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Faith Community Welcomes Former Army Sergeant

Recently the congregation at the Temple Emmanuel in Baltimore invited me to speak at their Friday service about the harms of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and how it forces our men and women in uniform to hide who they are. I was honored to spend Friday evening with them and felt very welcomed by them. It was the first time I ever attended a Jewish service. I sat on the Bima with the Rabi and tried my best to follow along with the Hebrew portions of the sermon. Although I felt slightly out of my element, I cherished the invitation to attend and educate these strangers, the majority of whom are straight. I took the floor in lieu of the Rabbi's gospel deliverance and spoke of my experience in the Army, my times serving in silence under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and ultimately when I broke my silence to speak out about the harm and discrimination that flows from this unjust law.

At the close of the sermon I spoke with the men, women and children who had attended. Veterans from different branches of our military were in attendance and asked me how hard it is to hide your true self while offering to sacrifice your own life to protect the liberty of others. I shook many hands, exchanged business cards and enjoyed learning about a faith that I never experienced. While I was there to educate a small community, I was also the student learning and being enlightened by a culture that had always been foreign to me.

03-31-09 By Darren Manzella, former U.S. Army Sergeant |