Liberty Institute Outraged By U.S. Navy's Decision To Remove Bibles From Hotel Guest Rooms

DALLAS, Aug. 12, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Liberty Institute Director of Military Affairs Mike Berry expressed outrage at a U.S. Navy decision to remove Bibles from Navy Lodge guest rooms.  The decision responds to a complaint from the Freedom From Religion Foundation when it discovered that Bibles are placed in Navy Lodge guest rooms. According to a U.S. Navy document, the government does not pay for the Bibles because they are donated by the Gideons International organization.

"The Department of Defense recently strengthened the rights of service members to observe their religious beliefs," said Berry, referring to a January 2014 Department of Defense directive.  "How is that possible when the Navy decides that Bibles are no longer allowed in guest rooms?  It appears that the Navy does not want its Sailors to enjoy religious freedom."

The Navy Exchange Command document states, "local management historically allowed [Bibles] to be placed in Navy Lodge rooms." But now lodge managers must work with installation commanders to "determine what the installation policy is and the method to remove religious material currently in guest rooms."

Berry also expressed concern about the recent trend in religious hostility within the military.  "Many of our military's religious traditions and observances pre-date America's founding, but groups like the Freedom From Religion Foundation want to erase that history," Berry said.  "We've seen Bibles temporarily banned from military hospitals, demands that veterans' memorials be torn down, and crosses removed from military chapels.  This is just the latest in a well-documented pattern of hostility against religion in our military."

About Liberty Institute
Liberty Institute is a national nonprofit legal group dedicated to defending and restoring religious liberty across America — in our schools, for our churches, inside our military and throughout the public arena. Liberty's vision is to reestablish religious liberty in accordance with the principles of our Founding Fathers. For information, visit www.LibertyInstitute.org.

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SOURCE Liberty Institute