Recently, there was a great brouhaha over an Army Equal Opportunity training briefing on extremism that was presented to Army reservists. Slide twenty-four identified Catholics, Evangelical Christians, and Orthodox Jews as religious extremists on par with Al-Qaeda and Hamas.
The Catholic Archdiocese for Military Services lodged a formal complaint with the Department of Defense and the offending slide was removed. The Army stated this was an isolated incident and in no way reflected an official Army position.
I believe it is true that there is no official military policy that expresses antipathy for religion in general or Christianity in particular. However, the current military culture is enabling an environment that regards religious beliefs with suspicion.
Looking again at slide twenty-four of the Army briefing on extremism, it is enlightening to note that in addition to the list of “extremist” organizations, the slide offers an analysis of religious extremism that explains how Catholics, Evangelical Christians, and Orthodox Jews could be equated with groups like Al-Qaeda and Hamas:
Extremism is a complex phenomenon; it is defined as beliefs, attitudes, feelings, actions, or strategies of a character far removed from the “ordinary.” Because “ordinary” is subjective, no religious group would label itself extreme or its doctrine “extremism.” However, religious extremism is not limited to any single religion, ethnic group, or region of the world; every religion has some followers that believe that their beliefs, customs and traditions are the only “right way” and that all others are practicing their faith the “wrong way,” seeing and believing that their faith/religion superior to all others.
As Catholics, we do believe that the fullness of truth is found only within the Catholic Church. While other faiths may have elements of truth and holiness, they also contain errors that are not found within the teachings of the Catholic Church. We believe we have it right and others have it wrong. If conviction alone is enough to be labeled as an extremist, then I am afraid Catholics are guilty as charged.
This fear of such faith and commitment does not originate with the military. Rather, it flows from what the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, called the “dictatorship of relativism.” It is part of a broader cultural phenomenon that denies the possibility of absolute truth.
In recent weeks, this fear of absolute truth has been evident on our college campuses. Johns Hopkins University Student Government Association (SGA) denied official club status to a group of pro-life students, Voices for Life, because as one SGA senator said, “We have the right to protect our students from things that are uncomfortable. Why should people have to defend their beliefs on their way to class?” SGA members claimed they would feel “violated, targeted, and attacked” if their pro-abortion views were challenged, therefore, such opposition must be silenced. Only after the threat of legal action, did Johns Hopkins University reverse the SGA ruling and approve the official club status of Voices for Life.
Similarly, two homosexual students at George Washington University are seeking to have a Catholic priest removed from the campus Newman Center because he is faithful to Catholic doctrine and teaches that homosexual activity is sinful. These two students, who are not even Catholic, assert, “because of the words and actions from those at the Newman Center, an atmosphere of intolerance and stigma permeates onto our campus.” They cannot tolerate anyone who does not affirm their homosexual lifestyle choice.
We have evolved into a society that embraces lukewarm dialogue, but rejects spirited debate. In the former, we are free to express personal opinions as long as we do not ascribe an exclusive rightness to our views. Any suggestion that others are wrong is labeled as bigoted, hateful, uncharitable, and even extremist. In contrast, debate requires a commitment to the veracity of our principles. We seek through reason to demonstrate the superiority of our position and persuade others to follow.
Christian evangelization is not mere dialogue. It is a debate. Unlike the political election debates, which are nothing more than grandstanding with sound bites in the hopes of scoring a “gotcha” moment against an opponent; evangelization is an act of love and mercy that charitably points out the flaws of non-belief as well as the reasonableness and rewards of believing.
It is an argument offered with both the wisdom of our words and the faithful examples of our lives. We do our neighbor no favors if we allow him to persist in ignorance. Pope Francis highlighted this in a speech to the Vatican diplomatic corps:
It is the spiritual poverty of our time, which afflicts the so-called richer countries particularly seriously. It is what my much-loved predecessor, Benedict XVI, called the “tyranny of relativism”, which makes everyone his own criterion and endangers the coexistence of peoples. And that brings me to a second reason for my name. Francis of Assisi tells us we should work to build peace. But there is no true peace without truth! There cannot be true peace if everyone is his own criterion, if everyone can always claim exclusively his own rights, without at the same time caring for the good of others, of everyone, on the basis of the nature that unites every human being on this earth.
Therefore, we must not be cowed by those who quest only affirmation and fear the challenge of debate. We are not called to a dialogue of sharing where we politely nod and applaud each other’s point of view. In the face of pejorative labels like “hater,” “bigot,” and “extremist,” we are called to courageously defend our faith and evangelize in the hopes of drawing others to Christ and His Church.
We must unwaveringly believe and proclaim the Gospel, not as one opinion among many, but as the truth. With joy and charity, our constant purpose must be to lead everyone we encounter to the Truth, the Way, and the Life.
Dr. Denise Jackson Hunnell is a Fellow of Human Life International. She graduated from Rice University with a BA in biochemistry and psychology. She earned her medical degree from The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. She went on to complete a residency in family medicine at Marquette General Hospital, Marquette, Michigan.
Upon completion of her training, Dr. Hunnell served as a family physician in the United States Air Force. She was honorably discharged. She continued to practice medicine all over the country as her husband’s Air Force career kept them on the move. In order to better care for her family, Dr. Hunnell retired from active clinical practice and focused her professional efforts on writing and teaching. She has contributed work to local and national Catholic publications as well as to secular newspapers including the Washington Post and the Washington Times. She also teaches anatomy and physiology at Northern Virginia Community College Woodbridge Campus. Her affiliations include the American Academy of Family Physicians, The Catholic Medical Association, The Fellowship of Catholic Scholars, and the National Catholic Bioethics Center. She received her certification in health care ethics from the National Catholic Bioethics Center in 2009.
Dr. Hunnell has been married for nearly thirty years to Colonel (ret) John F. Hunnell, an Air Force test pilot. They have four children and are blessed with two grandchildren so far.
