- Reaction score
- 8
- Points
- 130
Great idea! A few years ago I was invited to my local mosque (it's out in the countryside near where I live) to represent the veterans' group I belonged to at a ceremony to honour victims of a mass shooting. It was indeed an honour to go there, wearing my beret and medals, take off my shoes at the door and stand alongside people from all over my community. And of course I've attended many weddings, funerals etc in churches and synagoues. Not a problem, because these were about individual people, and their beliefs..
What I am talking about is the use of prayer or religion at events that are not supposed to be religious such as the presentation of Colours, or a dinner. Everyone should be included, and if blessings etc are offered in a religious sense, then that automatically excludes those of us who are not religious. We are, in effect being told that we are secondary. We don't belong in the first rank.
Using Colours as an example, we are told they exemplify the Regiment. That means everyone in the Regiment, not just those who believe in God. The ceremony should not only include this, it should stress it. Cohesion is, of course, the whole point.
In my last year of service I saw three soldiers literally ejected from a parade. The CO told them to fall out, pointed at the door, and they were required to walk away from their Colours, their unit, their fellow soldiers, simply because, as Canadians, they chose not to pray under military authority. They weren't just ejected from the parade, they were marched out of the building. It was an appalling thing to watch.
Does that create unit cohesion? I trust such things are not being done anymore.
What I am talking about is the use of prayer or religion at events that are not supposed to be religious such as the presentation of Colours, or a dinner. Everyone should be included, and if blessings etc are offered in a religious sense, then that automatically excludes those of us who are not religious. We are, in effect being told that we are secondary. We don't belong in the first rank.
Using Colours as an example, we are told they exemplify the Regiment. That means everyone in the Regiment, not just those who believe in God. The ceremony should not only include this, it should stress it. Cohesion is, of course, the whole point.
In my last year of service I saw three soldiers literally ejected from a parade. The CO told them to fall out, pointed at the door, and they were required to walk away from their Colours, their unit, their fellow soldiers, simply because, as Canadians, they chose not to pray under military authority. They weren't just ejected from the parade, they were marched out of the building. It was an appalling thing to watch.
Does that create unit cohesion? I trust such things are not being done anymore.