Yes, Virginia, there are atheists in foxholes...but some of their commanders would rather not admit it.
Rock the Fort (Ft. Bragg) 2010, put on by the
Billy Graham Evangelist Association, was hosted by Ft. Bragg despite complaints that such an event constituted endorsement of religion on the part of the federal government. Even excluding a
Golden Knights skydiving presentation at the event it looked like the post spent $50-100K on the event. No problem, said Lieutenant General Frank G. Helmick, other groups were welcome to host an event of similar magnitude and enjoy a
similar level of support from the DoD, the Army, and Fort Bragg.
Rock Beyond Belief was born.
Preparations were made. Speakers - such as
Richard Dawkins and
Dan Barker - were lined up. Musicians were booked. Rock Beyond Belief was going to offer a free "day of fun and entertainment for the rest of us" on April 2, 2011. Then Garrison Commander, Colonel Stephen J.
Sicinski, seems to have changed his mind, unilaterally downsizing the event, imposing limitations not asked of Rock the Fort, effectively reneging on the on the deal.
This is yet another example of the
ongoing religious struggle in the military. A conservative evangelical Christianity seems to be the preferred -
if not government endorsed - faith in the
service academies, in the
Pentagon, in
garrison, and in the
field. This despite the fact that personnel who describe their religious convictions as "Atheist" or "No Religious Preference" comprise 21% of all service members. Evangelicals claim 35% and Catholics 22% of our military population.
The fight to defend the religious freedom of the brave men and women who have sworn their lives and sacred honor to defend the
Constitution of the United States of America continues...
CORRECTION: Details on
Rock the Fort can still be found on the
Billy Graham Festivals website. Once active links to
Rock the Fort at the
BGEA are dead and the
search function there returns no hits for Rock the Fort (Ft. Bragg) 2010. This correction was sent to me by the
FRFF.
Also, in the interest of avoiding an echo chamber here at the Breakfast, you can read dissenting views on this issue at
God and Country blog.
UPDATE: According to the
Fayobserver the official story from Ft. Bragg is that the $54,000 came from "an account known as the Chaplain Tithes and Offering Fund. It's tithe money given by churchgoers on post, not taxpayer money." Sicinski said, "We didn't give any money to Rock the Fort. No appropriated dollars and no federal nonappropriated dollars went toward supporting that event. Now, we provided security, we provided the location. And that is exactly what we are willing to do for Rock Beyond Belief." Interesting twist...let's see where it leads.
There's a heated exchange in the comments section below the
Fayobserver article.
REUPDATE: The documentation package -
complete with "post-requisites" - has been resubmitted to the authorities at Fort Bragg. Your move, Uncle Sam...
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