I've been watching the issue of Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt with great interest. I am deeply saddened by media and bloggers who don't take the time or effort to investigate what the truth may be. We have torrents of information spewed at us but not necessarily a drop of fact.
And I'm just as guilty for I accused a blogger of removing my post on her blog. She explained she did not; but she does moderate the postings and mine hadn't been posted as yet. I apologize to her and to readers (?) of this blog.
However that does not change the basic issue. The chaplain said “I’m facing being kicked out because I pray in Jesus’ name.” That is not true. Navy spokesman Lt. William Marks said Friday (Jan. 6) that Chaplain Klingenschmitt had been granted an indefinite extension because he had provided the appropriate “proof of continued or renewed ecclesiastical endorsement.” (Chaplains have to be recommended by their denomination.) Lt. Marks also said Chaplain Klingenschmitt twice had been orally notified of the extension in December, and a written notice of the extension was mailed to him Dec. 22.
Lt. Marks had told the publication Stars & Stripes in December that Chaplain Klingenschmitt (was) still an active-duty sailor in good standing, has no disciplinary action pending, and has not received any punishment for language used in public forums.
This last point is very important. Chaplain Klingenschmitt says he cannot pray in Jesus' name in public while in uniform. Again, not so. But you need to understand what "public" means. If a chaplain has been asked to deliver the invocation or benediction at a commissioning ceremony or a change of command, the Covenant and Code of Ethics of the National Conference on Ministry to the Armed Forces says "When conducting services of worship that include persons of other than my religious body, I will draw upon those beliefs, principles, and practices that we have in common." If the chaplain feels uncomfortable with that, he or she can decline that invitation. But if the chaplain is conducting a service for his or her denomination, Title 10, United States Code, applies.
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7 comments:
Actually, his contract has been renewed which is great. You are correct, it is not clear in the material that he is allowed to pray in Jesus name in his denominational meetings and I am relieved at that.
The denominational meetings are not mandatory and no one is forced to attend and my mother being an "army brat" those services kept her family on track when her father was seriously injured in Korea. I'm glad that there is some clarification on this. I read no less than 20 articles and including the interview on NBC -- this point was never clarified and I would like you to hyperlink to your information on this. I see your assertions but I would like to read the facts for myself, perhaps they are better than the articles I've read.
I do however, take issue with the fact that there seems to be undue discrimination against those who pray in Jesus name. We Christians are explicitly instructed to pray in his name as part of our faith. Whereas I believe that the prayers offered in public are in line with Muslim and Jewish beliefs, the way Christians are asked to pray is in violation with that.
# Mark 8:38
For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
I don't know if there is a fair way to handle this and I am continuing to pray for those involved in looking at this as I also have been praying for you, soupy, and for God to bless you.
Thank you for pointing out your post. I always want to have the facts-- I went to an engineering school and excelled because of my ability to ferret out facts.
I think perhaps it is not the ability of the bloggers to get correct information as it is the lack of correct information to get. I look forward to returning to your blog and seeing the sources of your facts. THank you for the information.
Sources now included as links.
What I want to know is why the Christians feel under attack on a daily basis. It's only Christians too!! I don't see Muslims fretting because they don't say "In Allah's name" everywhere they go. And if they did, you know people would be scared to death that they were terrorists!!! Besides, whatever happened to the line in the Bible where we are instructed to pray in secret to God, to differentiate ourselves from those who pray to God loudly in public only so that their neighbors know they are praying??
Good information -- I too had seen the extension and I appreciate the clarification and hyperlinks.
As for the verse quoted by the blogger below it is important to look at all verses in context. I looked it up. In Matthew 6 (your reference) Jesus says:
1"Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
He is talking to those who are just putting on a show before men -- ignoring the private and personal relationship that we as Christians have in our personal "prayer time" as I do daily. You see, Jesus looks at our heart and motivations. He goes on to say
5"When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
6"But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
7"And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.
This is addressing the gradiose pretenses of the religious leaders of the day who were "putting on a show" and devoid of any personal, authentic, private relationship such as I and many of my fellow Christians have with God.
If this man is only praying in public and is indeed putting on a show then I believe that God will call him into judgement for that.
To focus on practicing what religions have in common assumes that religions have a common God -- they do not.
For me to deny Christ in public I must go back to one of my favorite verses (it is in the header of my blog)
Mark 8:38
For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
To deny Christ is to deny my very soul.
I continue to pray for you, soupy daily that God will bless you. It hurt me when you slammed me on your blog (what a welcome to the blogosphere) but I have enjoyed coming back to your blog.
I don't expect we'll ever agree on this one so I guess we'll have to agree to respectfully disagree.
I would like to make a comment about Karl's remark. Muslims are not required to say in Allah's name. We as Christians have to ask of the Son to receive the blessings of the Father.
John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
So, when Christians pray we must ask it in Jesus name or we are just talking to hear ourselves speak. The Navy Chaplin knew this and therefore had to stand up for his belief. If he is not allowed to ask for the prayer in Jesus name then it would be useless for him to even speak.
God Bless.
I'm not disagreeing with Bright Idea Guru in that those who wish to pray in Jesus' name can and should do so. But that wasn't the point. The point was that the chaplain said the Navy told him he couldn't pray in uniform in public and in Jesus name. That is not true. The chaplain said he was going to be "fired." Again, not true and he knew it.
Some folks claim that asking any chaplain to give a non-denominational prayer at an official ceremony is being political correct. Not so. It is in keeping with the Constitution since the event is an official government event, and the First Amendment has been interpreted as stating the government cannot show favoritism of one religious belief over others in public ceremonies.
As I look across the landscape, it would appear that there are those who would like to make the United States into a theocracy. That too would be in direct opposition to the Constitution and to the very tenets of the foundation of this country.
Finally, while I appreciate bright idea guru's praying for me, let me say that I thank God each day for the many blessings He has bestowed on me.... a great spouse, three wonderful children (and grandchild), and rewarding work.
The threats against the Muslim who converted to Christianity 16 years ago are troubling. However, tolerance has not been a principle of any of the Abrahamic faiths: The Crusades of the Middle Ages, the racist comments nowadays by Christians or Jews or the exclusionary assertions that the United States is "a Christian nation."
I found this information on the Web:
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Agora/4229/ctinote.html
In making your move, Islam continuously reassures you that your rights to >freedom of choice and freedom to use< that God-given faculty of thought and reason will be respected. Every man has that individual will. No one else can take that away that will and force you to surrender to the will of God. You have to find out and make that decision yourself. May your intellectual journey towards the TRUTH be a pleasant one. The Quran says:
" Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects Taghut (evil) and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trust worthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things. " (Qur'an 2:256)
'When you have understood what is Right and what is Wrong (Evil), it is Forbidden for you to do the opposite. The Punishment for Not following the Qur'an and Sunnah (working against Islam) is Clearly Stated and Warned by Allah ...'
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