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Fairchild leaders gain deeper understanding of religious belief systems

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Veronica Montes
  • 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. --  A panel composed of Buddhist, Atheist, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Neo-pagan and Native American spiritualist members congregated Feb. 5, 2015 for a common goal - to educate local Air Force leaders on a sample of the various belief systems practiced in the military today.

The belief system representatives from the Spokane community attended the seminar as part of a new Let's Talk initiative, allowing Fairchild leaders and representatives to discuss social issues without barriers and concerns of attribution as it relates to their military position.

"This was a benchmark for Air Mobility Command, and the Air Force Equal Opportunity manager was interested in pursuing this as an Air Force initiative for the Department of Defense," said Senior Master Sgt. Daphne Soto, 92nd Air Refueling Wing Equal Opportunity director. "The goal of the seminar was to have individuals communicate about human relations in the military today. A lot of times we make assumptions and focus so much on getting the job done, we forget about the person behind the uniform."

The seminar began with introductions from each representative describing the tenants of their belief system and a synopsis of their practices. All panel members agreed it was great to be able to describe their culture and beliefs to military members.

"It is important that people understand these differences and I do find it beneficial for everyone," said Yisroel Hahn, a local Rabbi and panel member. "It is valuable to see what people's concerns are, and what is often neglected and overlooked."

Many topics were brought up for discussion during the four-hour event such as extremism, sexual orientation, religion in official ceremonies, diet restrictions and morals, yet the overarching theme was understanding the differences in other beliefs and respecting them.

"I felt the attendees were receptive, and I wish we had even more time to discuss," said Travis Jones, Fairchild Neo-paganism lay leader and panel member. "I think it would be a good initiative to do across the Air Force. I believe the more we learn about each other and the different belief systems, the better understanding we will have as to where Airmen are coming from."

The military leaders were able to ask questions of the panel members and get their honest perspective on various situations. The questions led to in-depth discussions and attendees were able to not only learn new things about beliefs, but gain guidance of how to lead their Airmen who may hold a different belief system or religion.

"This was very important for leaders to get the perception of the different religious representatives today. It goes into what we talk about by making our Airmen ready Airmen," said Col. Brian McDaniel, 92nd Air Refueling Wing commander. "A seminar like this is beneficial because it enhances your ability to communicate with each other."

While this was the first time religion was discussed during the Let's Talk seminar, the members said they gained a wealth of knowledge and it is something they hope to pursue more in the future.

"I think it is good to make sure leaders understand a wide variety of thought processes on the people they lead so they can better accommodate them," said 1st Lt. Stephen Goodwin, 92nd Security Forces Squadron flight commander. "Discussions like this can help with extinguishing the fear of the unknown and learn from diversity."

It was great to see leaders of all levels of management have honest discussion about belief systems to enhance their knowledge and expertise, Soto said. "Everyone learned some valuable insight to what the underlining commonality of belief systems is. That's the first time I've seen such a diverse panel. It goes to show you can have great dialog without debate involved. I even learned a great deal hearing first-hand experiences of their belief systems. I realized across the belief systems there is one common denominator, which is dignity and respect for all Airmen."