Chaplain Chastised for Doing His Job
U.S. Army Chaplain Capt. Joseph "Joe" Lawhorn has been wrongly disciplined for offering spiritual guidance, including biblical references, during a suicide prevention meeting, said 24 senators and representatives in a letter.
"We are concerned that this disciplinary action violated First Amendment free speech protection that are undergirded by state reflected in the FY2013 and FY2014 NDAAs, along with the accompanying DoD regulations," states the letter from the senators, sent to Army Secretary John McHugh.
"In fulfilling his duties as chaplain, Captain Lawhorn shared both his personal struggle with depression as well as biblical references and materials in accordance with the views of his endorsing agency and complementary to personal convictions."
The lawmakers said that they have not received any indication from the Army that Lawhorn's religious freedom rights were protected, and asked for a review of the incident in relation to federal law and Army policy.
