Zealots at the Air
Force Academy
EDITORIAL, NYTimes on
the Web, June 11, 2005
In an overdue burst of candor, the
superintendent of the Air Force Academy has acknowledged that his campus is so
permeated with evangelical proselytizing that it will take years to rid the
institution of religious intolerance. Lt. Gen. John Rosa Jr. said he finds
the problem of cadets unfairly pressured to adopt Christian beliefs and
practices occurring throughout "my whole organization," with offenders among
faculty, staff and students.
"Perception is reality," the general apologetically declared of numerous
complaints that cadets' constitutional rights have been violated by militant
evangelists wielding peer pressure with the blessing of authority figures in the
chain of command.
In a meeting with concerned Jewish civilians, General Rosa said recently that
the problem is "something that keeps me awake at nights," and that he even had
to reprimand his second in command, a born-again Christian, for fervidly
pressuring cadets. One campus chaplain went so far as to warn hundreds of
cadets that those "not born again" would "burn in the fires of hell," according
to campus interviews by the Yale Divinity School. In an authorized study,
Yale investigators concluded the problem was rife.
Yet the superintendent's admission was the Air Force's most honest
acknowledgment of how bedeviled the campus is. "If everything goes well,
it's probably going to take six years to fix it," General Rosa estimated.
The problem, however, is that all is not going well. Reforms were promised
last year, but were compromised by heavy-handed editing from the Air Force's
chief chaplain. When Capt. MeLinda Morton, a Lutheran chaplain, dared to
complain of cadets being abused by "systemic and pervasive" proselytizing, the
Air Force transferred her to Asia. General Rosa should bring the major
back if he is serious about the cleanup.
An inspector general's report is promised soon from the Air Force. But it
will take much more prodding, especially civilian pressure from President Bush,
Congress and taxpayers, to undo the damage and restore the separation of church
and state as a showcase principle at the academy.
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