U.S. Army Recruiting Sign Citing Serving ‘God And Country’ Called An ‘Unconstitutional Disgrace’
When a U.S. Army recruiting sign cited “God and country” as part of the mission of the U.S. military, groups devoted to the concept of the separation of church and state were outraged and demanded that the sign be removed.
In a related report by the Inquisitr, when Pope Francis spoke about birth control recently, he suggested that people should not “breed like rabbits.” The Pope also tackled the very difficult question of why God allows little girls to become prostitutes.
The signboard in question had been put on display since October of 2014 and photos of the U.S. Army sign had gone viral on social media outlets. But otherwise the sign had received little notice until Mikey Weinstein, president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), complained on the Daily Kos.
“That outrageously ghastly graphic encapsulates precisely that which we’ve been ceaselessly calling the attention of the American people to for all this time,” Weinstein wrote. “The poster astoundingly displays the shoulder tabs of the U.S. Special Forces (i.e. Green Berets), Rangers and Airborne troopers accompanied by the seethingly sectarian slogan ‘ON A MISSION FOR BOTH GOD AND COUNTRY.'”
This drew the attention of the U.S. Army Recruiting Command, which claimed the unapproved display was based upon a stock image provide to local recruiters “but the text was changed by the local recruiting personnel” and not cleared by the U.S. Army.
“Had the process been followed, the copy shown would not have been approved,” spokesman Brian Lepley told the Army Times.
Now that the sign has been removed, the MRFF is claiming that this action is based upon the U.S. Constitution.
“The Military Religious Freedom Foundation is delighted that the Constitution has been adhered to by the U.S. Army Recruiting Command,” Weinstein said. “But whoever, in any way, shape or form, allowed that poster to be designed, prepared and displayed, those individuals should be aggressively investigated and very visibly punished.”
Not everyone sees it the same way, with many questioning what servicemen are left with if “God and country” is removed from the U.S. military.
@WashTimes If not for God and Country then for what?
— Marie Shelton (@SheltonMarie) January 18, 2015
@WashTimes @billpostmus If is said “Allah” instead, I’m sure it would be allowed. — G (@Random_acct) January 17, 2015
Other reports note that the Latin phrase “Pro aris et focis” has been used by military forces for centurties and even the phrase itself “for God and country” became a historical moment when Osama bin Laden was taken out by U.S. Navy SEAL Team Six. The radio message these men sent out read, “For God and country, Geronimo, Geronimo, Geronimo.”
