Military religious leaders report pressure, backlash over beliefs

From: HUMAN EVENTS

In the era of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, a number of support groups advocated for gay service members who feared backlash for speaking freely. But the repeal of the ban in late 2011 has not ushered in a new era of free speech; rather, now it is chaplains who say they are being muzzled by the military and a group has formed to pass legislation seeking relief on their behalf.

Army religious leaders were reassured in a 2011 briefing on the repeal prepared by their Army Chief of Chaplains that they would not have to alter their sermons or their faith systems in light of new policy. At the same time, the chaplains were reminded that they would be required to minister to all troops and advised that, if they had irreconcilable problems with the new status quo, they would be free to end their careers and leave the service.

Now, the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty, a coalition of retired chaplains formed to support their active-duty counterparts in such situations, told Human Events it has collected anecdotal reports from a number of chaplains who say they have felt pressure from command leaders regarding how they express their beliefs about homosexuality.

The Alliance said that one chaplain was threatened with early retirement and moved to a new assignment after forwarding an email to subordinates containing reflections on the DADT policy. Another chaplain told the Alliance he was stripped of his authority over a military base chapel for refusing to open it to same-sex marriage services.