CHAPLAIN ALLIANCE FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY October 13, 2015 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact CHAPLAIN ENDORSERS at info@chaplainalliance.org or call (571) 293-2427
Chaplains commend Hawaii marine commander for decision on ‘God bless the military’ sign
WASHINGTON – The commanding officer at Marine Corps Base Hawaii has issued a statement announcing that a sign which reads “God bless the military, their families, and the civilians who work with them” will remain on the base without alteration. The decision comes after Col. Sean Killeen received a letter from the Military Religious Freedom Foundation that demanded the sign’s removal or relocation to an area near a chapel.
The letter inaccurately claimed that the sign is a violation of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause even though courts have repeatedly found such slogans to be acceptable in similar contexts.
“We commend Col. Killeen for his decision to abide by the U.S. Constitution and decline to remove a perfectly legitimate sign, which was erected when service men and women were being deployed shortly after 9/11,” said Chaplain (COL) Ron Crews, USA Retired, executive directorof Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty. “From the founding of our country, every president, including President Obama, has called on God to bless America. This sign can certainly do so as well.”
Killeen responded to the request to remove the sign with a letter, in which he acknowledged that the “sign has been in place for well over a decade – serving as a secular symbol of general support and encouragement to ‘military members, their families, and the civilians who work with them.’ We will continue to honor those who have sacrificed their lives in defense of the country, our freedoms, and our way of life.”
Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty is an organization of chaplain endorsers, the faith groups that provide chaplains for the U.S. military and other agencies needing chaplains. The endorsers in Chaplain Alliance speak for more than 2,600 chaplains serving the Armed Forces.
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