So You Want to Know What's Wrong With Religion?

When I first read this post, I was so hoping it was phony, but it sure doesn't look that way: "Air Force Chaplain writes article claiming that Christian servicemen "serve Satan" by demonstrating respect for other religions."

Yes, the USAF, who I was proud to be a member of for over 20 years, has a Chaplain encouraging members to not support the Constitution of the United States.  Not only is this individual a Chaplain, but he's stationed at Wright-Patterson AFB, my last duty assignment before retiring.

The original article is from Newsweek, I caught it off of "The Immoral Minority", one of the blogs I read religiously (pun intended).  What this tells me is that the Chaplain is committing a Courts-Martial offense.  Or did he have his fingers crossed when he swore this oath:

“I , _____ , do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God.’’

Simply put, he has allowed his religious beliefs to trump (pun not intended, but fitting) the responsibilities he swore when he accepted his commission as an officer of the USAF.  It's apparently long past time for him to be held accountable.

When I was in the service, I didn't have a great deal of contact with chaplains, as you can probably tell due to my apathy toward religion in general.  But the ones I did cross paths with, usually as part of dealing with personnel issues, were professional in their duties -- regardless of the particular religious beliefs of the people they interacted with while carrying out those duties.

Writing an article filled with such comments as this:

"Counterfeit Christians in the Armed forces will appeal to the Constitution, and not Christ, and they have no local church home—which means they have no accountability for their souls (Heb. 13:17). This is why so many professing Christian service members will say: We ‘support everyone’s right’ to practice their faith regardless if they worship a god different from ours because the Constitution protects this right." 

"Christian service members who openly profess and support the rights of Muslims, Buddhists, and all other anti-Christian worldviews to practice their religions—because the language in the Constitution permits—are grossly in error, and deceived. "

Statements such as these are in direct violation of the oaths all service members swear and writing this article should put a swift end to his responsibilities as an officer in the USAF.  I have to wonder about this from the USAF FAQ page:

Q: Can someone who is openly gay, lesbian or bisexual join the Air Force?
A: Yes. Air Force applicants are not asked nor required to reveal their sexual orientation. At the same time, statements about sexual orientation will not be a bar to military service or admission to service academies, ROTC or any other accession program. Openly gay, lesbian or bisexual applicants will be evaluated according to the same criteria and requirements applicable to all others seeking entry into the military.

He certainly doesn't comply with current rules and regulations, I have to wonder about what he would  say on this?

In any event, this chaplain isn't acting as a chaplain...and if you disagree, you might take a look at the online comments the article has received, nearly 300 so fr between Newsweek, Facebook, and the BarbedWire site itself.  The best part is the comments are overwhelming against the soon to be unemployed (I hope) chaplain. Here are a couple of examples:

"How deeply offensive. The role of a Military Chaplain is to ensure and support the religious, spiritual or meaning-making practice of EVERY Service Member. Proselytizing or demonization of other traditions by necessity requires they resign their post and find a different way to serve. Mr Hernandez should resign or be removed from his post. Such belief is shameful in the face of Christ's teachings and how a Chaplain serves." 

"If your religious beliefs come before the Constitution you shouldn't be in the military."

In fact the only poster who seems to support the Chaplain is an obnoxious little internet troll who spends more time calling people names than supporting his position. For example when one poster said this:

"As my mother would have said, "bushwah!"

The Chaplain's supporter responded with an ad hominen attack:

"mother" ???????????
ewwwwwwwwwwww
Poor woman. Nine months wasted."

Such a perfect example of everything that is wrong with religion!