National Conference of Viet Nam Veteran Ministers



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Threats to Constitutional Principles

A Peace and Justice Statement
October 17, 2002





The National Conference of Viet Nam Veteran Ministers, meeting in Malibu, CA, October 14 to October 18, 2002, and after prayerful reflection, issued the following statement regarding current threats to Constitutional principles:

Whereas our nation was founded on principles of liberty, justice, and freedom as set forth in the Constitution of the United States; and

Whereas we who are members of the National Conference of Viet Nam Veteran Ministers answered the call to service issued by our nation based upon our common commitment to the principles of that document; and

Whereas we who are members of the National Conference of Viet Nam Veteran ministers recognize, though our experience as religious leaders and spiritual guides, that the journey of faith is nurtured in an atmosphere of liberty, justice, and freedom; and

Whereas recent actions in limiting access to Constitutional promises and hopes, justified we are told by the “War on Terrorism,” seem to undermine the principles that we defended;

Therefore we call the attention of our government’s leaders to our concerns that we are imposing limits on movements and information rather than asserting the liberties which have historically made our nation a beacon of hope, we are considering actions based on hasty judgement rather than thoughtful justice, and we are in grave danger of allowing fear rather than freedom to control our decision-making process; and

As people of faith and as veterans we assert our right to warn our government’s leaders that current practices regarding those who have been detained within our national borders, treatment of those American citizens arbitrarily labeled as “enemies,” and suppression of information under the guise of “national security” significantly undermine the Constitutional principles we were called to defend, a call embodied in the oath we took:

I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same . . ..

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