Marine veteran court-martialed for posting Bible verse in workplace

Monifa Sterling is appealing her original conviction.

One day, Marine veteran Monifa Sterling went to work, discovering that her posted copies of a Bible verse was torn and in the trash. Sterling's supervisor and other Marines were apparently not fond of her choice to post the Bible verse, according to The Blaze. She was convicted through court martial in February 2014; Sterling is now appealing.

MUNTINLUPA, PHILIPPINES (Catholic Online) - "Her supervisor - who just so happens to be her former drill instructor - saw the verses and told her to take [them] down, and she asserted that she believed it was her First Amendment right to put those up," said her lawyer, Atty. Michael Berry, as cited from The Blaze report.

According to The Blaze, Sterling posted up her own version of the verse from Isaiah 54:17, "No weapon formed against me shall prosper."

For some reason, her colleagues and the staff sergeant disliked her inspirational message: "'No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and this is their vindication from me,' declares the Lord."

Sterling explained that the other Marines have their own messages posted in respective workspaces. She testified that the inspirational messages were to encourage her through the tough time she is experiencing in the Marines.

A feew months after the issue about the Bible verse, Sterling was accused of "very, very minor technicality-type offenses," according to Berry, which was included in the court documents as her repeated defiance of the orders. These claims included an instance where she did not wear military dress uniform, which was suggested against by a doctor after a back injury treatment.

"This case is very important from a precedent setting standpoint... correcting what's clearly a wrong. It's the first case that I'm aware of [that will test] whether or not and how RFRA applies to service members who have sincerely held religious views," Berry argued after the appeal's previous rejection by the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Appeals.

Now, Sterling is trying to find a job outside of the military. She will no longer receive any benefit for being a veteran.

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