MRFF Ad. Bd. Member Col. Lawrence Wilkerson (Ret.) on the Omission of Christian Nationalism in Coverage of Military Extremism

Friday Afternoon, June 23, 2023

MRFF ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER

COL. LAWRENCE WILKERSON (RET.) ON

THE OMISSION OF CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM

IN COVERAGE OF MILITARY EXTREMISM

"Christian Nationalism, and the often-accompanying

phenomena of virulent white racism and utter disregard of the

U.S. Constitution, is consuming the military chaplain corps

and much of the rank and file and, stunningly enough, a considerable number of the generals and admirals."

— Col. Lawrence Wilkerson (Ret.)

Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson at a lectern with American flags behind.

MRFF Advisory Board Member Col. Lawrence Wilkerson (Ret.)

MRFF OP-ED

ON DAILY KOS

Trending story on Daily Kos

Col. Larry Wilkerson (Ret.) on what’s starkly absent in media coverage of extremism in the military

By: Col. Lawrence Wilkerson (Ret.),

MRFF Advisory Board Member, Visiting Professor of Government and Public Policy at the College of William and Mary, former Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell

Friday, June 23, 2023

In the Media Matters piece below, while the author covers the specific issue of the Fox News-led attack that led to the disintegration of the Defense Department's efforts to deal with extremism within the ranks of the U.S. Armed Forces, he completely omits any meaningful discussion of the central danger. That danger grows greater every day that passes. Christian Nationalism, and the often-accompanying phenomena of virulent white racism and utter disregard of the U.S. Constitution, is consuming the military chaplain corps and much of the rank and file and, stunningly enough, a considerable number of the generals and admirals. All "in the name of Jesus,” to cite their frequent mantra.

For many years now, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) has fought tenaciously against these developments. As an advisory board member of the MRFF, I've seen and experienced some of that battle -- it's deadly serious, just as are its opponents the Christian Nationalists, and it's a battle that is clearly essential to protecting the very fabric of America as well as ensuring a competent and healthy military. That the author of the piece below missed even mentioning this grave danger is indicative of how even people who should realize what is happening do not. It's high time the bulk of the American people did.

From Media Matters: “Anatomy of a smear campaign: How right-wing media neutralized a Pentagon effort to address white supremacy in the military”

In contrast to the seemingly oblivious media, MRFF founder and president Mikey Weinstein, in his post-Jan. 6 op-ed “Forced Jesus Worship: Pentagon Ignores the Consequences of Ignoring Extremist Reality,” rightly described Christian nationalism as the “mothership” of white supremacy and other forms of extremism, as illustrated in this MRFF graphic:

Graphic of large spaceship with cross on top with smaller spaceships shooting off of it labeled with kinds of extremism

Click to read on Daily Kos

Introduction to the following two articles

The New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) is a fast-growing dominionist theocratic movement of Pentecostals and Charismatic evangelicals that seeks to take over government at all levels. The NAR, which religion scholar Frederick Clarkson notes in his new in-depth article on Salon.com below, “is now the second largest Christian faction in the world after the Roman Catholic Church,” has become closely linked to the GOP, with high-profile far-right politicians among its "army of believers" calling for a "kingdom revolution.”

The NAR has also invaded the military in its quest to take over all parts of society, as MRFF is seeing more and more, with chaplains and even some far-right Christian commanders increasingly and alarmingly using language emblematic of the NAR’s ideology. While the spread of this fast-growing dangerous movement is being closely monitored and exposed by others in the political sphere, MRFF is the only organization that can, and is, just as closely monitoring and pushing back against its rise in the military.

SALON COVERS

THE NEW APOSTOLIC REFORMATION

"Unfriending" America: The Christian right is coming for the enemies of God — like you and me

By: Frederick Clarkson

Saturday, June 17, 2023

From the article: “The NAR seeks to consolidate those Christians it recognizes as ‘the Church’ in what it believes to be the End Times. Although many NAR leaders have been closely aligned with Donald Trump, they insist that they aim for a utopian biblical kingdom where only God's laws are enforced. Most therefore hold to a vision of Christian dominion over what they call the ‘seven mountains’: religion, family, education, government, media, entertainment and business. (This is what is meant by Dominionism.)”

Click to read article on Salon.com

More MRFF Recommended Reading on the NAR

BAPTIST NEWS GLOBAL COVERS

THE NEW APOSTOLIC REFORMATION

By: Rick Pidcock

Tuesday, January 10, 2023

Baptist News Global questions why “Christian nationalism” was mentioned only once in the January 6 Committee hearings when eight days prior to the attack 15 NAR leaders held a meeting for more than two hours at the White House with “high-level Trump administration officials” to talk about a spiritual war strategy.

Click to read article on Baptist News Global

“Many Thanks!”

From: (Active Duty U.S. Army Officer’s/MRFF Client’s E-mail Address Withheld)

Subject: Many Thanks!

Date: June 22, 2023 at 1:27:02 PM MDT

To: Mikey Weinstein <mikey@militaryreligiousfreedom.org>

Mikey & the MRFF,

Thank you for your ongoing support and reassurance in the long, drawn out struggle I find myself in for standing up for my religious convictions in the face of many very loud voices. Words cannot adequately express how much having your constant and unwavering support has meant to me and my family. Getting in contact with you during one of the darker moments of this struggle, bolstered our resolve when we needed it most. Thank you again for all that you have done and continue to do!

Sincerely,

(Active Duty U.S. Army Officer’s/MRFF Client’s name and rank withheld.

27 years of military service, deployed to Iraq in 2003)

Click to read in Inbox

“Your June 15 Letter”

From: (name withheld)

Subject: Your June 15 Letter

Date: June 15, 2023 at 2:33:45 PM MDT

Dear Mikey,

I just read the letter/email you sent Major General Anderson, at Fort Drum, New York, which, by the way, is where my uncle and father-in-law went for a couple of weeks every summer as active reservists.I like your letter so much that I was moved to write. I think it is one of the finest such letters of yours that I have read—just the right balance of courtesy and stipulation.Although I myself do not have a military background, I have experience with overbearing fundamentalist dominionists who impose themselves on people throughout our culture, as I’m sure you know. I’m grateful for your strong advocacy in the particularly critical military sphere.

All the best,

(name withheld)