On Jul 23, 7:00 pm, "Sid9" <s...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> Complaint filed over religious event near post
>
> By John Milburn - The Associated Press
> Posted : Wednesday Jul 23, 2008 21:10:48 EDT
>
> TOPEKA, Kan. - A national group alleged Wednesday that Fort Leonard
Wood,
> Mo., is forcing soldiers to participate in a weekly religious event, a
> program that has been mentioned in a federal lawsuit in Kansas.
>
> Americans United for Separation of Church and State sent a letter to the
> Department of Defense's inspector general, asking for an investigation
into
> the Sunday evening event, whose name was recently changed from "Free Day
> Away" to "Tabernacle Baptist Church Retreat Program." The Tabernacle
Baptist
> Church in Lebanon, Mo., has hosted the event for soldiers from the
Missouri
> post since 1971.
>
> A Fort Leonard Wood spokesman said the program is voluntary, and the
church's
> pastor said it has taken steps to ensure that soldiers know they will
hear a
> religious message if they attend.
>
> But Americans United's executive director, the Rev. Barry Lynn, said
> *soldiers at Fort Leonard Wood must either attend the program or stay on
> post*.
>
> "That's not the kind of choice that ought be to be given to soldiers,"
said
> Lynn, who described the practice as "coercive evangelism."
This is proof that the US military is still practicing coercive
religion. There is no reason that a soldier should be presented with a
choice of a specific religious practice or no recreation at all.
|
