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Page: Profile: Wren's Nest News Local
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Article: 19582
[Religious]
Date Posted:
4/15/2008
10:47:18 am EDT
Wvox Stats
Views: 6,359
RSS: 20,520
Comments: 6
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Madison Group Trying To Drip Chaplains Out Of VA Hospitals
Author: Gil Halsted, Wisconsin Public Radio Source: New Richmond News (WI)
Title: MADISON GROUP TRYING TO DRIP CHAPLAINS OUT OF VA HOSPITALS
Madison’s Freedom from Religion Foundation wants to end what it calls proselytizing at Veterans Administration hospitals.
Last week, a Madison VA patient called the foundation to complain that a Christian book store put up sales displays in the hospital’s lobby and auditorium.
A quick call to administrators confirmed the vendors were breaking the rules against religious activities on government property.
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Community Thoughts: There are 6 comments posted | Reverse Sort |
| The Headline Is WRONG | Apr 15th. at 10:46:44 pm EDT
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Greenman (Columbus, Indiana) - Email Me - Web
No one is pushing chaplains out. It's a christian bookstore that is selling in the VA lobby against the rules.
For a fuller account, check out the other link I've provided for the Freedom From Religion website.
blessed be,
Cernowain Greenman
Find More info -- HERE
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| The Enemy Of My Enemy | Apr 15th. at 10:28:34 pm EDT
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David Eagan (Cleveland, Wisconsin) - Email Me
I just want to point out that the Freedom From Religion Foundation is not our ally. They are essentially atheists that proselytize, ,and are against all religion.
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| It's Simple | Apr 15th. at 4:51:35 pm EDT
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Mordechai (Edmond, Oklahoma) - Email Me
All or none. I would prefer the all over the none but anything that follows 1st amendment rights is fine with me.
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| Torn Asunder | Apr 15th. at 4:18:18 pm EDT
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KyJenn (Robins AFB, Georgia) - Email Me - Web
...I'm kind of Torn on how i feel about this. Being in the military I’m subject to more Christian prayers and blessings than some in the civilian life. When I was in Iraq, we had a group prayer before leaving the "wire" or the safety of our compound for missions. Most ceremonies have prayers said during the start of them…yes, Christian oriented. Knowing that the majority of the folks there were Christian, I never complained and honestly, didn’t bother me since I said my own anyway. Our spiritual advisors or Chaplains are mostly of the Christain faith. Our places of worship on base provided by the government are predominantly Christian...ie. books, pamphlets, area's of worship decorum. I suppose you could say since I have been in the military for so long I have been "programmed" that this is the way things are.
But I would have to say no to that. You see, I came to Paganism from the Church of Christ. I left the Church questioning it's validity and spirituality. I'm a Soldier that practices the same questioning ethics with his orders. I will still follow them but I want to know...understand...why they are given. This has gotten me into trouble more than a few times.
When it comes to the military and it's Chaplancy dealing with active and vocal Pagans in the military, there is normally accommodations made for us. Granted, on occasion there may be some bumps in the road and a 'not so welcome' feeling, but those accommodations are made.
As a Military person, I see our VA hospitals as places for healing. Not just for the body but of the mind and spirit as well. They offer non religious counsellors and psychiatrists as well as access to Chaplains for the non-body healing that may be needed.
The article is about selling of Christian books within these places. Do I agree with the banning...personally i don't care. I'm secure with my religion enough to understand that the selling of Christian books in a VA hospital is not going to endanger me, but I’m not going to say it should be there either. Automatically people want to ban such things...and I understand the reason why.
It concerns me that folks don't ask if other religious book vendors are allowed to do the same thing. It bothers me that sometimes this idea of separation of church and state is taken to far. It bothers me that other religions have not thought to provide such media...whether it be free or sell. When i see such, i do offer to print out some of the MilPagan Pamphlets for the Chaplain, whether they be in a VA Hospital, base/post someplace or a FOB in BFE.
In some VA Hospitals they do have a chaplain office and the majority of the religious paraphernalia is Christian oriented. It's rare to find any kind of media there of any non Abrahamic tradition. With that said, my worry is that the next step would be the chaplancy itself. I don't want to see this spiritual advisor taken away. By Regulation they are there for all Faiths...even those of no Faiths. They provide a service that in my mind is just as important as the Doctor or counsellor. I don't want this service taken away.
It makes me sad that when such things are brought to light, the first thing people want to do is to get rid of it. Where does this stop? Where is the line drawn? ..and most importantly, why can't we find another way of dealing with it?
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| Stumbled On Larger Problem | Apr 15th. at 1:49:04 pm EDT
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Terry (Irvington, Virginia) - Email Me
It sounds from the article as if FFRF stumbled onto a large scale problem with willful neglect to enforce rules for VA sites, by corrupt staff and admins acting in concert with a con artist fraud of a so-called christian business.
Maybe AU, PFAW, and area ACLU could join forces and survey all VA hospitals for similar problems, and then push for a practical remedy to discourage future violations?
Such a remedy might include a fine of treble gross sales from each perpetrator faux-xtian predator business (payable to what cause, eg pagan and Eastern religion and atheism books for the hospital library, or just VA medical operations?) . It might also include a 10 or 30 day unpaid leave of absense and negative personnel file record for each staff person acting to approve these illegal operations, or responsible for preventing them and failing to do so. There needs to be a personal and direct cost to corrupt government officials for others to not consider themselves above the law.
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