Wednesday Evening, August 3, 2022
MRFF Reaches Just Over 80,000 Client Milestone
MRFF's DEMAND, ON BEHALF OF 16 CLIENTS,
SWIFTLY ENDS HYPER-SECTARIAN
RELIGIOUS PROSELYTIZING
AT MANDATORY MILITARY FORMATION

MRFF was contacted by 16 active duty military members for assistance in responding to the ongoing blatant sectarian religious proselytizing by their first-line military commander and his wife at “Christmas in July/August Parties”. After repeated failed attempts to address this issue via established official EO (Equal Opportunity) complaint procedures, these 16 MRFF clients made up of 10 Christians along with Jewish, Muslim and those of non-faith contacted MRFF with a long list of Christian proselytizing violations that occurred at these Christmas “parties”. 

Excerpt from MRFF Client's Email Below:

"Mikey called our commander’s boss’ boss at the number we provided him and all of the sudden the “Christmas in August” event at our (unit's name withheld) Commander’s
home was cancelled within 48 hours."

(The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual
information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement. Photo for illustrative purposes only)
Email from one of the 16 active duty military member MRFF clients describing their commander’s ongoing actions as well as the rapid corrective response achieved after MRFF’s involvement in the matter:

Tuesday, August 2, 2022
From: (Active Duty Military/MRFF Client’s E-mail Address Withheld)
Subject: "Christmas in August" mandatory event stopped by the MRFF
Date: August 2, 2022 at 3:59:45 PM MDT
To: Information Weinstein <[email protected]>

The 16 military members who the MRFF represented here at (military installation name withheld) want to thank our (military installation name withheld) MRFF Rep and Mikey Weinstein for stopping what was to be a mandatory military formation later this month at our (unit’s name withheld) Commander’s private on-installation residence for what he called a “Christmas in August” celebration. 

In the past few years (name and rank of unit commander withheld) who is our first-line military commander and his wife put on lavish "Christmas in July" parties at his home. The whole unit was “invited” but if you didn’t go you were immediately placed on his shit-list forever. These “Christmas in July" parties were far less “party” and far more Christian indoctrination services.
They including active duty (military branch name withheld) chaplains leading worship and the singing of solemn Christmas songs and carols. There were also “altar calls” at every “Christmas in July” event and if you don’t know what they are google it. Children were provided kid-focused bible study books and pamphlets and the active duty subordinates to our commander got an earful of his partisan Christian worldview and his adoring love of Donald Trump and all things MAGA.

This year we all thought we’d dodged the bullet when our commander went on leave with his wife and many children for most of July and no “invitation" had been sent. But we were wrong as he decided to just do the same f….ed up thing in August. This year as in past years he made it clear that the monthly unit status and standardization briefing would only occur at his “Christmas in August” party. Those briefings are totally mandatory and are always otherwise scheduled for the first working duty day Monday of each month.

We could give a long list of the Christian proselytizing violations that occurred at these Christmas “parties” but it would be too long for this e-mail. We actually did give such an itemized list to Mikey Weinstein and our installation MRFF Rep.

Mikey called our commander’s boss’ boss at the number we provided him and all of the sudden the “Christmas in August” event at our (unit's name withheld) Commander’s home was cancelled within 48 hours. We don’t know what Mikey said but whatever he said it worked pretty much immediately.

We also don’t yet know how or even if our commander will take revenge for us going outside of the (military branch name withheld) to the MRFF for help. In the past we had even tried official EO complaints but nothing ever came of them. So there was nowhere else to go but to the MRFF and the MRFF came through!

So anyone reading this knows the score of the 16 active duty (military branch name withheld) service personnel signing this e-mail of thanks to the MRFF 10 of us are Christians and the rest are Jewish, Muslim and non-faith agnostics and the like. 

(names, ranks, position titles, assigned unit and installation all withheld)
MRFF Background on Previous
Christmas in July Event
NEW BOOK BY STEADFAST MRFF ALLY
STEVEN L. DUNDAS

Published by Potomac Books
Imprint of University of Nebraska Press
About the author: Steven L. Dundas
Steve Dundas in a cowboy hat holding a book in front of a statue of a man.
Steven L. Dundas has served thirty-nine years in the U.S. Army and Navy. He is a former assistant professor at the Joint Forces Staff College, National Defense University, and a retired chaplain with the U.S. Navy. For decades Dundas has been researching and writing on history, the impact of religion on society, international affairs, military operations, and ethics.
Editorial Reviews:

“A richly documented history of the ideology of racism that manifested itself in slavery, the Confederacy, the overthrow of Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and the myth of the Lost Cause that glorified the Old South and the Confederacy.”
—James M. McPherson, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era 


“Steven L. Dundas brings us a powerful history, not only of slavery but, and even more important, of the consequences of untruths and how twisted religious beliefs shaped America. All educators should read it and ensure that its message is delivered to their students.”
—Joseph J. Levin Jr., cofounder and emeritus board member of the Southern Poverty Law Center


“Steven L. Dundas has written the definitive account of America’s onerous history with African Americans. A must-read to fully understand, teach, or discuss the institutions of slavery, racism, and religion and their current impacts. Every school library should have a copy.”
—Lloyd V. Hackley, president and CEO of Hackley and Associates and former president of the North Carolina Community College system
 

Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory is a book for our time. Steven L. Dundas has skillfully woven slavery, race, racism, politics, and religion into a single entity in telling this country’s complex story. Every American would profit from reading what he is telling us.”
—Charles B. Dew, author of Apostles of Disunion: Southern Secession Commissioners and the Causes of the Civil War
 

“With no sugar coating of America’s history of slavery and racism, Steve Dundas adds to the story of the religious ideology used to justify slavery, not as a side note but as the significant factor that it was. A very timely read as we face the growing threat of today’s Christian nationalists and white supremacists.”
—Chris Rodda, author of Liars for Jesus, The Religious Right’s Alternate Version of American History, volumes 1 and 2
 

“American slavery’s ghosts and the Civil War haunt this sweeping interpretation of how a toxic blend of white supremacy and tribal religion still shape American society. In this historical account Steve Dundas analyzes its significance for our current social and political divisions making it an especially timely study.”
—Charles Reagan Wilson, author of Baptized in Blood, the Religion of the Lost Cause: 1865–1920


“Steve Dundas’s electrifying new take on the American Civil War and its continuing presence in politics, race relations, and corrosive mythology is visceral and pulls no punches. It shows military and other readers that racism is a national security issue.”
—Margaret Sankey, author of Blood Money: How Criminals, Militias, Rebels, and Warlords Finance Violence


“Steve Dundas weaves the story of slavery into the larger fabric of America. Military and social historians will welcome how he peels back the layers of some of the most overlooked and critical aspects of our collective history as never before.”
—Kristopher D. White, chief historian of EmergingCivilWar.com
 

“Steven Dundas has written a powerful call for Americans to reexamine their too-often mythologized Civil War, Reconstruction, and their ongoing impact on American life. Dundas has infused his work with a strong moral and ethical clarity that is rarely seen.”
—Ricardo A. Herrera, author of For Liberty and the Republic: The American Citizen as Soldier, 1775–1861


“In this concise, personal account, Steve Dundas examines religion and ideology in the Civil War era until now. Taking a broad view, Dundas analyzes the religious fervor and sermonizing in relations to slavery’s beginnings and expansion, the role of the Constitution, and the painful legacies of the Civil War, Jim Crow, and the Lost Cause from then to today.”
—LeeAnna Keith, author of The Colfax Massacre: The Untold Story of Black Power, White Terror, and the Death of Reconstruction


“Steven Dundas offers us a fast-moving introduction to the links between Christianity and slavery in early America. If you are interested in learning more about the roots of racial strife in America, Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory is a good place to start.”
—John Fea, author of Believe Me: The Evangelical Road to Donald Trump


“Steve Dundas’s Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory is a lively and wide-ranging account of religion and the politics of race in the South. His expert handling of religion and religious ideology is compelling and especially powerful on the origins and lasting power of the Lost Cause. The book’s innovative style will appeal to college students and all students of history.”
—John Patrick Daly, author of When Slavery was Called Freedom: Evangelism, Proslavery, and the Causes of the Civil Wars
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