Wednesday Afternoon, February 22, 2023 |
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JEWISH TELEGRAPHIC AGENCY (JTA)
& THE WASHINGTON TIMES COVER
MRFF'S VICTORY IN GETTING USMMA TO
MOVE GIANT JESUS PAINTING TO CHAPEL
Last month, MRFF, on behalf of seventeen alumni, staff, faculty, and midshipmen at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), a group that has now grown to twenty-six, had a swift victory, with the Academy’s superintendent, Vice Admiral Joanna M. Nunan, making the decision to cover an enormous painting of Jesus in the Academy’s administrative building with curtains, a solution that, although not optimal, MRFF and its clients were satisfied with.
But after five Christian nationalist MAGA congressmen decided they wanted the colossal Christian canvas to be uncovered and left uncovered at all times, with four of them writing to Vice Admiral Nunan and a fifth to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and MRFF's rebuttal of the congressmen's legal arguments the Academy announced that the massive Jesus painting will be moved to the chapel, as MRFF originally demanded.
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Photo credit: U.S. Coast Guard (The appearance of U.S. Department of
Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement.)
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JEWISH TELEGRAPHIC AGENCY (JTA)
COVERS MRFF
Large painting of Jesus at Merchant Marine Academy will be uncovered and moved to a chapel
By: Ron Kampeas
Wednesday, February 22, 2023
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JTA covers MRFF’s victory in getting the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy to move the massive Christian painting “Jesus on the Water” from its administrative building to its chapel, the action that MRFF demanded in January, which, as the article says, “concludes a dispute over the painting’s fate that pitted religious freedom advocates against conservatives.”
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THE WASHINGTON TIMES
COVERS MRFF
One of the Top 5 "Most Popular" stories
on The Washington Times
Merchant Marine Academy bows to pressure,
will move ‘Christ on the Water’ painting
By: Mark A. Kellner
Monday, February 20, 2023
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The Washington Times covers MRFF’s advocacy and success on behalf of a group of U.S. Merchant Marine Academy midshipmen, faculty, staff, and alumni in getting a massive painting of Jesus moved from the Academy’s administrative building, in room where students of various faiths might be seated for disciplinary hearings, to the Academy’s chapel, as was first demanded by MRFF in January.
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Statement from the
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
(emphasis added)
Friday, February 17, 2023
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UPDATED: Statement on Painting Entitled “Christ on the Water” at the United States Merchant Marine Academy – February 17, 2023
In early January, the Academy received a complaint about a painting located in the Astronaut Elliot M. See Room. The Room is in the Academy’s main administration building—Wiley Hall. The painting, titled “Christ on the Water,” depicts an image of Jesus appearing before merchant mariners adrift in a lifeboat. From 1942 to 1961, the Elliot See Room served as the Academy’s interfaith chapel. Since then until February 2023, the Room was used by administrators, faculty, staff, and midshipmen for meetings and events. The Elliot See Room was also used as a venue for proceedings held to determine whether a midshipman had violated the Academy’s Honor Code.
The complaint suggested that the painting sends an improper message of preferred faith in violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the Constitution. The Academy evaluated this complaint. In balancing our responsibility to foster a community of mutual respect and adhere to the law, we have decided to discontinue use of the Elliot See Room for official business. The Room will remain available to members of our community who wish to view the painting. Finally, we will engage a vendor to clean and restore the painting and eventually display it at the Academy’s Chapel.
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THE CHRISTIAN POST
COVERS MRFF
House Republicans demand uncovering of
Jesus painting at Merchant Marine Academy
By: Ian M. Giatti
Saturday, February 18, 2023
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The Christian Post covers the letters written by five GOP congressmen, four to Vice Admiral Nunan and the fifth to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, demanding that the massive Jesus painting be uncovered and left uncovered at all times. The article, which was published a day after USMMA had already announced that the painting would be moved to the chapel, quotes MRFF Senior Research Director Chris Rodda’s rebuttal of the congressmen’s legal arguments.
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Background on MRFF's victory in getting giant
Jesus painting at USMMA moved to the chapel
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MRFF referenced in new book
from the University of Chicago Press:
Astrotopia: The Dangerous Religion
of the Corporate Space Race
By Mary-Jane Rubenstein
Professor of Religion and Science in Society
at Wesleyan University
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"Both the Military Religious Freedom Foundation and the Anti-Defamation League filed formal complaints over this specifically Christian blessing of an allegedly secular project ..."
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Email from a long-time MRFF supporter and donor highly recommending the book |
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From: (Long-time MRFF supporter and donor’s name withheld)
Subject: MRFF referenced in newly published book
Date: February 22, 2023 at 9:44:51 AM MST
Mikey,
I wish to bring to your attention a newly published book that I find not only timely, but also very relevant to the ongoing mission and activities of the MRFF: ASTROTOPIA, The Dangerous Religion of the Corporate Space Race by Mary-Jane Rubenstein.
Rubenstein writes, “… the outer space of today is a place of utopian dreams, salvation dramas, savior complexes, apocalyptic imaginings, gods, goddesses, heroes, and villains … As much as ever, there’s something weirdly religious about space”. She continues, “…the escalating effort to colonize the cosmos … isn’t just rehashing mythological themes; its rehashing [imperial] Christian themes”.
Notably the author directly references MRFF’s alert actions as an explicit validation of her premise; she mentions the 2020 formal complaint over a specifically Christian blessing given at the very onset of a “new branch” of our military – the Space Force.
Simply put, this very acknowledgement highlights the value of your vigilance over toxic religious extremism [Christian fundamentalism] not only in today’s military, but from now creeping into our new push toward “the final frontier”.
I recommend this game changing book regarding the new space race to you, your members and donors.
Best,
(name withheld)
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MRFF RECOMMENDED READING
FROM POLITICO
What It Looks Like When the Far Right
Takes Control of Local Government
By: David Siders
Tuesday, February 21, 2023
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This revealing piece from Politico lays out what happened in one Michigan county when its previously-moderate Republican governing board was overthrown by Christian nationalists who “pledged to ‘recognize our nation’s Judeo-Christian heritage and celebrate America as an exceptional nation blessed by God.’” As the article says, “It’s still government. But its meetings can look a lot more like a cross between MAGA rally warm-up acts and a Christian revival.” Of particular note are the words used by the sole moderate Republican who wasn’t ousted (emphasis added) — “They have chosen to weaponize Christianity” — a phrase that has been used by MRFF’s Mikey Weinstein for many years.
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