A Naval Blockade on God’s Word

By: American Decency Staff

From our nation’s first president and commander-in-chief who stated, “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and Bible,” until just recently, our military has long held the Christian faith in high regard. 

On the U.S. Navy’s own website is the Navy’s official hymn, “Eternal Father, Strong to Save.”  This hymn – in essence a prayer – is still sung at the U.S. Naval Academy.  Here are the lyrics to verse one:

Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!

Now the U.S. Navy, who seeks God to bind the restless wave, is seeking to bind God’s Word.

First, the U.S. Navy sought to ban Bibles at Walter Reed Military Medical Center in 2011 (a policy which has since been rescinded after much public outcry.)  Now, as our friends at AFA have reported, the U.S. Navy is banning Bibles placed by the Gideons in hotels and lodges on U.S. Naval bases.

As AFA reports: 

The U.S. Navy has instructed housekeepers to remove Gideon-placed Bibles from every hotel room on its military bases after it received a letter from the atheist group Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF).

"We were told today, June 23, 2014, that due to a new policy by the CEO of NEXCOM, Rear Admiral Robert J. Bianchi, we were to remove the Bibles from the rooms," a housekeeper told AFA in an email. "They told us to put them in boxes, where they would be taken to a donation center somewhere."

NEXCOM (Navy Exchange Service Command) issued the directive to bases offering hotel accommodations, ordering them to impound Bibles from 34 Navy Lodge locations and 24,000 Navy Gateway Inns & Suites guest rooms on Navy bases worldwide.

The directive orders lodge managers to contact base commanders and Chaplains and facilitate removing the Bibles and other "religious material currently in the guest rooms."

The Air Force tried unsuccessfully to remove Bibles from its lodgings in 2012, but after public outcry, the Air Force reversed itself.

An email to a Navy chaplain from The Navy Exchange Service Command (NEXCOM) stated in part:   “The current direction is to remove all religious material from Navy Lodge guest rooms.   For those Navy Lodges with religious materials currently in guest rooms, the Navy Lodge General Manager will contact the Installation Chaplain's office who will provide guidance on the removal procedure disposition of these materials.”

The atheist organization, “Freedom From Religion Foundation,” is gleefully rejoicing at their seemingly successful effort to get the world’s mightiest navy to kowtow to their demands. 

And this is not the first time our military, under the leadership of our current president and commander-in-chief, has followed the directives of this atheist group. 

As Ron Crews, executive director of the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty, stated:  “This is just one more assault by military leaders against anything Christian.  It's getting tiresome to see senior military leaders cave in to those who appear to be offended by Christians, by Christian symbols and now by the Bible itself.”

Will we Christians also kowtow to the atheist “Freedom From Religion Foundation” or will we speak out in defense of God’s Word and a long-standing tradition of welcoming the placement of Gideon Bibles within our military and lodging facilities?

Use the links below to take a stand!

Urge Rear Admiral Robert. J. Bianchi, to reverse this outrageous decision and return the Gideon Bibles to naval base hotel rooms.  (See below for contact information.)

Also, as AFA reports, Michael Brockelman, Vice-President of the Navy Exchange Service Command (NEXCOM), is the one who actually approved the directive to remove the Bibles – he also needs to hear from you!

Take Action!  Click here to send a message to the office of Rear Admiral Robert. J. Bianchi, CEO of the Navy Exchange Service Command.  Or call Admiral Bianchi at 1-757-631-3600. 

Click here to send a message to Michael Brockelman, VP of the Navy Exchange Service Command. Or call Mr. Brockelman at 1-757-502-7496. 

We also encourage you to share this article with your friends and family via Facebook and email, asking them to join with you and let your voices be heard!

You can also express your concern on the Navy Lodge Facebook and Twitter pages.                                 

 

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