Monday Afternoon, February 20, 2023 |
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IN ACCORDANCE WITH MRFF'S DEMAND
U.S. MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY'S
GIANT JESUS PAINTING WILL BE
MOVED TO ACADEMY'S CHAPEL!
Last month, MRFF, on behalf of seventeen alumni, staff, faculty,
and midshipmen at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, 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 administration building with curtains, a solution that, although not optimal, MRFF and its clients were satisfied with.
But now, 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 the fifth to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, and MRFF's rebuttal of the
congressmen's easily rebutted legal arguments ...
... the Academy has 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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MRFF OP-ED
ON DAILY KOS
#2 Trending story on Daily Kos
FOR THE WIN!!! Merchant Marine Academy
is moving giant Jesus to the chapel!
By: MRFF Senior Research Director Chris Rodda
Monday, February 20, 2023
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For those who have been following the story of the ginormous — and ginormously unconstitutional — painting of Jesus in the administrative building at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), and the Military Religious Freedom Foundation’s (MRFF) demand to the Academy to correct this display of Christian preferentialism, nothing more is needed than the statement below, issued by the USMMA on Friday.
For those who haven’t been following the story, back in January, MRFF, acting on behalf of seventeen USMMA midshipmen, staff, faculty, and alumni (a group that has grown to twenty-six), sent an email to USMMA’s superintendent, Vice Admiral Joanna M. Nunan, demanding that the paining be moved to the Academy’s chapel. Vice Admiral Nunan, citing the massive size of the painting as the reason it couldn’t be moved elsewhere, responded with an alternate solution — to cover the painting with curtains (which was immediately done) that would hide the painting during official Academy events but could be opened for those who wanted to view it. MRFF and its USMMA clients were satisfied with this solution, as I wrote in my January 11 post U.S. Merchant Marine Academy to cover ginormous Jesus painting in administrative building.
But then five MAGA congressmen stuck their Christian nationalist noses into the matter, four of them writing to Vice Admiral Nunan on February 9, telling her to “Immediately return the painting to the way it was displayed” and to “Cease all effort to remove or limit displaying of the painting,” and a fifth writing to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg (USMMA comes under the Department of Transportation) on February 13, telling him to “act immediately to correct” the covering of the painting. In response to these MAGA congressmen’s easily rebutted legal arguments, I rebutted their legal arguments — easily — in my February 15 post Five MAGA congressmen on a crusade to get Merchant Marine Academy ginormous Jesus painting uncovered.
Two days later, USMMA issued the following updated statement (emphasis added) on the painting, which ends by saying that giant Jesus will be moved to the chapel, as MRFF had demanded in the first place!
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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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Background on MRFF's victory in getting giant
Jesus painting at USMMA moved to the chapel
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Email from MRFF USMMA alumnus client "bowled over" by the news that the giant Jesus painting
will be moved to the Academy's chapel
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From: Ailan Chubb
Subject: Merchant Marine Academy Now Standing Up and // Leading //
Date: February 20, 2023 at 10:25:59 AM MST
Dear MRFF,
I am bowled over.
To me the Academy is now demonstrating a deep commitment to unit cohesion to its midshipmen, faculty and staff. I believe the midshipmen will learn a great deal from this and be better leaders as a result. The Academy, MARAD and DOT will be in compliance with the law and in no uncertain terms. All who wish to enjoy the painting will be able to do so at their leisure by visiting the chapel on the USMMA grounds.
I still have some concerns. For example recently the dailykos.com site wrote about the USMMA Director-Officer of Leadership and Ethics. Reports are that this officer objected to covering the painting. At a formal meeting it appears the officer told the senior midshipmen they too should object. The only reason I can see for this officer to reject a religious-neutral workplace is if he does in fact want to force his belief system (his idea of his religion) on others. If this report is correct, to me it seems like this officer has done all he can to undermine the efficiency and effectiveness of the government agency for whom he works. If this report is correct, I think this officer should be required to undergo training and come up with a plan to start to repair the damage. Or else he should resign.
I remain concerned about further hostility to the Academy's decision-making.
But for today: I toast MRFF's brave work. I toast Vice Admiral Joanna Nunan. The Maritime Administration appears to me to have appointed as the 14th Superintendent a rare, extraordinary person and leader.
Sincerely,
Ailan Chubb
USMMA Class of 1983
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"Religious Freedom?"
On Feb 18, 2023, at 12:12 PM, (name withheld) wrote:
Dear Mikey,
Your Military Religious Freedom Foundation is covered in my news feed.
Your foundation statement, at the top of your web site pages, is scary. You boys claim that there is only one religion in America that is a military religion of political scripture, patriotic symbology and faith.
Your American military religion adds to the global mix. There is no scholarly consensus over what precisely constitutes a religion. There are an estimated 10,000 distinct religions worldwide, though nearly all of them have regionally based, relatively small followings. Four religions—Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism—account for over 77% of the world's population, and 92% of the world either follows one of those four religions or identifies as nonreligious. Religion is usually defined as a social-cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural and spiritual elements.
The themes of your organization imply that anyone who dons a US military uniform should renounce all religious beliefs except for your “patriotic” religion. Conservative and authoritarian philosophy seeks power over people. MRRF seeks power over people. I’m a veteran of 26 years’ service. In my units were people whose religion and beliefs were in the 10,000 variety mix. Our best commands recognized these differences, encouraged understanding, tolerance, and inclusion. An example was our unit's participation in the Gulf Wars that were conducted in dominantly Islamic countries by soldiers, sailors, and airmen of religious-faith variety but who needed to work together for safety and success. We did not need an MRFF ‘patriotic’ religion to bind us together. We built mutual respect.
You boys and girls have a right to speak and write freely about anti-religious matters. In my cynicism, you are on the Putin payroll with a goal to destroy America’s armed forces by causing internal conflict. Wear your Putin-Anti Religion t-shirts proudly.
(name withheld)
To see responses from
MRFF Founder and President Mikey Weinstein,
MRFF Board Member John Compere,
and MRFF Advisory Board Members
Mike Farrell, Marty France, and James T. Currie:
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