If the U.S. military in Afghanistan burned copies of the Koran there would be an international outcry, but when the army destroys dozens of Bibles it provokes little protest or question. Al Jazeera TV recently reported on a soldier at Bagram air base whose home church sent him copies of the New Testament translated into local languages.

He never gave out the Bibles, since proselytizing is against orders, but he and his colleagues discussed making the books available to Afghan civilians who asked for them. After the Al Jazeera report, the Army brass seized the books and, reportedly, destroyed them. The sensitivity surrounding this story demonstrates that many observers, and even government officials, fail to recognize that it’s a good thing, and not a disgrace, if our men and women in uniform attempt to serve God as well as country.