The United States Military Academy at West Point is the oldest continually occupied army facility in the United States. Established on the 27th of January in 1778 by the Continental Armies under General George Washington, West Point has been the starting point for famous Generals, Judges, Congressmen, Astronauts, Cabinet Members, CEOs, Senators, Governors and even Presidents.
With a facility of such note and reputation, some things become established, and perpetuate themselves through inertia. With such an old institution, change is many times subtle and is not noticed until it comes into conflict with some outside force. For West Point, that outside force is one of their former cadets, Blake Page, who found the academy not reflecting the values of the United States, instead having become an evangelical recruiting ground for evangelical fundamentalists, also called dominionists.
there needs to be separation between their church a
In his resignation to West Point, reproduced in part at the Huffington Post he writes:nd the rest of America, they claim other religions mostly of mid eastern origin are trying to take over and endoctrinate your kids and you, like i said they do the dirt then try to sweep it on our shoes.
I do not wish to be in any way associated with an institution which willfully disregards the Constitution of the United States of America by enforcing policies which run counter to the same. Examples of these policies include mandatory prayer, the maintenance of the 3rd Regiment Shield, awarding extra passes to Plebes who take part in religious retreats and chapel choirs, as well as informal policies such as the open disrespect of non-religious new cadets and incentivizing participation in religious activities through the chain of command.
Cadet Blake reports of a situation, where there becomes a tiered structure through the cadets, of the dominionists, and those not, comes as a shock for those of us who support our men and women in uniform.
With the shock of the “Jesus Guns” still in the system, and with the “spiritual fitness” of General Patraeus now in ruins, it is time for a thorough reminder of the role of both religion and government, in particular when it comes to the US Military, and especially those who are trained to lead that military in the future.
Some may point to the Bill of Rights, in particular, the first amendment, to state that the government cannot interfere with religion. It’s a common right-wing talking point we all have heard. What is often overlooked is that before the passing of the Bill of Rights, a wall between church and state already existed within the US Constitution. Turn your eyes to Article VI, paragraph 3, and you can read these words written down by our founding fathers:
The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.
In black and white, “no religious test shall ever be required.” The first amendment was to protect religious institutions from abuses by the government, after the government had already kicked religious out
this is frightening like some kind of cult movie what are they teaching there and who the children of the corn? who is going to protect the gov't against religion and it's maniac racist ministers. we see what they are doing to the country t-pers evangelical foot soldiers, we can not stop opposing them at every turn, they have usurped the Bible and it's teachings into one of hate and bigotry not favorably mentioned in my Bible yours?
