The Freedom From Religion Foundation is castigating Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for hijacking the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy commencement to deliver a Christian sermon and denigrate the nonreligious.

Speaking in his official capacity before more than 200 graduates on June 23, Duffy delivered in part a sectarian sermon rather than an inclusive or inspirational speech. He promoted prayer, invoked the Virgin Mary, and offered an unmistakably Christian message, concluding with, “Stay faithful and never underestimate the power of prayer.”

Duffy even went so far as to insult nonbelievers. In offering “a few life lessons I learned along the way,” he stated: “There are two kinds of people in life: those who believe in God and those who think they’re God.” This rhetoric, FFRF notes, is a blatant attempt to cast nonreligious Americans who reject religion for intellectual reasons as arrogant or morally deficient. He declaimed:

There are two kinds of people in life: those who believe in God and those who think they’re God. There’s something beautiful, humbling, and properly ordered about a man and woman who understand that there is a power greater than themselves. That everything is not in their control. And that they are the beloved child of a merciful God who hears their prayers. …

No one knows the unpredictability and storms of nature and life like a sailor. A good sailor knows that in the end, only God can calm the seas and bring them to safety. So stay faithful and never underestimate the power of prayer.

“As a representative of the federal government speaking in your official capacity, you are bound by our secular Constitution to remain neutral on matters of religion.” FFRF Legal Counsel Chris Line writes to Duffy. “Instead, you sent an exclusionary message to non-Christian graduates, including the many atheists, agnostics, Jews, Muslims and others who have chosen to serve their country.”

FFRF reminds Duffy that public officials have a constitutional duty to remain neutral on matters of religion and may not use their positions to promote their personal faith. Citing landmark Supreme Court cases, FFRF writes, “Americans have a constitutional right to be free from government coercion to observe religious practices.”

“This was a moment for unity and shared purpose,” says Annie Laurie Gaylor, FFRF co-president. “Instead, Duffy used it to impose his personal religion and imply that nonbelievers aren’t just wrong — they’re dangerous. That kind of thinking has no place in our government.”

FFRF is calling on Duffy to refrain from using official events to promote religion in the future and to remember that he serves all Americans, including the third of the nation that is religiously unaffiliated.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters of nontheism. With more than 42,000 members, FFRF advocates for freethinkers’ rights. For more information, visit ffrf.org.

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