Memorial Day

"'There are no atheists in foxholes' isn't an argument against atheism, it's an argument against foxholes" ~James Morrow

I think there's a stereotype among Christian communities in this country that the American soldier is a devout Christian, fighting for the Christian values of a Christian nation. The fact is, most religious beliefs are under-represented in the U.S. military and, what's more, there's a slightly higher instance of atheism:

Well, to be fair, that information is a little dated. It's from the December 2004 edition of Population Bulletin, which is the most recent survey I could find.

But there'd be no reason to be surprised if there were more atheists in the military than in the general population. The problem of theodicy has always been one of the most compelling reasons not to believe in God. That is, how can an all-powerful and benevolent God permit evil to exist in the world? Who has a closer view of the evil in the world than soldiers?

But the Christian soldier myth persists, and nowhere does it manifest itself as stupidly and jingoistically as in the following story:

A United States Marine was attending some college courses between assignments. He had completed missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. One of the courses had a professor who was an avowed atheist and a member of the ACLU.

One day the professor shocked the class when he came in, looked to the ceiling, and flatly stated, "God, if you are real, then I want you to knock me off this platform. I'll give you exactly 15 minutes."

The lecture room fell silent. You could hear a pin drop.

Ten minutes went by and the professor proclaimed, '"Here I am God. I'm still waiting." It got down to the last couple of minutes when the Marine got out of his chair, went up to the professor, and cold-cocked him, knocking him off the platform. The professor was out cold.

The Marine went back to his seat and sat there, silently. The other students were shocked, stunned, and sat there looking on in silence.

The professor eventually came to, noticeably shaken, looked at the Marine and asked, "What the heck is the matter with you? Why did you do that?"

The Marine calmly replied, "God was too busy today protecting American soldiers who are protecting your right to say stupid stuff and act like an idiot. So, He sent me."

There are so many things wrong with the story, I hardly know where to begin. It's obvious that whoever wrote the story has never attended college, nor are they aware that assault and battery is a crime. But, more importantly, they don't seem to realize how impotent they made their God look. Imagine what the author of this story would say if they had heard a similar story about a professor who challenged Allah to knock him off the podium, and a Muslim knocked him down instead. Or imagine PZ Myers' twist on the story: that instead of a professor, a conservative radio talk-show host asked God to strike him down if sending men to war wasn't righteous.

Anyway, today is Memorial Day. Let's remember that men and women have died not only for our freedoms (including our freedom to reject God and religion), but also for our mistakes and our prejudices. Please click here to see the number of American soldiers God failed to protect.