The “cancel culture” has struck again, this time in the Marine Corps, with the cancellation of a training session for reservists because of the instructor’s Christian faith.
Air Force veteran Jay Lorenzen was scheduled to lead a U.S. Marine Corps Judge Advocate General training session on July 17 before a complaint by the non-profit Military Religious Freedom Foundation, or MRFF, prompted Marine brass to cancel him.
MRFF’s complaint centered on a completely separate course Lorenzen taught in his free time, a course for the Christian group Cru, formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ, called “The Gospel Courageous and the Gospel Corrective Leader.”
In Lorenzen’s defense, the non-profit First Liberty Institute contended the content of his presentation to the reservists “did not contain any explicit religious instructions.”
“In the MRFF’s twisted, mythical version of the Constitution, Lorenzen’s content is unsuitable to help Marines get fit for battle, all because he gives religious instruction and helps others grow in their spiritual lives on his own time as a free citizen,” First Liberty said.
MRFF called Lorenzen’s part in the JAG session a “vicious” violation of the Constitution.
First Liberty called the cancellation “outright religious bigotry and hostility.”
“Not only is this attack outrageous, it also runs contrary to the Constitution, Supreme Court precedent and military policy, all of which clearly state that you cannot discriminate against someone because of their religious beliefs,” the group said.
“Americans expect those who serve in the military to prepare for battle, not cater to the ‘cancel culture’ – and the USMC shouldn’t be put in the position of having to cave into the ludicrous complaints of a radical, outside group like the MRFF.”
In June, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, sent a letter to Defense Department Secretary Mark Esper urging the department to protect the religious liberties of service members.
He pointed out that MRFF has demanded removal of videos posted by chaplains asking for prayer in response to the COVID-19 crisis. An Army chaplain’s message of hope on social media was removed, and another chaplain who recommended a book to colleagues was under investigation. In Germany, MRFF forced a U.S. military chaplain to stop preaching from the balcony of his apartment.
First Liberty said that what’s “most revealing (if not ironic) is that this war on faith and religious freedom is being waged against our military service members, the heroes who put their lives on the line to preserve the very freedoms we all enjoy under the Constitution.”
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