 |
| Perry Signs the Merry Christmas Bill Standing second from the left is one of my favorite Texas Senators - Robert Nichols (R) who helped sponsor the bill |
We are guaranteed freedom of religion in the Constitution, not freedom FROM religion. The government has no power either to establish a state church or forbid a private one. Forbidding the expression of one's religious beliefs in the public square does not protect the free exercise of religion. Such prohibitions, rather, establish a state religion - atheism and demands obedience to its precepts by all.
Atheism is based on faith as surely as Christianity. In the case of atheism it is faith in a theory supported by science which changes its "facts" every half century or so in response to the latest theory. Faith is protected whatever it is. When we start enforcing faith by law, whether it's faith in a deity or faith in the absence of one, we start down a dangerous road.
And I do not care if Muslim kids pray to Mecca three times a day. Give them a place to perform their religious duties. There's nothing wrong with that so long as you allow Christian kids a place to pray or even Buddhist kids a place to meditate so long as it doesn't interfere with the school day. Expressing one's faith in prayer or meditation or even a moment of silence should not be a problem, so long as you aren't dancing naked in the lunch room, singing hymns out loud while people are studying or sacrificing a goat in gym class.
If the football team wants to pray, why not? Nobody is required to join the huddle. If a child feels intimidated by this, let him or her learn to buck up and serve their God with courage. Our teachers ought to encourage their students in that instead of trying to make schools a place where only atheism is encouraged and courage is, well, discouraged. It's just wrong!
(c) 2013 by Tom King
No comments:
Post a Comment