Moore Vows to Continue Fight for Ten Commandments

Chief Justice Roy S. Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court refused to back down from his defense of a Ten Commandments display Thursday despite a decision by his eight judicial colleagues to move the 2.5-ton monument.

"The fight to defend our constitutional rights to acknowledge God must and will continue," Moore told a crowd of supporters. "Very soon, we will file a petition for writ of certiorari before the United States Supreme Court to resolve clearly our inalienable rights to acknowledge God under the First Amendment."

Earlier Thursday, the eight associate justices of the Alabama Supreme Court voted to have the monument removed by the judicial building manager. The justices, who have the power to override Moore's administrative decisions, took the step after a federal judge threatened to fine the state $5,000 per day.

Republican Gov. Bob Riley and Attorney General Bill Pryor, both defenders of the Ten Commandments monument, hailed the justices' decision.

"Although I fundamentally disagree with what the federal courts have ordered, the state Supreme Court was correct in unanimously voting to uphold the rule of law," Riley said in a statement.

The governor, who is grappling with a budget deficit, said the fines could have added up to $1 billion within four months.

Pryor immediately filed the justices' order with the U.S. District Judge Myron H. Thompson, who set a deadline of midnight Wednesday for Moore to remove the monument. The deadline expired without much incident, although about 20 people were removed from inside the courthouse after refusing to leave.

The Rev. Rob Schenck, president of the National Clergy Council, was among those arrested. He said it's never a pleasant experience to be detained by police, but this particular situation warranted such a stand.

"I'm certainly ready [to be arrested again] if that's necessary," Schenck said. "The Commandments are still on public display. No appears to be moving them or attempting to move them. But there are plenty of people now - scores of people - who are willing to risk arrest."

Schenck has teamed with the Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, to coordinate events in Montgomery throughout the week, including round-the-clock prayer vigils.

Defenders of Moore strongly objected to a decision made earlier in the day to shield the monument with a screen. Moore reportedly left a funeral to see that it was removed.

Later Thursday morning, the eight associate justices made their decision asking that that monument be moved from public view. Moore has dismissed suggestions that he place the monument in his office to comply with the court order.

In their order, the justices stated: "The refusal of officers of this court to obey a binding order of a federal court of competent jurisdiction would impair the authority and ability of all of the courts of this state to enforce their judgments."

Despite their defense of the Ten Commandments monument, Riley and Pryor condemned Moore for refusing to obey the law.

"The rule of law means that no person, including the chief justice of Alabama, is above the law," Pryor said. "The rule of law means that when courts resolve disputes, after all appeals and arguments, we all must obey the orders of those courts even when we disagree with those orders."

Alabama political observers like Johnny Green, who taught political science at Auburn University, said Pryor and Riley have taken a safe route by defending the monument while still vowing to uphold the law.

President Bush nominated Pryor for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, although Democrats have singled him out and raised objections to his so-called extremist views.

As for Moore, Green said this is likely the beginning of a quest for higher office. With Riley hurting politically because of an unpopular tax proposal, Moore could situate himself nicely for a run at governor in 2006, Green said.

Green said the state is split over the Ten Commandments question, but he said voters knew what they were getting by electing Moore to office. He has made clear his strong religious beliefs as well as his distaste for federal involvement in state issues, Green said.

"Remember, this is a place where they believe in states' rights," Green said. "So anytime the federal government tells Southerners what to do, they vehemently reject that and despise that. Alabamians would rather get a gun and fight than sit down at the table and discuss it sanely."

Common Law was NOT legislated, it is an accumulation of decisions made and accepted over time as the law, and Common Law changed over time. The first laws are the Laws of Hammurabi, 6000 BC, known as the eye-for-an-eye, survival of the fittest and quite barbaric, however accepted in its time. America's development took place after the Ten Commandments had become the source of Common Law decisions, and therefore easily befitting the Puritans, who were christians. Although the Ten Commandments are Old Testament, and were given to Moses on the Mount after Israelites exit from Egypt and before Christ was born, they are part of Bible. There was no written "Bible", as we know it now, but at time Ten Commandments were given, those tablets of stone were the first written laws given to Israel. AS Gentiles were evangelized per Jesus instruction they took a backseat to his two new commandments "Love God with all you heart, all your mind and all your soul." and the second one "Love your neighbor as yourself".
England was part of the Roman Empire at one time, and as the Empire fell and territory was lost, it came down to Constantine (who many claim was christian convert, I do not know), but in the end he divided the Roman Empire to Four Leaders. England lost the Romaninfluence and their laws were then influenced by protestant missionaries who came and evangelized the area. St. Patrick was Catholic missionary and his influence was felt strongest in Ireland. The two opposing religious influences are still being felt today, as we know by warring of catholics and protestants.
I don't know if I have answered your questions, and I am sure there is a typo or grammar mistake, so take your best shot! I am a christian, but that is not my reason for wanting the Ten Commandments left where they are. I want history to remain true, and if we allow them to be removed...then the "right to free speech" is over. Textbooks would have to become politically correct and any reference to Ten Commandments would be removed, and when truth is removed it is replaced with a lie. Is that what you want?

My Dear Sirs:
While it is certainly not my wish to interrupt your long-standing and highly entertaining exchange on the subject of the relationship betwixt what we have come to generalize as "British Common Law" and the sum of 'Judeo-Christian Values', I cannot help but feel you might both be interested if not intrigued to learn that many believe Judeo-Christianity has had a presence in the British Isles since centuries Before Christ. Both of you gentlemen seem prepared of regular learning to uncover the secrets of what is sometimes termed British-Israelitism. Any student of British history must eventually tackle this subject to a degree. My study of the material derived from a very interesting set of circumstances whilst I was engaged upon the enterprise of proving the supremacy of the Imperial System to the Metric System. The facts that I was to uncover about the nature of these measuring systems, and indeed the historical Judeo-Christian tradition of the British Isles are so unbelievable that almost every single scholar has dismissed them out of hand immediately. These I cannot re-state here for they are certainly too far out of the realm of that which is accepted too readily by the bulk of academia. I urge you both however to continue your quest for the origin of the British Common Law in this area. You will certainly not be disappointed in what you learn. A simple note on reliability of accounts; Please bear in mind that no mainstream scholar today is convinced in any great degree of the reliability of histories of any era without a plurality of accounts and manuscripts. It falls to the individual scholar, such as yourselves, to judge manuscript evidence and reliability of primary source material in this and every subject of early history, from this largely un-documented era. good luck!

Oh really I am unquailfied

Numbers

31:1
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
31:2
Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites: afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people.
31:3
And Moses spake unto the people, saying, Arm some of yourselves unto the war, and let them go against the Midianites, and avenge the LORD of Midian.
31:4
Of every tribe a thousand, throughout all the tribes of Israel, shall ye send to the war.
31:5
So there were delivered out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for war.
31:6
And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand of every tribe, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the holy instruments, and the trumpets to blow in his hand.
31:7
And they warred against the Midianites, as the LORD commanded Moses; and they slew all the males.
31:8
And they slew the kings of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; namely, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they slew with the sword.
31:9
And the children of Israel took all the women of Midian captives, and their little ones, and took the spoil of all their cattle, and all their flocks, and all their goods.
31:10
And they burnt all their cities wherein they dwelt, and all their goodly castles, with fire.
31:11
And they took all the spoil, and all the prey, both of men and of beasts.
31:12
And they brought the captives, and the prey, and the spoil, unto Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and unto the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the camp at the plains of Moab, which are by Jordan near Jericho.
31:13
And Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and all the princes of the congregation, went forth to meet them without the camp.
31:14
And Moses was wroth with the officers of the host, with the captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, which came from the battle.
31:15
And Moses said unto them, Have ye saved all the women alive?
31:16
Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.
31:17
Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him.
31:18
But all the women children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.

And he did the same with the Amorites and in Heshbon.

So please educate me, I been asking this question for about 20 years and you Christians just dodge it.

Why are Stalin, Hilter, Pol Pot, Saddam, etc are viliians while this psycopath is a hero?

I really want to know.

And please don't say because God told him to do it according to Osama bin Laden God told him to do it also.

Unless you are against all wars, and all bloodshed, and are a conscientious objector for some reason, then why would Moses be any different than any other military leader in a war who listens to his Commander-in-Chief?
Why are you asking me anyway? I only want the Ten Commandments left in Court Building because they are part/parcel of origin of our laws. I would be just as angry if they were trying to remove Leondardi di Vinci's name from Mona Lisa...historical facts should not be tampered with...period.
What you are quoting is OLD TESTAMENT history of when Jews were told to take Israel as promise land given by God to them for homeland, and to their descendents forever. It is not New Testament, and Jesus didn't say it, so why should christians be ones answering your question, go ask Jews in Israel?

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