Posted on 12/29/2004 11:16:18 AM PST by Brainhose
My grandparents took this pic sometime in the early 60's
Can you imagine God being mentioned at a State Park today?
It'll never happen.
Once the ACLU found out about it, it'd be gone in a heartbeat. Cherish the pic; it's a part of bygone Americana.
Great pic! LOL funny.
Too bad it would get torn down in a nanosecond these days.
I am in complet agreement with you... seriesly!
My Uncle Bryan, the law professor -- yes, there are three Bryans in my family, it gets confusing -- conducts an outreach ministry. He is an ordained minister and conducts services in state penitentiaries, county jails and a state park in Pennsylvania, and has done this for many years.
Services would be held at one of the park pavilions on Sunday mornings from May through August, for the benefit of families camping in the park on their vacations. A few of the Park Service employees and their families also attended. There were 30-60 people in attendance each week. A couple of well-known hymns (Bryan's wife providing accompaniment on a portable keyboard), a bland 20-minute sermon, passing the offering plate around, a Doxology and a closing prayer.
Nothing the slightest bit oppressive about it. Nothing that was the least bit disrespectful of other religions. And the offering frequently failed to cover Uncle Bryan's costs (gasoline and photocopying the little hymnal).
One year, with a new gang of left-wingers taking charge at the Department of Natural Resources, these non-denominational services at the state parks were cancelled. Uncle Bryan didn't complain. But the complaints and letters from the campers must have been numerous, because one of the rangers contacted Uncle Bryan and invited him to resume the weekly services at the end of the summer.
The campground had a little weekly newsletter, and the local park staffers were so worried about losing their jobs that the mention of "church at the pavilion" in the newsletter, a weekly feature in previous years, was not revived. After all, you never know who might be on the mailing list. But they had bulletin boards outside the rangers' office and elsewhere, and flyers were posted.
I'm told that the first Sunday of resumed services had a larger than usual crowd and the collection plate was full.
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