Posted on 01/01/2011 2:50:50 PM PST by wmfights
Atheist organization Freedom from Religion Foundation demanded the Army halt a spiritual fitness program designed to combat stress because its diagnostic tool allegedly promotes religion.
FFRF Co-Presidents Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor wrote a letter to Army Secretary John McHugh Wednesday to protest the “spiritual fitness” assessment of the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program. The co-presidents say statements in the mandatory “spiritual fitness” evaluation tramples on the freedoms of nonbelievers.
The spiritual statements include: “I am a spiritual person;” “My life has lasting meaning;” and “I believe there is a purpose for my life.”
Barker and Gaylor called the assessment of nonspiritual soliders “deeply offensive and inappropriate.”
“By definition, nontheists do not believe in deities, spirits, or the supernatural. The Army may not send the morale-deflating message to nonbelievers that they are lesser soldiers, much less imply they are somehow incomplete, purposeless or empty,” stated the letter.
The Army established CSF to address the increased stress induced by sustained combat. The program is meant to enhance the resilience, readiness and potential of soldiers, family members and Army civilians.
The CSF uses Global Assessment Test to diagnose the soldiers’ overall level of physical and mental fitness. The assessment has a section titled “Spiritual Fitness” that questions soldiers on their personal support systems, motivation, and methods of dealing with stress, among other things.
Besides the survey itself, FFRF also criticizes the curriculum for those who score low in the spiritual fitness as overtly religious. Soldiers in the programs are told that “prayer is for all individuals” and to seek out chaplain guidance, according to the group of freethinkers.
Yet contrary to FFRF’s claims, the program does attempt to acknowledge and cater to the beliefs of secular soldiers. According to the training manual, spirituality and the human spirit is defined, for the program purposes, as “the essential core of the person.”
The manual does make mention of religious practices such as prayer and talking with a chaplain. However, it emphasizes that prayer can be quiet thinking time. It also emphasizes that soldiers can talk with a fellow soldier for support rather than chaplains.
Army chaplains trained last month to participate in the CSF’s spiritual fitness initiative say it is about protecting soldiers’ mental health in the event of a traumatic experience, not conversion.
"Most traumatic events have an element of soul wounding," said the Rev. Dr. Chrys Parker, an Army chaplain, in a statement about the training.
Parker asserts that chaplains are best equipped to deal with issues involving the soul.
"Quite frankly, the chaplains have the expertise on how to deal with the spiritual damage that is inherent in trauma," he said.
"Most traumatic events have an element of soul wounding," said the Rev. Dr. Chrys Parker, an Army chaplain, in a statement about the training.
Yeah, because we all know belief in nothing promotes a hopeful attitude. /s
No mention of Islam or the other religions.
Oh, good freaking grief.
BTTT!
“Atheist organization Freedom from Religion Foundation demanded the Army halt a spiritual fitness program designed to combat stress because its diagnostic tool allegedly promotes religion.”
Communist agitators complaining again.....
No mention of Islam or the other religions.
Where do I complain about Atheist’s complaining?
Are these whiners EVER happy? As long as servicemembers are not forced into one religion or another, who cares?
This is destroying the freedom of religion in the military, along with the concept that homosexuality is ‘good” and “normal”. Agitprop of the worst kind—that which denies the freedom of conscious. Zero is making our military despicable in his own homosexual, atheist/muslim paradigm. Puke.
They are forcing the atheist belief by denying this Christian one—and the Founding principle of our country.
This is a nation which gets their rights from the Creator! If we kill that paradigm, we kill the country—it will no longer be a Chistian one which is the ideology we and our laws were founded on.
Kick God out—then, we no longer have a Constitution that has the original intent—that our rights come from God, not man.
Marxists want no God—they should be banned from this country like they were originally. They can not take any oath of office or give meaningful testimony in a court of law. They are the antithesis of America and freedom.
Perhaps they could replace this program with one of therapeutic anal rape. (That would be consistent with the current policies endorsed by the CJCS)
As one opinion in Stars and Stripes stated:
It (Don't ask don't tell) should have applied to Christians way before it ever applied to homosexuals. Christians are far more offensive and flagrant than homosexuals ever will be, even under the new law.
Put them in a foxhole, problem solved. Thanks wmfights.
Your friendly VA has had a program of ‘spiritual assessment’, back in 2008! Now, with the Pagan success of suing the VA in 2007, along comes me, with emergency surgery for my colostomy shutting down. I am a licensed Pagan priest, and the VA had no one to send me, but a Baptist chaplain. I have a copy of my ‘spiritual assessment’, as detailed, by this chaplain. They haven’t got a clue, what to do with anyone OUTSIDE of ‘the Abrahamic faiths’. The U.S. Army DID HAVE, in 1990, a section in their Chaplain’s Manual, how to officiate Pagan sabbats and the Eight Days of the Wheel of the Year.
Now? After how many years of Atheists being around, they are just noticing them in the military??? Military folks do not sign away their First Amendment rights, if I remember correctly. With this “goy” as “President”, who knows!
“or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” The forgotten clause.
Even today, your First Amendment rights, are the same as mine, under the Constitution. If somebody else says they are not, I would join you in your “corrective information seminar”, ok? I fought for YOUR rights, and now I’m making I have MINE. Same Constitution, Same ‘We, the People’. Same “Bill of Rights”, for everybody, period. Folks died for that. I’m beholding to that. You may have a difference of religious beliefs, from me, but we are both Americans, and yes, I would be in the foxhole. There are Pagans who see battle, as a holy thing. Ya’s never know!
“No mention of Islam or the other religions.”
Make no mistake about it. It is.....and always has been..... a primary attack on CHRISTianity! Period.
As an atheist and a former military member, that would be pretty irritating.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.