Battle of a Different Kind at US Air Force Academy

Russ Jones | Christian Press | Updated: Mar 16, 2014

Battle of a Different Kind at US Air Force Academy

A campus wide rebellion at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs escalated recently when officials removed a Bible verse from a cadet’s dorm room door.

The verse in question reads, “I have been crucified with Christ therefore I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” (Galatians 2:20)

According to The Blaze, 29 cadets and four faculty and staff members found offense with the post and lodged a complaint with the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. The verse was removed when Mikey Weinstein, president of MRFF, contacted academy administrators.

Cadets outraged by the removal of the verse have since posted verses of their own from the Bible and the Koran.

A former evangelical Navy Chaplain who forcibly retired as a Navy chaplain after a 2006 court-martial, but later vindicated by Congress, knows all too well the battle these cadets face. He took a stand to pray "in Jesus’ name" during his service as a chaplain.

“Sadly, the Academy admits violating the cadet's right to freedom of religious expression, simply because the Bible verse offended the anti-Jesus complainer Mikey Weinstein,” Chaplain Gordon James Klingenschmitt, PhD said.

While Weinstein claims the cadets have created a “hostile” environment, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council disagrees.

“Since when is the standard of what's constitutional based on what offends someone else,” Perkins asked. “If Scripture frightens these cadets, what will they do in the face of a determined jihadist? It's decisions like these that are creating cowards in place of the proud warriors of the U.S. military.”

The American Family Association has also joined a growing list of those questioning a breach of religious liberties.

AFA is encouraging Americans to voice their concern and urge Air Force Academy Commandant Brig. Gen. Gregory Lengyel to reverse, what it believes, to be a violation of religious freedom and allow cadets to express their faith.

Publication Date: March 13, 2014.



Battle of a Different Kind at US Air Force Academy