Religion Christian Denomination Assemblies of God | Nationality American Name Wes Modder | |
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freedom to stand by dr wes modder
Wesley 'Wes' J. Modder (born 1966) is a retired Marine and Christian former military chaplain in the United States Navy. He appeared in national headlines after the US Navy denied him religious accommodation to preach according to his denomination's doctrine on marriage and sexuality. Modder was also occasionally an author in ETHOS, a US Navy newsletter.
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Chaplain wes modder
Biography
Modder was born in Flint, Michigan, growing up in Clio, Michigan. He joined the US Marine Corps in 1984, moving up in the ranks for many years, including participation as Sergeant in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. He was later commissioned as United States Navy Chaplain in 2000. Chaplain Modder was promoted to Lieutenant Commander in October 2009, and has since been deployed to many fleets including that of US Navy Seals. He is honorably retired and currently resides with his family in Chicago, Illinois . He is Lead Pastor of the Assemblies of God Stone Church.
Legal Case
On December 6, 2014, Modder's temporary lieutenant junior grade officer and assistant LTjg Michael Balistari USN assisted by Chaplain Laura Bender CDR, USN brought two Equal Opportunity representatives and a five-page complaint against him. The complaint was on the grounds of discrimination of sexual orientation and different standards of respect including that of pre-marital sex. Unbeknown to Modder, his assistant was a married homosexual. Modder was later removed from duties and told to clean out his office. After his commanders concluded he was "intolerant and "unable to function in the diverse and pluralistic environment" he received a "detachment for cause" letter on February 27, 2015. On March 9, 2015, Modder sought assistance from Liberty Institute, which wrote a letter refuting the "detachment for cause" letter on legal grounds, and requested "religious accommodation" to continue his duties as a chaplain. This request was denied March 16, 2015. Modder's lawyers will appeal this ruling. From March 10, 2015, to present Modder has been temporarily assigned and relocated to Naval Support Activity Charleston while facing possible discharge if brought before the Naval board of inquiry. On March 24, 2015, a sailor at a neighboring command unexpectedly died, Modder was going to attend and minister at the funeral when the US Navy issued a “no contact” order and banished him from the base. Liberty Institute stated “To deny Chaplain Modder of the ability to minister to a grieving family and other sailors is deplorable.” On March 30, 2015, thirty-five members of Congress expressed their support for Wes Modder by sending a letter to Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Chief of Chaplains Rear Admiral Margaret Kibben, the same day the Restore Military Religious Freedom Coalition sent a petition containing over 100,000 individual signatures expressing their support for the Modder.
On September 3, 2015, the Navy Personnel Command exonerated Modder, clearing him of all wrongdoing. Rear Adm. David Steindl concluded that "evidence of substandard performance in this case does not meet the standard of gross negligence or complete disregard for duty". Liberty Institute, the law firm representing Wes Modder, stated “We always knew that when the facts came to light, the Navy would exonerate Chaplain Modder”. He was able to retire in good standing upon reaching his 21st year of Naval service.