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From: (Active Duty U.S. Marine's/MRFF Client’s e-mail address withheld)
Subject: Mandatory Battalion Event (Camp Pendleton, CA) where Col Sought to Bring People to Jesus and Have Them Saved and Healed
Date: December 12, 2023 at 10:59:49 AM MST
To: mikey@militaryreligiousfreedom.org
Good morning Mikey,
As requested:
(List of chain of command contacts, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers redacted)
I am reaching out to you and your team on behalf of myself and forty-one other federal employees including both Marines and USMC civilian employees. Thirty-two of us are Christians. The remaining Marines and civilians are from other faith and non-faith traditions including: Native Americans, Humanists, Jewish, Agnostics, Muslims, Atheists, and Secular beliefs.
Because of the history of the Military Religious Freedom Association defending our Constitution from religious zealots and Christian nationalists who seek to establish a state religion in the United States. I ask for help in bringing Colonel Laux's actions to light so he or others do not repeat them in the future.
Please redact any information that would identify any of us from any communication for the obvious reasons of avoiding retaliation and reprisal.
Here is what happened, Mikey:
On Friday, the 8th of December, at Wounded Warrior Battalion-West (BN), on board Camp Pendleton, California, there was a mandatory BN event for both civilian employees and Marines celebrating the end of the Warrior Qualifiers in preparation for the Trials coming up at the beginning of 2024. This event was the place of work for everyone in the unit, including civilian employees.
The BN commanding officer, LtCol Mitch Guard, asked Colonel Laux to speak. LtCol Guard introduced the Colonel as a recovering service member who had been diagnosed with brain cancer and would talk about his illness and road to recovery.
Before beginning his speech, Colonel Laux started his remarks by asking those present to join him in prayer while he raised his arm in the air and said a prayer in Jesus' name. With his head bowed, he asked the Lord to heal everyone. He then began talking about how he was diagnosed with brain cancer and healed through his faith in Jesus Christ.
The Colonel continued to talk about Jesus and how having faith in Him would heal people from their illnesses and afflictions.
The Colonel said things such as:
"I know God can heal each one of you."
"Seek a relationship with Jesus. You will be changed."
"You can be healed by faith in Jesus."
"This Marine over here was healed by his faith in Jesus."
"I was healed by Jesus."
He quoted the Bible numerous times from a Bible he had pulled out when he started speaking.
During the middle of his "sermon," he, for the second time, raised his hand and, in prayer, commanded that the "Lord Jesus heal" all those who were present.
At the end of the Colonel's sermon, he again raised his hand in prayer for the third time and commanded all present to be healed in Jesus' name.
Several Marines and civilian staff, myself included, were upset by the Colonel preaching at an event they were forced to attend. I and others did not feel that we could or that if we did so, we wouldn't face reprisal.
When an individual reaches the rank of Colonel, they know that a speech such as the Colonel's in a mandatory battalion function is wrong.
The United States Marine Corps is an institution based on discipline and respect. It is an organization steeped in history and tradition. A high-ranking Marine Corps Colonel should embody these values and serve as a pillar of impartiality and fairness. Colonel Laux did not do so.
Regrettably, he used a mandatory battalion event to preach his religious beliefs. In doing so, he violated the sanctity of the First Amendment, broke government policy, and undermined the essence of the Corps' values and our founding fathers.
The Colonel knew what he was doing was wrong. He knowingly violated the 1st Amendment rights of every person present and didn't care he was doing so. I doubt this was the first time the Colonel has done something like this, and he likely views his mission before he dies as one to share the message of Jesus Christ with everyone he comes in contact with.
The First Amendment guarantees each American citizen the right to freedom of or from religion. This right includes choosing one's belief system and not having others' beliefs imposed upon them. This critical right is enshrined in our Constitution's First Amendment. In the Marine Corps, this principle is crucial due to the diversity of its members. Marines and civilians come from all walks of life, representing many or no beliefs. By virtue of the Colonel's rank, no one felt they could leave or interrupt him. He did not respect the diversity of beliefs and opinions present and sought to establish his own beliefs as paramount.
Colonel Laux's preaching at a mandatory BN event infringes upon these rights, sparking a constitutional concern and a profound ethical one.
Moreover, his act of preaching at a mandatory event generates an environment of favoritism and bias. It creates a divide between those who share the Colonel's beliefs and those who do not. Acts such as this disrupt unit cohesion. The Marine Corps' strength lies in its unity built on mutual respect and understanding. His preaching introduced an element to the BN that is counterproductive to the BN's mission.
Colonel Laux jeopardized this unity by imposing his beliefs, instigating more anger and dissent than unity and respect.
Our anger arose from such a violation is palpable and justified. Everyone present at the event knew the Colonel had crossed the line.
The Colonel knew he was crossing the line and didn't care. He was on a mission to share and witness to people his religious beliefs and how they needed to believe as he did if they wanted to be "healed" and "saved."
It is not merely about preaching but the abuse of power and authority it represents.
The anger and betrayal I and 41 other Marines and civilians feel is fueled by the passion for maintaining a Marine Corps and work environment that respects its members' diverse beliefs and values. It's about the passionate defense of the freedoms that every Marine swore to uphold and protect, that were trampled on by Colonel Laux.
Colonel Laux preaching at a mandatory battalion event is not just a tiny thing but a violation of the principles that the Corps and the nation hold dear. Actions like this will continue if things like this aren't spoken of, covered up, and ignored. Silence on matters like this gives voice to whether the actions were okay or not.
The Colonel's preaching violates the Constitution that all Marines affirm to protect and defend. The defilement of our rights incites passion and anger because it undermines the freedoms that every Marine is sworn to protect, drives a wedge in unit cohesion, and abuses the trust placed in a high-ranking officer.
This event serves as a reminder that vigilance in upholding our constitutional rights remains paramount, even within the ranks of those sworn to protect them. As a Nation, we cannot let actions like the Colonel's go without saying they are wrong and violate the document and principles we protect.
We believe in freedom of and from religion and a government that treats all beliefs, creeds, and religions as neutral. The danger of religious bigotry and the establishment of a state religion was spoken of by, President John Kennedy when he said "it may be a Catholic against whom the finger of suspicion is pointed; in other years it has been, and may someday be again, a Jew-- or a Quaker or a Unitarian or a Baptist. It was Virginia's harassment of Baptist preachers, for example, that helped lead to Jefferson's statute of religious freedom. Today, I may be the victim, but tomorrow, it may be you — until the whole fabric of our harmonious society is ripped at a time of great national peril."
Our founding fathers specifically sought to escape an established state religion and did not want one established ever by the government they created. The yearning to develop a creed or religion as superior to all others is the exact orthodoxy our founding fathers and other Americans sought to escape from and that we, as Americans, must be on guard against.
We know you and the Military Religious Freedom Foundation have helped tens of thousands before us to ensuring that 1st amendment rights are respected and actions such as the Colonel's are not repeated in the future by bringing his actions to light. If we do not take action at the nibbling away of constitutional rights piece by piece, then we will wake up one day to find that our rights are gone. We want your help, Mikey, and that of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation in protecting our Constitution.
(Active Duty U.S. Marine's/MRFF Client’s name, rank, unit, MOS, and all other ID info withheld)
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