an Air Force veteran who taught for 10 years at the Air Force
Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Lorenzen’s biography, provided to the military lawyers in advance of
the training, included references to Christianity, including his
affiliation with Campus Crusade for Christ,
now known as Cru, and a couple of religious-themed courses he teaches
in his spare time. Several of those lawyers complained to Mikey
Weinstein, who heads up a secular, anti-Christian group called the
Military Religious Freedom Foundation, that Lorenzen was going to teach
about religion.
That allegation was false. It didn’t matter.
Weinstein, himself an Air Force veteran, is adamantly opposed to any
form of Christian expression within the military, and immediately
contacted the USMC to voice his displeasure at Lorenzen’s scheduled
appearance at the training, calling
Lorenzen a “fundamentalist Christian extremist parachurch official.”
Within 64 minutes, according to Weinstein, the USMC informed him that
the event had been canceled. It was replaced with an instruction
regarding systemic racism within the military.
First Liberty Institute,
a public interest law firm specializing in religious liberty,
represents and has represented military personnel, including chaplains,
who have seen their religious freedom rights unfairly and
unconstitutionally curtailed by the various military branches. The legal
firm is calling a foul.
Jeremy Dys is the Special Counsel for Litigation and Communications for First Liberty. In an op-ed this week, he explained why the USMC is making a big mistake in this case.
“Let us be very clear: the Marine Corps bravely cancelled a speaker
chosen to lead a discussion on the battlefield tactics and leadership
lessons of Gettysburg based upon his expertise as a retired military
officer and academy professor because that retired officer, in his
speaker’s bio, confessed to be religious and associated with a religious
organization,” Dys said.
“Such open discrimination against people of faith is unbecoming of
our beloved Marine Corps. From Article VI of the U.S. Constitution to
cases like Trinity Lutheran to numerous Department of Defense
(DOD) policies, the law is clear: the government cannot require a
religious test for office, nor insist that religious people be excluded
from benefits—like teaching to a class of Marine Corps
reservists—because they are religious.”
In a statement furnished to Fox News, the USMC confirmed only that the event had been cancelled when scheduled attendees “raised concerns” about Lorenzen.
When the Marines go into full retreat mode over the issue of
religious freedom, it’s time for an explanation and some new direction
from the Department of Defense. The treatment of this instructor should
not be allowed to stand.
Protesters burn Bible, American flag as tensions rise in Portland
Protesters burned an American flag and a Bible in Portland,
Oregon, sparking outrage just as weeks of violent demonstrations seemed
to be coming to a close.
For more than 60 days, Black Lives Matter demonstrators, including a “Wall of Moms” and a “Wall of Vets,”
have clashed with federal agents in the city, drawing national
attention as authorities blasted marchers with tear gas and the
civilians at times responded with weapons of their own — such as feces,
bleach, bricks or batteries.
Friday night’s demonstrations were largely peaceful, appearing to
mark a break from the chaos as federal agents made a recent deal to
allow local authorities to handle the protests.
But just after midnight, marchers were caught on video using the flag
and holy book as kindling for bonfires lit outside the federal
courthouse, which has been a focal point of rioting after the death of
George Floyd in police custody in May, according to a news report.
“Left-wing activists bring a stack of Bibles to burn in front of the
federal courthouse in Portland,” claimed Ian Miles Cheong on Twitter
Saturday.
Enlarge ImageA US flag is burned next to a plastic pig in Portland, Oregon.EPA
The post featured a video that showed protesters with “Black Lives
Matter” signs tossing Bibles into a raging bonfire. The video, which has
gone viral, had more than 1.8 million views and thousands of retweets.
“Now we move to the book burning phase,” said Donald Trump Jr. in a
tweet Saturday. “I’m pretty sure ANTIFA doesn’t actually stand for what
they say it stands for. Maybe just remove the anti part of [their] name
and it’s perfect,” he wrote.
The fire was later put out by members of Moms United for Black Lives
Matter, who doused the flames with bottles of water and stomped on the
embers, according to KOIN 6, a local CBS affiliate television station in
Portland.
