Prayers in the Military

Oh, Lord, help Congress to stop its meddling.

THE MILITARY has been making a good-faith effort in recent months to write rules on religious activities that preserve both the rights of free expression among service members and the separation of church and state. It's unfortunate, therefore, that the House of Representatives, responding to pressure from evangelical Christian groups, has unnecessarily inserted itself into this debate, with a provision in the recent defense authorization bill aimed at ensuring that evangelical chaplains can pray in Jesus's name at public ceremonies. The Senate is debating a version that wisely leaves out the House provision and lets the military services continue to work out this complex issue the right way -- without congressional interference.

No one questions that military chaplains of all denominations may pray as they wish in voluntary, private services. The issue is what they can say in public prayers. This is especially complicated because, in the view of some evangelical ministers, it would contravene their faith not to invoke Jesus; at the same time, having such sectarian prayers is problematic, particularly at mandatory events attended by service members of all faiths.

Recent guidelines adopted by the Air Force and Navy suggest that nondenominational prayer is strongly preferred in such circumstances. For example, the Navy policy says that "absent extraordinary circumstances," prayers at such functions "should be nonsectarian in nature."

Similarly, the Air Force policy says that chaplains "will not be required to participate in religious activities, including public prayer, inconsistent with their faiths" -- a provision designed to protect evangelical chaplains who believe sharing their faith in Jesus is an essential part of their ministry. However, the Air Force guideline adds, "nondenominational, inclusive prayer or a moment of silence may be appropriate for military ceremonies when its primary purpose is not the advancement of religious beliefs."

Though the Air Force regulations were watered down from their initial stance, they were still too restrictive for some evangelical groups. So the House stepped in with a provision, championed by Rep. Walter B. Jones Jr. (R-N.C.), heavy on the rights of chaplains and light on concerns about how their public prayer could affect service members who are nonbelievers or who adhere to a different religion.

The provision guarantees chaplains "the prerogative to pray according to the dictates of the chaplain's own conscience, except as must be limited by military necessity, with any such limitation being imposed in the least restrictive manner feasible." In other words, almost anything goes.

This tilts too far in the direction of chaplains' freedom to pray, without due respect for those whose beliefs differ. As Rear Adm. Louis V. Iasiello, the chief of Navy chaplains, wrote in opposing the provision, "it is essential that the chaplain possess the trust and respect of all the crew, not simply the members of his or her own faith group."

Maybe the solution isn't to drain prayer at public ceremonies of specific religious content, but to discourage prayer at such events as inherently and unnecessarily divisive. Chaplains shouldn't be required to mute their faith, but neither should service members who aren't believers be compelled to be present for such prayers.