Posted on 05/02/2002 4:48:32 PM PDT by TaRaRaBoomDeAyGoreLostToday!
Edited on 04/22/2004 12:33:21 AM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
Christine Skarin and her daughters are suing over Woodbine High School's graduation song.
WOODBINE, Iowa
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Hyperbole
"The Constitution is abridged when the state affirmatively sponsors the particular religious practice of prayer."
If the court tells the school to not sing, and the school says "don't sing" and removes it from the program and the choir sings it anyway, is the school sponsoring it?
Say it, sing it, chant it, burp it, it is still prayer.
Is this a great country or what? Free Speech, what a concept.
Yeah, we are like the Founders. You know, the ones who held church services every Sunday in the House of Representatives. The ones who voted in Congress to import 20,000 Bibles from "Scotland, Holland or elsewhere." The ones in Congress who passed a law saying that 10,000 acres on the Muskingum River in the present state of Ohio "be set apart and the property thereof be vested in the Moravian Brethren . . . or a society of the said Brethren for civilizing the Indians and promoting Christianity."
Hey, if you want to ban freedom of religion, do it. Get some people together and pass a law. Repeal the first amendment.
Don't use unelected judges to get your agenda crammed down people's throats.
Liberal syllogism:
Major premise: All trees are green.
Minor premise: This is a tree.
Conclusion: We don't need to drill in ANWR.
Hyperbole.
Perhaps hyperbole, perhaps not. What seems harmless to you may inflame the heck out of others. Times were pretty tough before tolerance evolved.
From The French Wars of Religion by Mack P. Holt: The 1562 'Edict of January' by (Catholic) Catherine de Medici (then the regent of the young king) was "a very narrow and limited recognition of the Protestants' right to exist, however, forbidding them to practice or worship inside all towns, to assemble anywhere at night, and to raise arms. But for the first time in their short history in France, they were now allowed to preach openly in the countryside by day..." This was a big advance. Protestants had previously been burned and hanged.
"Catholic reaction to the edict...erupted in violence. ... The first shots were fired by troops of the [Catholic] duke of Guise, as he encountered a group of unarmed Protestants worshiping inside the town of Vassey." This happened in 1662. Roughly 40 Protestants died from the confrontation and another 25 were likely to die and more than 100 were wounded (The French Wars of Religion, Selected Documents by David Potter).
The duke of Guise blamed it on the Protestants, but I've read somewhere that most scholars accept the Protestant view of the massacre though opinions have always been divided. This was the opening of the first of the French Wars of Religion.
At least no coercive prayer. The rest is freedom of speech.
The most unbiased source I've found on Unitarianism is ,oddly enough, the 1908 edition of The Catholic Encyclopedia(excellent for non-religious history too.Full text on line). Perhaps Catholics are the best is because they have been fighting various antitrinitarian movements since they put down Arianism in the 4th century AD.
Not sure I follow your logic (not the first time). I take it you are trying to say if religion offends me, I should outlaw religion. Right? Wrong, though you apparently believe that is what I think.
I believe in the First Amendment and everyone's right to practice their religion voluntarily in their own place of worship. That is not enough for some apparently. Like the duke of Guise in the example above, some are offended that others don't practice religion the way they do. Or they want religion pushed on students in public school.
No thanks. So far the courts seem to favor my interpretation of the law, not yours.
Of course.
Yes, some courts agree with you. I'm surprised however to find a conservative happy with activist judges, fiat law, censorship of speech and the congress and constitution being overridden by 9 unelected judges.
All over a song and prayer. Geezzzz. As if religion is the biggest threat to liberty we face. Incredible.
Huh? Where did I say censor religion? I believe in the First Amendment and the ability of everyone to practice or ignore their religion as they see fit. Some apparently believe these rights can be overridden by the religious majority. The people are from the wrong century.
The religious wars of Europe led many persecuted people to flee to this country, my ancestors included. This helped lead to the freedom of religion which we all enjoy.
Are you in favor of state sponsored religion? If not, we agree on something.
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