General David Petraeus has resigned today claiming “personal reasons”. Okay, he is entitled. The personal reason? He had an extra-marital affair. It happens all too often and he is, after all, human. But what I find significant about this is he is yet another ReBiblican…a Christian Dominionist. Another sanctimonious man-of-God who touts that he, as the “right kind of Christian”, is entitled to claim proprietary ownership to the keys of morality. And, in addition to powerful military positions, until his resignation today Petraeus was the Director of the CIA. He actually supported Sarah Palin in 2008; was considered a potential running mate with her for the future; and discussed as a VP possibility with Mitt.
I am fully aware that politics makes strange bedfellows, and that religious zealotry ramps that up several notches, so much of this speculation about a political future for Petraeus was just talk. But what isn’t just talk is the legacy of promoting proselytizing in the military to armed forces personnel considered to be “unchurched”.
Many of you know that I am on the Board of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation where we fight this aggressive “soul harvesting” within our military every day. And in that battle we had firsthand interaction with General David Petraeus prior to his move to the CIA. Our Senior Researcher, Chris Rodda wrote an article at Talk2Action that you can read here in full. Below are a few excerpts from her article:
As is often the case here at the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), while in the course of investigating one report of constitutionally questionable activity within our armed forces, we stumble into something else that’s just as bad or worse.[...]While perusing the rest of the Air Force Times issue, [MRFF Founder] Weinstein noticed a half-page ad for a book by Army chaplain Lt. Col. William McCoy, titled Under Orders: A Spiritual Handbook for Military Personnel. With a title like that, MRFF, of course, had to find out just what this book was about, and this is what we found — a pro-Christian, anti-atheist book heartily endorsed by none other than Gen. David Petraeus…Contrary to the old “no atheists in foxholes” movie line, the percentage of non-theists in the military, according to a report from the Population Reference Bureau, is actually somewhat higher than it is among the civilian population.This isn’t the first time MRFF has taken issue with an endorsement by Gen. Petraeus. Last November, while looking into the completely unconstitutional practice of mandatory Christian concerts being foisted upon our soldiers during basic training at several of the Army’s largest training installations [...]
Weinstein had this to say about Petraeus’ endorsement of this book and the perpetuation of a dangerous theme that we are truly in a Holy War that pits Christians against Islam…
“Look, there is simply no other way to say it but to speak the absolute brutal truth here. General Petraeus has shockingly abrogated and noxiously defiled the sacred oath he took to protect and preserve, support and defend, NOT a parochial biblical worldview of the New Testament’s Gospel of Jesus Christ, but the United States Constitution; which includes a specific beacon provision which boldly proclaims absolutely ‘no religious test’ in Clause 3, Article 6. By so very prominently and universally endorsing Chaplain McCoy’s book, with its unadulterated promotion of Christian religious supremacy and concomitant excoriating and denigrating of the veracity, integrity, and character of the hundreds of thousands of United States military personnel who freely elect to follow no religious path, Petraeus unlawfully fashions his own de facto ‘religion test’ in direct contravention of America’s most cherished and beloved governing document. His command leadership role thus has become terminally freighted and compromised with this disgusting, vile, unconstitutional Christian religious tyranny and exceptionalism at precisely the same time we are at war with Islamic fundamentalists framing America’s Iraq and Afghanistan combat efforts as a ‘modern day Crusade.’ The monumentally detrimental national security risks attendant to Petraeus’s actions of Constitutional defiance justify the swift forfeiture of his titular position of military command and, further, cry out for his immediate punishment by General Courts Martial under Article 134.”
I do not enjoy watching the personal trials and failings of others, not a bit. In fact, given the outstanding career that General Petraeus has had it is so unfortunate that he had to go out on this note of scandal and impropriety, dishonoring him. With that said, had he kept his religious views out of his work I would not even be writing this today.
It is important to note just who these people are that walk among us and the resignation by Petraeus today opens the opportunity to shine light on them. Christian Dominionists are already in very high positions of power in our government – and as this reveals – in our military. With nearly 200 military bases around the world it is ripe for commanding enlisted to proselytize and a very dangerous face for America. Good-bye Mr. Petraeus…
I see another top general is in the cross-hairs over this situation, and there are some “inappropriate communications” from him too. I wonder if he’s showed on the dominionist radar screen. (The name sounds familiar but I don’t remember – and don’t have time to research.)
http://www.theledger.com/article/20121113/NEWS/121119754?tc=cr
I knew nothing about the Dominionist angle to all of this. Makes the whole story much more interesting and much scarier. I certainly hope that there was no connection between Petraeus and the events in Cairo and Benghazi but there are plenty of dots at there that might be connected . . . .
I’m far from being a conspiracy theorist myself Leah, but I am very analytical & Benghazi seems far more than a coincidence given the players involved, the events and the timing of the attacks. The Mormons have a history of infiltration too, with the same agenda and have many of their “chosen” in the CIA & other vulnerable & high offices in our Government.
They are all so determined to turn our country into a theocracy it’s beyond frightening and they will truly stop at nothing to accomplish their goals. Religion is the sacred cow in America& no one in power wants to deal with it’s blatant invasions, including the IRS when Preachers continually preach politics and hate from the pulpits with no consequences.
I’m so sorry for the loss of your friend Leah, and for the rest of the friends & families of our other brave citizens who lost their lives. Thank you all for fighting for us.
Many times I feel so useless, so overwhelmed & so close to giving up & bowing to what seems to be the inevitable, I know you have the same feelings, but people like you keep me going and standing up & speaking out. I’ve seen real awareness of the dangers the “AmeriTaliban” present to us growing exponentially during this election season. More & more folks are speaking out against them & waking up their friends & families too. There is hope, we just can never let down & let them win. THANK YOU!
People like you keep me going…and I mean that sincerely. I agree with everything you have said here and you are correct, it all gets overwhelming some days even for those of us who research this everyday. We still uncover groups, organizations and individuals who are engaged in such extreme indoctrination projects that even we gasp. There is no giving up and it really does take all of us. You are part of the success that we are having in spreading this message, you and the growing number of readers that come to sites like mine and others who have been writing about this for years.
I have said this before, all I have to do is look at my daughter and granddaughter when I am running low on inspiration to get re-energized to go forward. I cannot accept a future that places these extremists in power and destroy our democratic republic – replacing it with a theocracy. We are so damn lucky in America that most don’t even know the definition of theocracy, but the threat of it is very real and the shadow it is casting is growing. But I know we can stop this because we really are in the majority. Thank you for you ongoing support and kind words of encouragement…it really means a lot.
He will be on Fox news as a commentator in a few months.
All will be forgiven because of who he is, not what he did.
Sad.
I feel sorry for his wife and family and how they stood by him and all his deployments.
Just stop people. I personally served with Gen. Petraeus during the invasion of Iraq in 2003-04 and I can tell you that from a Soldier’s point of view, he was/is one of the best that we had. There are VERY few people that do not succumb to the tempatations after multiple deployments for months or years at a time. Even name a political party, any of them, and there are both men and women that have had affairs. Nothing new, nothing shocking and nothing that any of us have either done themselves or know of someone that has. Powerful people have been having affairs since there were people on this planet…when anyone here can match the accomplishments of this man, feel free to step up to the plate. Until shut up and color…
Calm down…and yelling is not productive…especially when you command that we “shut up”. Okay…after you pull yourself from the ceiling…let me paint it more clearly so that my points are absolutely crystal clear.
I am not relishing in the downfalls of this decorated military professional. In fact, here is exactly what I said:
I am supported by tens of thousands of military personnel when I talk about the dangers of Christian Dominionism/Nationalism in our military and those are just our clients at MRFF that have sought us out to help stop this, 96% who are self-identified mainstream Christians and Catholics. Petraeus was not only complicit in its infestation in our military, but he promoted it. That is my issue with Petraeus and others in power in America who myopically view the world through a scripture-twisted mission from the biblical God.
He became a topic for those of us who are dedicated to “outing” religious extremism in America when he chose to participate in aggressive proselytizing that included illegal and improper use of a subordinate military audience in theaters around the world. Had he not joined the growing voices who feel it necessary to thrust their religious views down our throats through legislation and/or their politically powerful positions – I would not have spent a moment thinking about his self-made troubles – even though we are now learning may also have allowed unauthorized access of confidential emails available to the object of his affair.
I thank you for your service. I understand as a family member of a Vietnam veteran that indeed the stress of battle can create a distance between a soldier’s service world and their domestic one. Many of my friends fathers succumbed to temptation and facilitated the destruction of their marriages. My father did not.
Oh…and yes, these failings do rear up with members of both/all parties…absolutely! But to name the most notorious as an example – Bill Clinton – he was not engaged in his affair while promoting that all Americans live by the moral laws of his faith under the false belief that we are a Christian nation and biblical law should replace the Rule of Law.
Put him on a pedestal if you want to, but no one’s accomplishments give them moral immunity. No one’s.
And you’re wrong. Most soldiers DO NOT cheat because of long deployments. I’m sure Patreus has punished more than a few people during his career, though. It must be easy to point fingers from atop his pedestal.
And as for both parties having scandals, there is an added irony when the party that sells itself as the family values party has by far more such screw-ups. It’s called hypocrisy.
Thank you for adding to my reply to this very angry and condescending defender of moral hypocrisy. That is precisely the point that he missed. No one is picking on Petraeus and I have not even suggested for a second that he was not a brilliant military leader, by the way.
While I agree about the hypocrisy and am deeply saddened by how corrupt many parts of government have become due to this unconstitutional situation, it may be worth pointing out that even in 1980 (when I was in Basic at Ft. Leonard Wood) weekend trips that were just barely voluntary were being promoted to try to baptize as many soldiers as they could. I’ll grant that, aside from being at a picnic and getting preached at, all these were were a kind of Sunday church picnic with free food and some preaching that I, personally, barely thought about… then again, at that point I was just trying to survive Basic, and the “retreat” was an opportunity to get a rest from marches and inspections.
We share your sadness and are doing all we can to combat this abuse. We are extremely fortunate to have a number of brilliant and dedicated attorneys who volunteer their time to assist Mikey Weinstein with the legal fights that are necessary to get anyone’s attention on these unconstitutional acts. Some of their events are more subtle as you describe, and then we have thousands of reports of the aggressive retaliation against even mainstream Christians who “opt out” of attending a “voluntary” event sponsored by Dominionist groups using tax dollars to perform on bases. The list of egregious Christian supremacy strong-arming by command personnel over subordinates is alarming.
Matthew 6:6 “But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
I guess they skipped that verse when these bozos decided to take over our military. Shameful.
I’m more concerned that this will be like the other dominionist leaders… they got caught, whimpered and whined for “forgiveness”, and returned to the stage stronger than ever.
The damned fools (followers) don’t catch on that dishonesty, dishonor, and hypocrisy go with the dominionist territory. They’ll, as they like to spout about us, “sell us down the river for a mess of pottage”. (Never mind that the story in question was about a starving man – who probably was experiencing severe hypoglycemia from the description, and a greedy, crooked brother who took unfair advantage of his brother’s misfortune.)
The name of the game is Sin and Redemption. You can’t have one without the other.
According to what those churches taught me, repentance is needed in the middle. Repentance is not putting on an emotional show about how one has “strayed from the path” (which I strongly doubt they were on in the first place), but turning a different direction… changing one’s ways. Real repentance is an internal thing and not to be broadcast. It will reflect in one’s actions.
That I don’t see, with Petraeus or with the other dominionists who were caught dirty. What I see is an attempt to manipulate public opinion so that the person can keep their “Position” and keep doing the harm that they do.
It’s also known as damage control (instead of actually trying to do the right thing in the first place).
Great piece Leah, wish I had seen it sooner because I got into a “discussion” today on HP about the General and the scandal. I pointed out that what most Americans don’t know about the man is that he is a Dominionist religious extremist high on the GOPTP’s list for President. I also referenced the mandatory concerts, rifle sights with biblical verses, turning eyes away from Blackwaters & some troops misconduct & crimes against Muslim civilians, etc.
I can’t even remember where I got the information about him initially, maybe from one of your earlier posts, but will definitely be using this post as a link in future comments. Thank you and Mikey & all the others at MRFF SOOOOOO much! I continue to fight these people too with my small arsenal of words & links & every breath in my body. Thanks!
Gee, I wonder if his Viagra was ‘free.’
I understand that his affair was with another man’s wife. If the old goat can do something like that while having such a high profile, what did he get up to before he was under so much scrutiny?
I am sure that we will be hearing a great deal more in the coming days/weeks/months. And we will also hear the ReBiblicans spin this as a poor judgment decision as a smite regarding President Obama. But it has to be pointed out that this was their hero.
The President needs to do more research on his appointees. He made a huge mistake in appointing Petraeus as the head of the CIA. Harry Reid told him it was a mistake too. Hope he listens next time.
Things that make you go hmmmm:
RW virulent Anti-Muslim video comes out broadcast on Muslim TV,
The consulate is immediately attacked, simultaneous protests break out across other Muslim countries, small regimented protests,
CIA base at the consulate, can’t protect? GOP investigative committee outs CIA.
Romney leaps to the TV shortly before the election with his wild Libyan misinformation in the middle of the attack, after promising donors that he would take full advantage of any attacks. Romney makes a fool of himself – no surprise there. Libyan people rise up in protest & attack the terrorists & kill, capture or run them out of the country. Another GOP calculation gone wrong?
Republicans immediately feed Benghazi lies & wild accusations against the President to their stooges where it spreads like wildfire.
Petraeus head of CIA. Coincidence? Not in my somewhat cynical view.
Please continue…what are your summations given all these factors?
From the beginning of the attacks, almost simultaneous with the release of the video produced & sent out to Muslim news sources by a Dominionist, President of Christian University, I was suspicious that it was a choreographed plan by the right wing to stir up a crisis for the President shortly before the election.
Romney’s immediate leap to the press
‘during’ the attack further strengthened that suspicion. The closely co-ordinated attacks by the GOPTP, all blaming the President, all saying the same things followed immediately. The CIA base at the Consulate failed to stop or even hinder much of the attack, resulting in the 4 deaths. The GOP Issa committee which was established to prove it was Obama’s failure, inadvertently outed the fact that the CIA base was there (in their usual bungling way) so they had to disband the committee immediately.
It’s just my opinion, a theory, that I think there is a very good chance that the entire Benghazi incident was coordinated & set up between the RW and the CIA and yes, between certain elements of the terrorists themselves (CIA collaborators?) It certainly wouldn’t be the first time for the CIA to do something like this for the GOP.
It would benefit Petraeous’s & the GOPTP Dominionist ideals by demonizing Muslims and the President and presumably help to get Romney elected President.
I hope the FBI is looking into those possibilities as well as his “indiscretion” which is certainly minor in comparison. I don’t expect much.
Thank you for elaboration further. Contrary to what my detractors believe, I am not a conspiracy theorist – but when we are talking about organizations like the CIA and for those of us who understand that this infestation of Dominionists has been going on for decades placing them in powerful positions in the Pentagon and grooming presidents, your ideas are worthy of considering. It is a dark world where rules don’t apply. I would love to know the truth – always – but especially because one of the four killed was our dear friend, Glen Doherty.