Personally, I think there shouldn’t be an exception to the “no beard” rule. You sign up to become an Army of One, as they say, and to conform with the rest of the Army. You can’t meet those requirements? Don’t enlist.

But if you’re going to wave the rule for some people, you’ve moved beyond conformity. And in that case, why is the Army allowing beards for Muslims and Sikhs but not Jews?

A rabbi from Brooklyn, N.Y., is suing the Army over its “no-beard” policy, claiming the service violated his religious freedoms when it rejected him because he refuses to shave.

Menachem M. Stern’s lawsuit argues the Army is discriminating against him because it has waived the “no-beard” rule for several Sikhs and a Muslim, but not for him. Advocates hope the case, if successful, will pave the way for more bearded rabbis to become chaplains and minister to historically underserved Jewish soldiers.

“While they’re stalling me, they’re taking in other religions, for instance, Sikhs and Muslims with beards and turbans at the same time,” Stern said. “At that point, my question became, ‘Who says yes and who says no?’ It shows how in a great institution such as the Army, the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing.”