David Williams of Dorcas, Fla., prays Friday morning on the steps of the state Judicial Building.
Posted on 08/23/2003 9:20:29 AM PDT by george wythe
Edited on 05/07/2004 5:12:19 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
Many out-of-state visitors taking part in rallies for Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore were asking the same question Friday afternoon -- where is the area support?
Of the estimated 100 demonstrators who gathered outside the Judicial Building at 1 p.m., only a few were from Montgomery. Of the thousands who rallied for Moore a week ago, the majority were from states such as Florida, Mississippi, Illinois, Chicago, Texas, Tennessee and others.
(Excerpt) Read more at montgomeryadvertiser.com ...
Long before Moore was called to task for the monument's removal, Barnard said God spoke to him about the issue.
"I heard the Lord speak to me and say one day I would have to stand up for him (Moore)," Barnard said. "When the call finally came, my heart was already prepared for it."
The Rev. Karl Stegall of Montgomery's First United Methodist Church said, "I strongly believe in the Ten Commandments as the inspired word of God for all of us.
"I have personally been too busy trying to keep the Ten Commandments in the broad daylight to worry about a monument to the Ten Commandments that was brought into the Supreme Court Building in the middle of the night," Stegall said.
The minister took exception to criticism of Supreme Court Associate Justice Gorman Houston, who was one of eight justices who voted this week to have the monument removed from the rotunda of the Judicial Building.
Stegall said he particularily is upset by some of the sharp comments directed at Houston, who is a member of his congregation.
"To have someone refer to such a godly man as Justice Houston as a 'Judas' greatly offends me as his pastor," Stegall said. "I personally know that the associate justices are outstanding Christians of various denominations."
The Rev. Jay Wolf of the First Baptist Church on Perry Street said Friday afternoon that removal of the Ten Commandments monument from the Judicial Building lobby "is a symbol of just how far we are drifting from God.
"God has authored and sustained this nation," said Wolf, who attended the first major rally for Moore last Saturday and attended another one Thursday. "It looks like we are turning our backs on God and that is very disturbing to me."
Nell Deason of Cookville, Tenn., said she thought some Christians "are just too comfortable to rise up" and join those who have been on the front lines in their support of Moore.
"Alabama is a focal point for change and I just can't explain why more people from Montgomery are not," she said. "I do think that some Christians just don't know what's going on."
Kenneth Millican of Rising Fawn, Ga., said he had unusual accommodations Thursday night after arriving in Montgomery.
"I slept on the grass over there," said Millican, 55, who pointed to an area along Hull Street that borders the Judicial Building. "I brought along a quilt and slept on it."
Millican, who said he originally was from Valley Head in east Alabama, wore a sandwich board which said, among other things: "Impeach Myron Thompson." Thompson is the federal judge who ordered Moore to remove the two-ton monument from the lobby.
The protests had little impact on activities inside the building, where it was business as usual Friday.
"People are filing briefs and we're releasing opinions as we always do on Fridays," said Building Manager Graham George. "Appointments are being maintained, but we are not open for walk-in traffic until this situation resolves itself."
The main entrance has been locked, and those who need to conduct business are entering on McDonough Street.
Under state law, Moore cannot act as chief justice pending a decision on the charges by the Court of the Judiciary. Moore has 30 days to respond to the charges, after which a trial date will be set. If acquitted, he would return to his duties. If convicted, he could be censured, suspended without pay or permanently removed from office. If Moore were removed from office, the governor could appoint a replacement.Justice Gorman Houston, senior associate justice of the state Supreme Court, will be acting chief justice while the charges are pending.
[snip]
Pryor's office will represent the Judicial Inquiry Commission and prosecute Moore at his trial. The attorney general had supported keeping the Ten Commandments monument in the judicial building, but he said it was his responsibility to enforce a federal court's order if Moore defied it.
"I'm hopeful this can be resolved very soon so that the people of Alabama can move forward one way or another," Pryor said. "These are very serious charges. There needs to be a fair and impartial proceeding, and we need to resolve it."
[snip]
Process set in 1973:
The process used in this case is unusual but not unheard of. University of Alabama professor emeritus William Stewart said the JIC was set up in the 1973 revision of the Alabama Constitution's judicial article. Since then, Stewart could not recall the suspension of any chief justice.
But Associate Justice Harold See, a sitting member of the Supreme Court, was temporarily disqualified from serving when the JIC accused him in July 2000 of violating judicial ethics rules in campaign ads.
The ads accusing his opponent, Moore, of being soft on drug defendants. See was restored to the bench after he filed suit in federal court alleging that his right of free speech had been violated. The JIC eventually dropped the complaint against See.
Circuit Judge Randall L. Cole of Fort Payne now sits as the head of the nine-member commission, which is made up of other judges, lawyers and businesspeople.
Surely it couldn't be, lady, that many evangelical Christians (and other Christians) completely disagree with this charade.
"You got me in the frame? Does my hair look OK? OK, ready? Oh, Dear Lord..."
The 1st amendment provisions were written to prevent a "Church of America" in the style of "The Church of England".
I am going on the theory of 'original intent' here. The founders simply did not want a state religion. That does not mean that they were against religion in general.
From left are:
Ronald Brock of San Diego,
Troy Newman of Wichita, Kan.,
Tony Deason of Cookeville, Tenn.,
Gary Mayer of Brandon,Miss.,
and Bobby Smith of Pelahatchic, Miss.
Heh.
These idiots don't seem to understand the fact that the seperation of church and state was a concept proposed, not by atheists, but by men of some religious belief. They understood from the experience in Europe that a religiously neutral government was better than a government captured by one religion or another.
I've mentioned this before, but the problem with "original intent" is that so many of the rights and liberties of today that we know and love would simply disappear if we viewed the constitution purely through "original intent" glasses.
Original intent is a nice reference, and certainly should be considered, but that has to be coupled with today's social practices. In 1791, the Founders didn't think it necessary to provide indigents with attorneys when they were charged with crimes. Today, we view attorneys as "necessities, not luxuries," and the constitution requires that we appoint counsel to those who cannot afford it. I, for one, think this is a good thing; people should have attorneys when they are charged with crimes. It wasn't the original intent of the Founders, but it's a good idea, and I'm glad we've done it. I think most people agree--I haven't seen too many judges calling for the overrule of Gideon lately.
They wanted a religiously neutral government. You don't get that by forcing various specific religion's icons on people at taxpayer expense. Not everyone believes in the 10 Commandments, especially those commandments dealing with God ("Have no other Gods before me" etc.)
You can get your religion on private property. There is more than enough of it out there.
GOTCHA! :)
Tenth amendment! Under the tenth Gideon is perfectly constitutional.
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