Manchester, N.H., May 8, 2019 / 19:00 pm
A Bible once carried by a World War II prisoner of war is the center of a legal fight at a veterans' medical center in New Hampshire.
The Bible was part of a "Missing Man" table display, honoring prisoners of war and missing soldiers, placed at the entrance of the Manchester Veterans' Administration Medical Center. The bible was donated to the medical center by a 95 year old veteran and former POW to whom it belonged. The veteran had the Bible while he was a prisoner of war.
A federal lawsuit now argues that the Bible should be removed from display, because it violates the First Amendment by appearing to favor one religion over another.
The suit was filed by U.S. Air Force veteran James Chamberlain, a Christian, after months of back and forth between a group of veterans and the staff of the Manchester Veteran's Affairs Medical Center over the Bible. According to the New Hampshire Union Leader, 14 veterans and patients of the medical center filed complaints against the Bible with the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) in January of this year. These veterans were of varying religions; they were Protestant, Catholic, atheist, agnostic and of other religions, the Union Leader reported.