Jack E. Kemp
In further researching the current status of religious expression at military funerals, a topic I had previously written about in the Obama administration's War on Religion, I contacted DeeAnn Thigpen, the Press Secretary to Cong. John Culberson, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans' Affairs and Related Agencies. Here is an account of the latest battle and court ruling.
In 2011, Dr. Scott Rainey, is the Lead Pastor at Living Word Church of the Nazarene in Houston, Texas, along with The Veterans of Foreign Wars District 4 and The American Legion Post 586 and The National Memorial Ladies all found they had a problem where none previously existed.
Arleen Ocasio, Director of the Houston National Cemetery, requested that Pastor Rainey submit his proposed Memorial Day prayer in advance, a prayer that ended with the invoking of Jesus's name, as per the teachings of his faith. He did so and was, ironically asked, in an email that misspelled his name as "Reiney," to edit his prayer, removing all religious references.
A lawsuit filed by Pastor Rainey and the above veterans' and auxiliary groups claimed:
"Director Ocasio stated that Pastor Rainey’s prayer is ―specific to one belief‖ and ―on Memorial Day we will be commemorating veterans from all cultures and religious beliefs. Therefore, ―[t]he tone of all messages must be inclusive of all beliefs, need to be general, and its fundamental purpose should be … non-denominational in nature."
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By this logic, no person of any faith should profess their faith in a public prayer. One could use the same logic to say that a rabbi invoking the name of God should refrain because he would somehow offend believers in the Vedic texts of India - and also atheists, Muslims, etc. Such a request reduces professions of faith (in both senses of the word, i.e., by ministers' and lay people' speech) to what is essentially a de facto hate crime, something to be ashamed to speak of in public.
In further Owellian Newspeak, Director Ocasio complained that Pastor Rainey's was "specific to the teachings of one faith." Yes, that's why his title is "Pastor" and not "New Age Counselor" or "Chapter President of the state Atheists' Association." Notice insidiousness of this request. Rather than disinviting any Man or Woman of the Cloth, Director Ocasio wanted those that attended the service to be forced to take on the role of a secular speaker.
This is conceptually somewhat similar to forcing Catholic and other religious hospitals to become dispensers of birth control and funders of abortions. It extends the attack on religion from the cradle to the grave.
After further insistence on this "viewpoint-neutral" policy (Orwell's "Ministry of Truth" would be proud of such phrasing), the lawsuit then states:
"On May 26, 2011, Pastor Scott Rainey filed a complaint and a motion for a temporary restraining order in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, seeking that the Defendants be enjoined from censoring the contents of his prayer and religious expression at the May 20, 2011 Memorial Day ceremony..."
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At the hearing held the next day, Pastor Rainey and his attorneys introduced new charges of Bibles being removed from the chapel - as was a cross - at the Houston National Cemetery as well. Why stop there? perhaps the cemetery could remove crosses and Stars of David from the individual burial sites because someone seeing them might be offended? The removal of the Bibles and the Cross from the chapel is behavior that immigrants to the U.S. who came from communist countries would find chillingly familiar.
Because the restraining order was in effect, Pastor Rainey attended the Memorial Day service and recited The Lord's Prayer and invoked the name of Jesus. However, the Houston National Cemetery then began to inhibit the speech of Veterans of Foreign Wars Honor Guards at individual military funerals. Specifically, prayers and religious speech were forbidden unless submitted in advance to Director Ocasio. Probably believing such a submission for approval was a fools' errand, the VFW simply stopped including prayers and references to "God" or "Jesus" in the funeral ceremonies they performed at Houston National. Even the words "God Bless" were removed from condolence cards used by the volunteer organization, the National Memorial Ladies, at this cemetery. And they were instructed to discontinue using the expression "God bless you," and use "Peace be with you" instead. http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/11/11/victory-for-veterans/
A further specific example of a petty ban on "offending language" is also mentioned in the lawsuit against Houston
National. From Page 13 of the court papers:
"For approximately two and a half years, Junior Vice Commander Nobleton Jones recited the following to family members of the deceased as he handed them the discharged shell cases from the gun salute: ―On behalf of the United States of America, a grateful nation, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars, I present you with these shell cases from the shots that were fired to honor our departed comrade. We ask that God grant you and your family grace, mercy, and peace.
..After a burial ceremony on May 16th, 2011, the Government Official monitoring the funeral instructed Mr. Jones that he was no longer allowed to recite his message as he hands the discharged shells to the family, presumably because his message includes the word ―God."
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Page 11 of the lawsuit says that a VFW chaplain was not allowed to be present at funeral service. This frankly sounds like North Korea and not the United States.
After months of litigation, the Texas federal court ruled that the Department of Veteran Affairs had to comply with fifty points of Pastor Rainey's lawsuit and stop their major ban on religious expression. Although this annulled this attack on the First Amendment, there still were some scars as some funerals held in the interim period before the court ruling. Fox News states: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/11/11/victory-for-veterans/
"One widow testified that a cemetery employee sought to restrict the religious speech of the VFW Honor Guard just moments before her husband’s funeral was about to begin.
Another widow, whose husband served in the army for thirty years, held her husband’s funeral service at a nearby private chapel due to V.A. restrictions on religious expression. These grieving widows joined the lawsuit against the VA in hopes that no other family would have to endure such unwarranted governmental intrusion."
And so the veterans, even in their deaths, got to fight another battle for the "freedoms that aren't free." They and their loved ones got to teach us another lesson in American History even from their graveside. Let us be wise enough to learn it and stand up for it because this fight is far from over.
Comment
Comment by Frank Curiel on March 16, 2012 at 6:37am This is part 2 of letter Houston Flight 279. Sorry.
I then grabbed the 2nd man and said, "You WILL do the same!"
He protested loudly, but my adrenaline was flowing now and he was going to go also. Just as I escorted him forward, the plane stopped, the doors opened and three TSA agents and four police officers entered the cabin. Myself and my new Texas friend were told to cease and desist for they had the situation under control.
I was quite happy to oblige actually. There was still some sort of commotion in the back, but within moments, all eleven Muslim men were escorted off the plane. The TSA agents then had their luggage unloaded. We talked about the occurrence and were in disbelief that it had happened.
Then suddenly, the door opened again and in walked all eleven Muslim men! Stone faced, eyes front and robotic, (the only way I can describe it) they were reseated. The stewardess from the back had been in tears and when she saw the men, she was having NONE of it! Since I was up front, I heard and saw the whole ordeal. She told the TSA agents that there was NO WAY she was staying on the plane with the Muslim men. The agent told her that they had searched the men and were going through their luggage with a fine tooth comb. However, nothing had been found and that the men were allowed to proceed on to Houston .
The captain and co-captain came out of the cockpit and told the agent, "We and our crew will not fly this plane!" After a word or two, the entire crew, luggage in tow, left the plane. Five minutes later, the cabin door opened again and a whole new crew walked on. Again, this was where I had had enough! I got up and asked the TSA agent, "What the hell is going on?
I was told to take my seat. The airlines and TSA were sorry for the delay and we would be home shortly. I said "I'm getting off this plane". The stewardess sternly told me that she could not allow me to get off. Now I'm really mad! I said "I am a grown man who bought this ticket, who's time is mine with a family at home and I am going through that door, or I'm going through that door with you under my arm, but I AM going through that door!"
And then I heard a voice behind me say "So am I!" Then everyone behind us started to get up and say the same thing. Within two minutes, I was walking off that plane where I was met by more TSA agents who asked me to write a statement about the incident. I had five hours to kill at this point waiting for the next flight to Houston , so why the hell not give them my statement. Due to the amount of people who got off that flight, it was canceled. I was supposed to be in Houston at 6 PM, but I finally got there at 12:30 AM. If you don't believe this, look up the date and then Flight 297 from Atlanta toHouston .
If this wasn't a terrorism dry run, I don't know what one is. The terrorists wanted to see how TSA would handle it, how the crew would handle it, and how the passengers would handle it. I'm telling this to you because I want you to know. The threat IS real. I saw it with my own eyes."
Tedd Petruna
I suggest you keep this going until this incident reaches the email of all POLITICIANS and the news media!
Comment by Frank Curiel on March 16, 2012 at 5:54am Please read and forward. This is not the only incident of this type with sand n*****s. We must stand together...As In "ONE FOR ALL AND ALL FOR ONE," Alone our Federal Enforcement will take us to jail.
WOW! And to think that Fox News was the only channel that reported this. Brassy!
In my opinion, the Muslims are all getting very brave now. Read Tedd Petruna's story below. Can you imagine, our own news media now are so politically correct that they are afraid to report that these were all Muslims? Unbelievable. Thank God for people like Tedd Petruna.
I, Gene Hackemack, received this email from my good friend Tedd Petruna. He is a diver at the NBL (Neutral Buoyancy Lab) facility at NASA Houston. I used to work with Tedd who happened to be on the AirTran Flight 297, from Atlanta to Houston .
"One week ago, I went to Ohio on business and to see my father. On Tuesday, the 17th, I returned home. If you read the papers the 18th you may have seen a blurb about where an Air Tran flight was canceled from Atlanta to Houston due to a man who refused to get off of his cell phone before take- off. The story was only on Fox News. That was NOT what really happened.
I was seated in 1st class coming home. Eleven Muslim men got on the plane in full Muslim attire. Two of them sat in 1st class and the rest seated themselves throughout the plane, in coach class, all the way to the back. As the plane taxied out to the runway, the stewardesses gave the safety spiel that we are all so familiar with.
At that time, one of the men, in 1st class, got on his cell and called one of his companions back in coach. He proceeded to talk on the phone in Arabic very loudly and very, very aggressively. This activity took the 1st stewardess out of action for she repeatedly told the man that cell phones were not permitted at that time. He ignored her as if she were not there. The man, who answered the phone back in the coach section, did the same and this took out the 2nd stewardess. Further back in the plane, at the same time, two younger Muslims, one in the back on the aisle, and one sitting in front of him by the window, began to show footage of a porno video they had taped the night before. They were very loud about it.
Now, Muslim men are only permitted to view porno women prior to Jihad. If a Muslim man goes into a strip club, he has to view the woman via mirror with his back to her. (Don't ask me, I don't make the rules, but I've studied Muslims.)
The 3rd stewardess informed the two men that they were not to have electronic devices on at this time.
One of the men said "shut up infidel dog!"
The stewardess attempted to take the camcorder and the Muslim began to scream in her face in Arabic. At that exact moment, all eleven of the men got up and started to walk throughout the cabin. I guess that because of the noise, the flight crew must have decided that there was something amiss and changed the plane's directions to head back to the terminal.
The commotion and noise was reaching a feverish pitch, and at this point I had had enough! I got up and started towards the back of 1st class, when I heard a voice behind me, from another Texan twice my size, say "I got your back." Then I grabbed the man, who had been on the cell phone, by the arm and said "You WILL sit down in your seat or you WILL be thrown from this plane!" As I "led" him around me to take his seat, the fellow Texan grabbed him by the back of his neck and his waist and headed him back to his seat. I then grabbed the 2nd man and sa
Comment by Steve Wagner on March 15, 2012 at 8:22pm Defiance is in order! Time to really push back!
Comment by Billy Bowlegs on March 15, 2012 at 6:12pm J Andrew Reid;
You got it right. Damnd the torpeods, full steam ahead.
Do what you want to do at the funeral; any complaints, respond that you did not see the rules posted on the side of the casket and could not remember them. God bless you brother for asking and commenting.
And David; are your refeerring to the current set of Marxist at 1600 Penn or three of the prior sets that were there?
That is a good google experience if you ever had one.
Comment by jalina susan stutte on March 15, 2012 at 4:33pm Houston has been invaded by many Liberals from San Francisco and other liberal cities, in order to change Texas from the inside, out. Well it will not work here in Texas. Houston elected a Lesbian Mayor and the first thing she did was had Transgender public bathrooms installed. We try to avoid Houston and Austin as much as possible. GOD BLESS TEXAS
Comment by J. Andrew Reid on March 15, 2012 at 8:21am Instead of being on the defensive, I wonder what would happen if people just refused to leave out the religious words. Submit the required paperwork without the despised references and then simply say what they want at the service. This would put the shoe on the other foot. What would Ocasio do then, arrest the mourners? Can you imagine the outrage that would cause? There should be outrage!
Comment by Frank Curiel on March 15, 2012 at 2:38am Notice: My Brothers All have earned The Full Military Burial Honors, From the lonely sound of Taps, Full Gun Salute to the Presentation OF OUR NATIONAL FLAG IS SACRED. NO ONE ELSE IS AUTHORIZED THIS HONOR. THEY/WE SERVED AND EARNED THIS RITE AND THE FREEDOM OF ITS HONOR.
DENY OR DISHONOR THIS RITE IS A CALL TO ARMS. ANYTHING LESS IS SURRENDER!! NOT ON MY WATCH PEOPLE!
Comment by Steve Wagner on March 14, 2012 at 10:14pm Situations like this calls for Defiance of unlawful rulings... This is Gestapo tactics here in the U.S. Why waste time & energy in the courts?
Comment by SgtGrumpy on March 14, 2012 at 6:39pm I was at the Ann Arbor VA in Feb when another veteran came into the main lobby passing out tract cards and small Bibles . The VA police quickly escorted him out of the building and tried to take the Bibles away from people. There was almost a riot. There were probably 15-20 VA police there. God Help Our Country.
S/F
SgtGrumpy
Comment by Dave Koch on March 14, 2012 at 5:36pm The Hell with that Bitch in Houston and the Hell with those in Washington for letting this happen . It is time to take a stand against Our Government for The Rights We as Veterans have earned . I'm sick and tired of our Religous Freedoms being torn apart by those that have no care about those that gave them their Rights and Freedoms. Their like the Illegal's, KICK them all out of America as they don't deserve the Rights and Freedoms that those of us fought for and those of our family before us fought for.
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