Posted on 12/10/2004 5:00:43 PM PST by Osage Orange
Mustang Residents Protest Nativity Ban
By Sarah Kahne
The Oklahoman
MUSTANG - "No Christ. No Christmas. Know Christ. Know Christmas." That was the sign held Thursday by a protester outside Mustang High School.
A community's outrage over the elimination of a nativity scene from a fifth-grade Christmas play was displayed in a quiet and reverent protest.
A manger with a baby nestled in the hay was surrounded by Mary, Joseph, a shepherd and wise men played by members of the community just outside the auditorium where Lakehoma Elementary students performed the revised version of their Christmas play.
The participants sang a solemn rendition of "Silent Night" on private property adjacent to the school while parents and students arrived for the play.
Onlookers stopped either because of curiosity or to show support for the protest. Drivers honked to show their support as they drove into the parking lot of the school.
Organizers estimated about 100 people showed up to protest banning the nativity scene from a play that celebrated Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and secular holiday rituals, but ignored the Christian element of Christmas.
Leann Williams protested alongside her two children who attend Lakehoma.
She said she was very upset over the decision to eliminate the nativity scene.
"You can't take Christ out of the season," she said. "If they wanted to eliminate the Christian element, they should have taken out Kwanzaa and Hanukkah."
Rich Schompert, who played the part of a wise man, said he decided to get involved in the grass-roots protest because God is eliminated too much from society.
"We'd have a lot less problems in the world if we had more Jesus," he said.
Parent Jamie Bolton said word of the school's decision spread like wildfire Tuesday, prompting her to hire a lawyer to fight the school's decision.
She said she's hired attorney Brently Olsson and will be filing a lawsuit against the school district.
"I just want to ensure this isn't going to happen again," she said. "If they're going to allow witches (in the play), then they should be able to include Jesus."
School officials said Thursday they stood by their decision to eliminate the nativity scene, citing separation of church and state.
Superintendent Karl Springer said the decision to eliminate the nativity scene from the annual holiday play was based on a legal opinion by the school district's attorney deeming the nativity inappropriate.
He said he appreciated parents wanting the children to be able to participate in a play that promotes the true meaning of Christmas, but unfortunately, a public school was not the appropriate place for such a performance.
Parent Nancy Harris said she couldn't agree with the school's decision.
"We're here because we're Christians and we live in the community," she said. "It's important for our schools to be a direct reflection of the community."
Equal time bump, baby!
Release Time is next.
And then--VOUCHERS.
Mustang RANCH?
Mustang, Oklahoma, just a little bit west of the center of the universe!
I was in OK City this week on business and this story was BIG on the local news last night. Some of these people are going to sue the school district.
Mustang, Oklahoma
The Mustang Ranch was a famous whore house in Nevada. I thought I was being funny.
:O
Why do they keep spouting about seperation of church and state? The constitution does not ban christmas, god, jesus or any other religious artifacts of anytype from government, and since when did a school qualify as "state" as if they are so pontifical government body laying down the law of the land! This stuff has got to stop, you can't ban one religion and keep the others. I hope they sue the pants off of them. The left doesn't know it but they are unleashing a huge backlash that is going to run them out of our schools finally!
Click here to contact the Superintendent
You will get the link with his e-mail addy and a phone number.
Thanks for the link
hearing about this today on local (MN) talk radio.
this could have HUGH ramifications that are SERIES for the
anti-Christs in the gomint schools all over America.
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