The Defense Department moved to quash rumors spread on the Internet that the services intended to court-martial some service members for their espousal of Christianity. The controversy stems from what a Defense Department spokesman said was a misinterpretation of the nature of an April 23 meeting that took place between Mikey Weinstein, a former Air Force officer, and service officials at the Pentagon. During the meeting, Weinstein addressed issues related to incidents in which superior officers attempted to proselytize and impose their religious beliefs upon subordinates. Weinstein, an Air Force Academy graduate, once had sued the Air Force amid reports of proselytizing by academy leadership. He attended the Pentagon meeting in his capacity as the president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, an Albuquerque, N.M.-based advocacy group. "Mr. Weinstein requested, and was granted, a meeting … with the Air Force judge advocate general and others … to express his concerns of religious issues in the military," said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Nate Christensen, a Pentagon spokesman, in a written statement May 3. "The department does not endorse any one religion or religious organization, and provides free access of religion for all members of the military services," Christensen said. Bloggers and religious-based Web sites contended that the Defense Department had retained Weinstein in an official capacity, and was prepared to follow through with his request that accused proselytizers face criminal trial in military court for such activities.
