Posted on 06/07/2006 5:55:44 PM PDT by SandRat
MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va., June 7, 2006 Calling freedom of religion a principal right in "a nation of people from all races and creeds who believe in liberty and freedom," Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England helped the Marine Corps dedicated its first Islamic prayer center here yesterday.
England offered his congratulations to the Corps and the leadership of Quantico and the chaplain corps for seeing the need for the center, and working to establish it. The Navy has two Islamic facilities; however, neither is a dedicated facility similar to the one at Quantico, a Defense Department official said. The Air Force has similar centers at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio and Ramstein Air Base, Germany, according to Air Force public affairs officials. Army information was not available. Quantico is considered the crossroads of the Marine Corps. The prayer center will help educate many about the Islamic faith while it serves the Islamic community here, England said. Quantico is host to a mixture of U.S. and foreign servicemembers, as well as civilians, Gen. Michael Hagee, commandant of the Marine Corps, said. "This Islamic prayer center, the first of its kind in the Marine Corps, is really an extension or our ethos, (the) ethos that we take care of one another," Hagee said. "It is going to provide our Muslim Marines and their families, Muslim Department of Defense civilians and Muslim international military personnel serving with us a proper place for religious services." Spiritual devotion is an important component of the profession of arms, as well as important element in quality of life, Hagee said. He added that events like the dedication of the prayer center strengthen the ties that bind. "I believe that we all share some very important basic values; the respect for human life, the respect for truth and the respect for personal property," he said. Rear Adm. Louis Iasiello, chief of Navy chaplains, lent his support to the establishment of the center with a story of Marines and local Iraqi leaders who had gathered in a train terminal south of Baghdad. A Navy chaplain offered a prayer that, "Betrayed neither himself, nor his country, nor his God," Iasiello said. In fact, the prayer served as an icon of religious respect that united the two groups. "Today ... religious respect takes the form of a center, an Islamic center established to afford those of the Muslim faith the opportunity to pray and worship God in a manner that honors and respects their religious heritage," he said. Twenty-four of the 426 Muslim Marines currently serving are stationed at Quantico. This center is a welcome haven for them, Lance Cpl. Mehreena Ahmad said. "There haven't been a lot of centers to pray at, but this one's solely dedicated to us," she said. "So, we're just happy that we have a place." Staff Sgt. Madyun Shahid echoed her sentiment. "The Marine Corps is recognizing diversity in the Marine Corps, and I'm just happy to have a place ... to go worship." The prayer center, which was established in an existing structure on the base, is only temporary until an extension to the existing Marine Memorial Chapel is complete. Ground-breaking for the extension is scheduled for fall, and completion is expected in 2008. Before touring the center with Hagee and Navy Lt. Saiful Islam, Headquarters and Service Battalion chaplain, England acknowledged the long history of Muslim servicemembers defending the United States. "Their service continues a long and noble tradition," England said. "Muslim-Americans served in the ships of our Navy and in the U.S. Army in World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Somalia, Grenada, Panama and the 1991 Gulf War." Some of those veterans of past conflicts were present for the dedication. England acknowledged Army Sgt. Nazeem Abdul Hakeem who fought on the beaches of Normandy in World War II, Air Force Sgt. Gath Noor Kas-Heef, who served during the Korean War, and Army Maj. Christopher Bell who served at Cam Ron Bay in Vietnam. Also present was Army Sgt. 1st Class Mujaheed Muhammed, who was a Korean War prisoner of war. Captured by Communist forces while assigned to the 15th Infantry's reconnaissance patrol, he was held from 1952 through 1954. "Your example of service continues today with the thousands of Muslim Americans in uniform," England said, recognizing the more than 4,000 Muslims who serve. "These men and women represent the best of our nation." |
Biographies:
Rear Adm. (Chaplain) Louis Iasiello, USN
Related Sites:
Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va.
Islamic members of various military services listen to remarks at the Islamic prayer center dedication June 6 at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va. Photo by Lance Cpl. Kara L. Coonrod, USMC
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Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England delivers remarks at the June 6 Islamic prayer center dedication ceremony at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va. Photo by Lance Cpl. Kara L. Coonrod, USMC
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Very bad idea. Satan worshipping and human sacrifice next on the agenda. Oh wait, Islam teaches this today.
Tell you what - the way this is going - I would never enlist.
I pray every day for our troops. They are being tested to the limits!! God please watch over them.
and serve sausages and bacon to acculturate them to American societ.
"Twenty-four of the 426 Muslim Marines currently serving are stationed at Quantico. This center is a welcome haven for them, Lance Cpl. Mehreena Ahmad said."
Wasn't it a muslim soldier that tried to kill members in his group in Kuwait during the beginning of the war? I hate to paint the whole group, but where was this guy studying?
In Aug 1993 my late wife and I were assigned to the U S Diplomatic Mission in Havana. Our sponsors were the NCOIC of the Marine Security Guard Detachment and his wife. On our second night on-island, they invited us to dinner at the Marine House. They served an excellent lobster lasagna. The NCOIC (Gunny) asked one of his watch-standers to say grace. The watchstander, a Marine formerly known as Chris (Last Name unremembered) had recently been converted to islam, and and had changed his name to something in Arabic. His grace mentioned allah a lot. I was shocked.<.>
I could tell by his demeanor that Gunny was not very happy with this apostasy. From a strictly administrative point of view, the Marine Corps had to do a lot of changing; he needed new forms for everything. New dog tags. New name tapes. Everything. This guy's name had been "Christopher." I feel certain that his parents back in North Carolina weren't altogether happy with his decision to turn his back on Christianity.
Feh!
FMCDH(BITS)
Doesnt pass the smell test does it?
If the muslim's dedication is to his "god" instead of country, don't bother joining the Armed Forces.
Maybe they're actually just fighting terrorists.....and not a religion!!
I actually knew two Marines that claimed to be members of the Church of Satan and it said so on their dog tags.
Remember the Movie "Battleground" where Leon Ames plays the Chaplin, and says "All us Holy Joes are switch hitters" one can only hope and pray it's true in this case.
WHY? Politically correct crap alert!
Hasan Akbar, sentenced to death for killing two officers and wounding 14 others in a sneak grenade attack on the eve of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Army Capt. Chris Seifert, 27, and Air Force Maj. Gregory Stone, 40, were killed.
Akbar is and was a muslim.
.....*spit*
As much as I admire, respect and honor our armed forces as the best in the world ever, I MUST SAY:
The Marine Corps is insane to build and dedicate an 'islamic prayer center' and no branch of the U.S. armed forces should enlist muslims.
Period.
Ahhh...gee that's too bad.
I don't remember war being declared on islam. Afghanastan, & Iraq, but not on the ROP. In fact I recall clearly hearing we were not at war with islam and islam is not the enemy.
If that is not the case, then someone should tell the president.../sarcasm.
correction sir.
Akbar is and was a f#@*ing muslim.
praise be on to allah...shama lama ding dong.
Is this a sick perverted joke? We have brave Marines in solitary and who cares about Islam. Aren't there wackos beheading people in the name of Islam, aren't they burning bodies and hanging them from bridges, aren't they planting IEDs to maim and kill our brave soldiers? I don't recall us building prayer huts for the Viet Cong? Something is very sick in our country and I hope it gets cured real fast! The only cure is for Americans to wake up before it's too late.
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