Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptainHaplo
The first amendment you say?
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
Where in that - which is the entire text - state that there must be a seperation between religion and government? It says that government cannot DICTATE religion to the people - which is clearly understood. However, the idea that somehow religion must be EXCLUDED from governemnt is something else entirely! Thats my question - where does it state that religion is to be EXCLUDED from government?
Oh - and Rilder - trying to get to a spot where a leader is not allowed to use his own moral and yes - religious convictions - is not only impossible psycologically - it is also a blatently unconstitutional act in that it would be government (of the people, etc) thus PROHIBITING the FREE EXERCISE thereof.
For those who are offended at the HISTORICAL presence of xtian symbology (and there is alot of pagan symbology in our history as well) - your FREE to not look - and FREE to be offended if you do.
|
The First Amendment, plus Supreme Court rulings. The latter are just as important as the former.
Like it or not, the Supreme Court has ruled that the First Amendment means separation of church and state. Therefore, you can't just base your argument on the exact text of the Amendment, because the Supreme Court has said a lot more than that.
As an agnostic, I do believe that the Ten Commandments in a courthouse is offensive. A courtroom is a place where all should appear equal before the law, and I feel that displaying the Commandments indicates preference for those who believe in them. Yes, some of the Commandments are part of our law, but some aren't. The First Commandments states that one must believe in the Judeo-Christian God, and only that God. That's not American law, and it has no place in a courtroom.
Similarly, I don't like having "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance. I don't believe that we are under God. Why should I have to lie to pledge allegiance to my country?