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To: alt.satanism From: xeper@aol.com (Xeper) Subject: Military Religious Policy Date: 19 Jan 1999 06:46:58 GMT -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 In article <19990118200134.01022.00000396@ng-fq1.aol.com>, xloptuny@aol.com wrote: >Claims of atheism hold no water within the "big >Green Machine". The only religion encouraged is >Xtianity, period. Technically religious discrimination of any sort is prohibited in Army Regulations, but that is obviously dependent upon the local chain of command's enforcing it. The writing is obviously on the wall with the existence of the Corps of Chaplains, which is almost entirely Protestant/Catholic Christian (wearing the cross on their uniform lapel). There is provision for Jewish chaplains (wearing the Mosaic Tablets), but according to chaplains I spoke with, there is a constant scarcity of Rabbis willing to take those slots. There are no other CoC uniform lapel emblems, which sums up the CoC for you. The Army also funds lavish Protestant chapels and somewhat more modest Catholic ones. Occasionally you might see a Jewish facility, but as often as not Jewish services tend to be held off-post in nearby civilian communities. Technically the Corps of Chaplains is required to provide for the religious needs of soldiers of all faiths, but I rather doubt that I would have been authorized the use of a Post Chapel to summon up Yog-sothoth there! }:-E >I am sure Dr. Aquino could more adequately speak to >the issue of religious discrimination in the military than I. This became a major issue in the 1980s, both because of the sudden publicity concerning me and because of various other issues brought to a head because of the decade's wave of persecutory fundamentalism. A lot of Wiccans and neopagans were squeezed - and reacted both angrily and collectively via a Pagan Alliance, etc. Sikhs got pushed around because of their headgear & beards, and also pushed right back. By the end of the 1980s there was a vast shakeup in the entire Army policy in this area, most clearly evidenced in the 1990 thorough revision of _Religious Requirements & Practices of Certain Selected Groups: A Handbook for Chaplains_ (DoD Contract MDA903-90-C-0062) (formerly DA Pam 165-13). The revised book covers 13 "Christian Heritage" groups, 5 "Indian Heritage" groups, 5 "Islamic" groups, 4 "Japanese Heritage" groups, 5 "Sikh/Sant Mat" groups, and 14 "Other" groups including: Baha'i Faith Church of Satan Church of Scientology Church Universal and Triumphant Gardnerian Wicca "I AM" Religious Activity Native American Church Rastafarians Temple of Set United Church of Religious Science Universal Church of the Master Universal Life Church Vajradhatu Wicca [Is this a great country or what?] :-) The _Handbook_'s official purpose is: "To facilitate the provision of religious activities which serve the needs of persons of certain faiths not otherwise represented by military chaplains and others; "To define the specific requirements and practices in such a way as to enable commanders at all levels to make effective personnel decisions in those instances where religious beliefs and practices are claimed to be in conflict with military directives and practices; and "To provide the specific information about each group in a form which has maximum utility for military purposes, yet is approved as normative or at least acceptable by the leaders of those various groups under study." - Page #v Many commanders and chaplains may not be aware of this publication - or, if they are, don't exactly have it ready to hand on their desks! So I routinely advise Setians, and other occultists in or entering the military who contact me, to track down a copy of this book on their own, or photocopy one from the library of a major Chaplain office, and keep it on hand to provide to immediate superiors in case of a "problem" situation. Office issuing the booklet is: Office of the Chief of Chaplains Department of the Army Washington, D.C. 20310-2700 Note that while this was a DoD-level contract, the booklet itself is Department of the Army. I do not know whether it exists under different labels in the Departments of the Navy & Air Force. If not, the Army publication would still be a handy document for a Sailor, Marine, or Airperson to have on hand and be able to produce. >Only once as a young PFC did I attempt to declare my >beliefs (for those of you who have not served, one's religion >is formally listed in the final line of information given on >one's identification tags, commonly called 'dog tags') Mine read "Satanist" 1969-75 and "Priest of Set" 75+. I wonder how they get "Church of the Movement for Spiritual Inner Awareness" [from the "Sikh/Sant Mat" category] on a dog tag! Michael A. Aquino, Ph.D. -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: PGP Personal Privacy 6.0.2 iQA/AwUBNqQpb2RWyNykJwrDEQImEwCeL+4V5vNDAni/J9WlMWeb00LmSoMAoK6A T6v0ZwtKzJ+/NWEPrwVcmRWY =8+/L -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
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