Washington – The Pentagon said Monday it no longer includes a Bible quote on the cover page of daily intelligence briefings it sends to the White House as was practice during the Bush administration.
Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said he did not know how long the Worldwide Intelligence Update cover sheets quoted from the Bible. Air Force Maj. Gen. Glen Shaffer, who was responsible for including them, retired in August 2003, according to his biography.
For a period in 2003, at least, the daily reports prepared for President George W. Bush carried quotes from the books of Psalms and Ephesians and the epistles of Peter. At the time, the reports focused largely on the war in Iraq.
The Bible quotes apparently aimed to support Bush at a time when soldiers’ deaths in Iraq were on the rise, according to the June issue of GQ magazine. But they offended at least one Muslim analyst at the Pentagon and worried other employees that the passages were inappropriate.
On Thursday, April 10, 2003, for example, the report quoted the book of Psalms – “Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him. … To deliver their soul from death.” – and featured pictures of the statue of Saddam Hussein being pulled down and celebrating crowds in Baghdad.
“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand,” read the cover quote two weeks earlier, on March 31, above a picture of a U.S. tank driving through the desert, according to the magazine, which obtained copies of the documents.
The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, on Monday said U.S. soldiers “are not Christian crusaders, and they ought not be depicted as such.”
“Depicting the Iraq conflict as some sort of holy war is completely outrageous,” Lynn said in a statement. “It’s contrary to the constitutional separation of religion and government, and it’s tremendously damaging to America’s reputation in the world.”
Associated Press
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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posted May 19, 2009 at 7:15 pm
The article reports the verses as encouragement to Bush not to depict soldiers as crusaders that’s just ridiculous and inflammatory rhetoric. The very fact that Bush sort support in some way shows his human side. What if any will be Obama’s support as the same condition is mirrored in Afghanistan under his leadership, I’d suspect that if he needs nothing other than his cigarettes we are no better off than under Bush.
posted May 19, 2009 at 8:03 pm
President Obama has a background of Christian faith ck, and all of his Christian bretheran in the U.S. will support him. And his cigarettes are none of anyones business but his own and his families.
posted May 19, 2009 at 9:13 pm
Americia, founded under the watch of GOD, by believers of GOD, always and forever under GOD. I reckon everybody that took offense to that should have went back home. What made this country so great, was that itself. Now, that is changing, into a clone of all the countries that were left by our ancestors to found this nation under GOD…. What is happening around here, this is crazy. To even have to listen to the fact that somebody is offended by this is offensive to me, is any government facility bending over backwards and re-writing laws to change that? I’m a Christain and the last words out of my mouth when our, New World Order takes my life will be, “Praise Jesus”
GETRDUN……………>>
posted May 19, 2009 at 9:22 pm
Mr. Obama also has a background in Muslim faith also, ck. and that is anyone’s business, and as far as his cigerettes go, who cares. All the American kids stopped looking up to the president years ago…..
JESUS was a Christain and HE didn’t smoke. ck…
They call me HILLBILLY, and I like Christ, but I’m a simple person in a simple city. Maybe I am just behind the times.
Nawp, I ain’t.ck
posted May 19, 2009 at 11:19 pm
No Name, you didn’t understand Ck’s post. He believes as you do. I know a lot of hillbillys that love Christ and they also love their President. You know that that’s possible don’t you? You are wrong about all American kids, they have not stopped looking up to any of America’s Presidents. Be happy that you are living under God in a country that allows everyone to worship as they see fit to. Look around you and see with your eyes.
posted May 20, 2009 at 10:48 am
Oo more christian arrogance. Why not quote Shakespeare, Socrates or even Snoopy? Does their need to be Jesusentarians supercede everything else? They have no clue, no concept, no hope of every knowing anything about the very people they oppose if they have no sense of who they are. These reports would have been more beneficial if they quoted the Quran.
posted May 20, 2009 at 4:26 pm
As President Obama has had to point out, this is not a “Christian Nation”.
I’m an American and fiercely proud of it. I am also a non-Christian.
If you can’t handle that come try to throw me out.
posted May 20, 2009 at 5:55 pm
H22 quote: “President Obama has a background of Christian faith ck, and all of his Christian bretheran in the U.S. will support him.”
H, Obama went to a church (obviously for political reasons) and had no idea what his pastor was spewing and it almost bit Obama in the butt. The main message of that event is this, Obama didn’t engage in the ideals of the church or had interest in Christ. Many people say they are Christian but as Jesus recorded in the bible they will hear “I never knew you.”
posted May 20, 2009 at 7:37 pm
You don’t know what is in peoples lives, and hearts Ck. Stop trying to imprint your interpretation on people you don’t agree with.
posted May 20, 2009 at 10:43 pm
I hear and I obey, not! H22 stop barking orders who do you think you are? I can do what I want. I’ve got eyes to see and ears to hear and from what I have observed my observations are correct.
posted May 21, 2009 at 8:59 am
GETRDUN,
“Americia, founded under the watch of GOD, by believers of GOD, always and forever under GOD.
More revisionist history from the whacko ‘religiou’ wrong. The “under God” part was ony added in the 50s.
posted May 21, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Your Name the “whacko ‘religiou’ wrong” information is you. It has always been about God for America until recently. There was prayer in schools, the bible was curriculum and Christians lead the nation into greatness. The people who desire to change history have the agenda that they hope will promote homosexuality as right with God. It is not but it is a legal activity accepted by the government.