CHAPLAIN ALLIANCE FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY April 20, 2012 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact CHAPLAIN ENDORSERS at info@chaplainalliance.org or call (571) 293-2427
Chaplain endorsers:
Bibles should stay in Air Force lodging
WASHINGTON — Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty expresses concern over a pending decision by Air Force officials to remove Bibles from the checklist of items in on-base lodging rooms. This will be one more case of Air Force officials bowing to political pressure to create a “religion free” zone in the Air Force.
“From General George Washington until today, military personnel have taken counsel, received comfort, and been encouraged by biblical texts,” said COL Ron Crews, executive director for Chaplain Alliance. “These Bibles cost the Air Force nothing, and their presence is legally legitimate; therefore, no reason exists for the Air Force to retreat in the face of the small anti-religious group that demanded removal of the books.”
Air Force Services Agency spokesman Michael Dickerson has reportedly stated that the Air Force has “no requirement to have Bibles in the lodging checklist.”
“While there is no requirement to have them in the checklist, why should they be removed because of the demands of a small activist group?” COL Crews said. “They are provided free of charge as a service. No airman is required to pick one up or read it. The Bibles are merely there to use if desired.”
Crews also noted that other faith groups have also provided religious materials, such as the Koran.
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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