Onward, Christian soldiers

This recent op-ed from a Maine newspaper highlights an effort by a Republican Congressman to insert some old time religion in a pending defense bill. In short, it allows military chaplains to say prayers at official gatherings. Specifically, prayers exclusive to their own sect. I can't even imagine the firestorm that would erupt if a Muslim chaplain said a prayer to Allah in front of a few batallions, but the fundamentalists are eager to give Christians that right.

The National Defense Authorization Act of 2007, which is being considered now by Congress, appropriates the money this country uses to pay for the operations of the U.S. military -- the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. The bill has hundreds of provisions in it, including ones to pay soldiers, to expand service academy exchange programs with foreign military academies and to buy helicopters. The bill is a virtual laundry list of what it takes to run our national defense. (. . .)

But the defense bill is being held up by a number of disagreements between the House and the Senate. Among them is a particularly inappropriate provision, inserted into the House version of the bill by Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif. -- head of the House Armed Forces Committee -- that would break with tradition and allow military chaplains to say sectarian prayers at official gatherings.

Ever mindful of the voting power of religious conservatives, Hunter and his Republican colleagues who support the measure say that chaplains leading services at mandatory events should be able to offer prayers that use the language and philosophy of their respective religious traditions -- referring to "Christ," for example, rather than simply to "God."

The measure has been championed by evangelical Christian groups such as Focus on the Family. "Chaplains take their orders on prayer from a much higher authority than their commanding officer," said one minister.

There is some Republican opposition to the provision, which is a sleazy and sneaky attempt to tack a 'culture war' salvo onto a bill that keeps the government running. So there are two problems here-- not only of promoting specific religions in the armed forces, but of the willingness to highjack the legislature to do it.