by Jorge Gomez • 1 minute
The Coatesville VA Medical Center in Pennsylvania threatened to punish our client, Chaplain Rusty Trubey, for preaching a sermon. What’s more, his VA supervisor now wants to review and censor chaplain sermons, limiting the topics on which chaplains can preach.
This week, First Liberty and the Independence Law Center sent a letter asking U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins to take immediate action and eliminate the speech code being imposed by the VA.
“The government has no business censoring anyone’s sermon, including military chaplains,” said Erin Smith, Associate Counsel at First Liberty. “This is just the kind of woke policy that we anticipate Secretary Collins wants to purge from the VA.”
Chaplain Trubey is a current Army Reserve chaplain, veteran and former missionary who has served the veterans of the Coatesville VA for the last 10 years.
In June 2024, as part of his normal duties, Chaplain Trubey conducted a worship service in the chapel and preached a sermon from the first chapter of Romans. After the service ended, an onsite VA police officer approached him, alleging complaints made about his sermon. Chaplain Trubey informed his supervisor that the police had been called after his sermon.
After that, Chaplain Trubey was removed from his duties as chaplain and reassigned to logistics in the hospital stocking shelves. When he asked for an explanation, his supervisor said it was due to “inappropriate conduct” and because the message was based on a “very charged and divisive text.” Chaplain Trubey was investigated for several months and threatened with a reprimand on his permanent record.
After receiving our Letter of Representation, the VA facility suddenly rescinded this proposed reprimand. But his supervisor has implemented an unconstitutional review process. Under this new rule, Chaplain Trubey and all chaplains must have their sermons reviewed ahead of time. That means his supervisor has the power to decide what content in a sermon is “objectionable” and opens the door for other supervisors to punish chaplains simply for preaching a viewpoint they find offensive.
“Chaplains’ sermons hold a special place in the context of the First Amendment’s Free Speech protections, and chaplains do not forfeit those rights by virtue of their employment by the federal government,” our letter explains. “The VA punished Chaplain Trubey for exercising his rights and now proposes changes to the SOP that would allow the Coatesville Facility to continue violating his free speech rights and the rights of all chaplains.”
Chaplains serve a unique and essential purpose. They’ve been part of America’s military from the very beginning. During the War of Independence, George Washington established a chaplain corps to tend to the spiritual needs of our soldiers. Throughout our nation’s history, chaplains have served alongside our troops, providing spiritual support to our service members and veterans. They minister, pray and care for our wounded warriors.
Chaplains shouldn’t be punished for carrying out their religious mission and duties. They should be free to preach according to their religious convictions and denominational teachings without fear of censorship, retribution or retaliation. This is exactly what the U.S. Constitution and federal law demand, and it’s what the veterans at the Coatesville VA deserve.
The VA was wrong to punish Chaplain Trubey for preaching the Bible in a worship service—a requirement of his job description. And it would be wrong to punish any chaplain for it in the future. Secretary Collins has an opportunity to ensure that chaplains aren’t punished for doing what they’re supposed to do: share their faith and provide spiritual strength to our service members and veterans.
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