Lawmakers urge Bush to protect chaplains’ freedom

By Tom Strode - Nov 15, 2005 -

Members of Congress have called on President Bush to ensure the religious freedom of chaplains in the armed services.

Senators and representatives, led by Rep. Walter Jones, R.-N.C., have written the President asking him to issue an executive order protecting the “right of military chaplains to pray according to their faith.” The 71 representatives and two senators said in the letter they had learned in all the military branches “it is becoming increasingly difficult for Christian chaplains to use the name of Jesus when praying.”

The lawmakers focused most of their attention on guidelines recently proposed for Air Force chaplains, describing them as restrictive and suppressive. They also expressed the concern the guidelines, if adopted, might be implemented in the other branches of the armed services.

Six days after Jones sent his letter, Sen. Sam Brownback, R.-Kan., wrote Bush Oct. 31 requesting he review the Air Force’s interim guidelines and seek to make sure all military directives for chaplains “truly protect free exercise of religion.”

Jones and his colleagues told the President, “The current demand in the guidelines for so-called ‘non-sectarian’ prayers is merely a euphemism declaring that prayers will be acceptable only so long as they censor Christian beliefs.”

Brownback echoed Jones and the others in expressing concern about a provision in the proposed guidelines apparently limiting Air Force members’ discussions on religious faith to peers. Another section seems to restrict “how, when and where” chaplains and other Air Force members may pray publicly, he said.

The interim guidelines do not include a statement on evangelism included in the Code of Ethics issued only in January by the Air Force Chaplain Service. That document said of a chaplain, “I will not actively proselytize from other religious bodies. However, I retain the right to instruct and/or evangelize those who are not affiliated.” The Air Force withdrew that code Aug. 10 and issued the interim guidelines Aug. 29.

The Air Force’s interim guidelines may be accessed online at http://www.af.mil/library/guidelines.pdf .

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