Chaplains Told to Choose Army over God
- Amanda Casanova ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor
- Updated Jan 17, 2017
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Sue Fulton, who was a member of the first co-ed class at West Point and served in the Army, has been fighting for civil rights in the military for years. She says the military is strongerwhen those who were previously kept from serving are allowed to serve.
“If you want a stronger force, it should be the most flexible, the most advanced, the most forward-thinking,” she told The New York Times. “During the fight to repeal (Don’t ask, don’t tell), there were some people in the L.G.B.T. community who were trying to make a case on the grounds of equal rights, but the strongest case to repeal D.A.D.T. is, frankly, that it was bad for the military. It’s bad for the military to kick good people out.”
Fulton, 58, was a founding member of OutServe, an advocacy group for LGBT soldiers.
“When you open the doors to include everyone who is qualified to do a job, you’re making your organization stronger,” she said.
Fulton also said that the military has a position that some of their military chaplains will not “talk” to a gay or transgender soldier until that soldier confesses and “turns straight.”
“What people fail to understand is that chaplains give up some of their rights as ministers when they become military chaplains, just as soldiers give up some of their free speech to defend free speech,” she said, adding that, “if your responsibility is to God and not the Army, you need to get out of the Army.”
This policy that chaplains are not free to discuss their religious views, and particularly those relating to the LGBT community has some Christians concerned.
Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com
Publication date: January 17, 2017