ACLU (and ADL) vs. U.S. Naval Academy, Regarding Prayer
Sunday July 27, 2008
The following question was posed by the editors of the Newsweek/Washington Post blog, On Faith: The ACLU, joined by the ADL, has asked the U.S. Naval Academy to end prayers at mandatory meals, and yet all branches of the service...
Filed Under: aclu, adl, casting stones, chaplains, military, newsweek, prayer, public prayer, u.s. naval academy, washington post
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About Windows & Doors
Author, radio and TV talk show host, and President of CLAL-The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, Brad Hirschfield is the author of You Don’t Have To Be Wrong For Me To Be Right: Finding Faith Without Fanaticism. Listed as one of the nation’s 50 most influential rabbis in Newsweek, and a regular commentator on Court TV, he is the creator of the popular series, Building Bridges, airing on Bridges TV, and the co-host of the weekly radio show, Hirschfield and Kula. More About Brad
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I may misunderstand the situation, but certainly the Rabbi's point is that each and every group should feel comfortable when meeting to partake of food. There are Christians who wish to say "Grace" using the name of Christ. "Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts, which were are about to partake, in Christ's name. Amen" There are Jews who may wish to observe the beginning of Shabbat with candles, the ha'motzi, and the kiddush. (Wouldn't that be beautiful to see in our military?)
Other religions and sects have their particular rituals for the blessing of food. There are others, perhaps the majority, who wish to say nothing.
Could there be seating arrangements to accommodate each group?
I'm glad to see that it wasn't an attempt to eliminate prayer, altogether but simply have it done in a tasteful way so that all may eat, with or without a prayer. Personally, not being Christian, i'm not always happy about having anothers prayer done over my food. I will sit through it and then bless the food per my faith. While i've gotten stares from some people, i don't care. i figure that if they were truly interested in allowing people to pray over their food, they'd allow small groups to sit together or simply allow a moment for those who wish to do so the time.
I think Rabbi Hirschfield offers wonderful alternatives.
I pray before I eat in any military dining facility.
When eating military food, any help you can get, divine or otherwise, is usually best.
I think we should not be deceiving our by pretending that the Christian faith believers are not a continual campaign of using all facilities and opportunities to tactically or even forcefully impose their beliefs and practices on others with whom they associate or socialise with, at workplaces, schools, buses, markets, etc. They want to lead the prayers, and conduct it in their own way. No. We have many Faiths in this good and beautiful world, and everyone should enjoy, at all times and places, the freedom of expression that Faith's practices. My suggestion is that let everyone pray in his/her own faith's way, Christians in christian way; the Muslims or Jews, in the Islamic or Judaisic way; the Budhists or Hinduists, in their own ways. This is the Godly way, the right, good and just way. Let the Christians allow peace and justice to reign in our World of God, The Alimighty.
Jumat
Its a prettty straight forward answer
Let those who wish to pray, pray over their meal
Let those who wish not.. not
It doesnt have to be something ALL must or ALL must not do
To say ALL MUST is where religious wars were started.
http://www.personaluniversitychecks.com/U.S-Naval-Academy.htm
The prayer is not being imposed on you. It is completely optional and hence completely legal. Hey this imposing your beliefs is a two way steet you know. To ask that a 160 year old tradition be thrown away is to impose YOUR beliefs on every one else! If you succeed in getting rid of this prayer, the US Naval academy will have to ignore the legality of this prayer. Should the Naval Academy send out the message that it is OK to ignore legalities? I think not. The ACLU needs to back off on this one as they don't have a legalleg to stand on.
Email adress won't be made public; I don't think so! What about all the junk I get when I send my email to someone? It happens every day.
Say something on your website if you want to get hold of me. On second thought, I will not hide from this garbage; grangerbud@comcast.net.
Now to the point at hand. The ACLU and ADL are absolutely wrong and wasting time on something that is a tradition and accepted by the vast majority of those of us who are graduates of the Naval Academy (Class of 70) by the way. We accepted it as we learned to follow orders because in battle you follow orders or people die. If they don't follow discipline by hearing some simple words of comfort, will they follow the orders of their commanders in battle?
Someone who is opposed to a simple statement of faith by whatever faith before a meal and who said groups at tables should hold their own prayers simply and quickly (I paraphrase). Well, they are at the tables before meals as well and so they are still exposed to a prayer of thanksgiving for their good fortune.
My father was basically agnostic and he served in WWII. He did believer however, that something or someone had to have made all of this we enjoy and had to fight for. He said those who had faith fought just as bravely as those who didn't. Those who didn't have faith certainly wanted a chaplain or rabbi or Islamic officer to hold their hands when they were dying on a stretcher or in a hospital.
My roommate from the Naval Academy is a devout Baptist from the South.
He never pressed it on anybody, we just discussed faith as we would politics we made our minds up about it. We were roommates for all four years (which is a rarity) albeit strangers when we met. He is still one of my best friends and we are brothers.
I went to church all my young life and I believe in a true creator, but before I met my roommate, my father was taken from my family when I was very young and my beliefs took a hit.
My roommate helped me come to grips with it and as we like to say together, "he taught me to pray (the right way) and I taught him how to drink"!; responsibly I might add.
Find something good to do ACLU, there are so many other things good you can do I hope. Why does it say "In God We Trust" on our currency; I suppose you will go after that too.
And, as we say at USNA, "BEAT ARMY". I suppose you find a way for us to stop that too!
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