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A Wall Has Two Sides – So Does Separation of Church and State
By The Apostle | August 30, 2007
“A Wall of Separation between Church and State” aka “Separation of Church and State” A phrase so common these days it has become a cliche. It is generally accepted that this statement from Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptist Association means that the religion should be kept out of politics.
In the interests of the whole of a nation, this is a proper opinion. However, it is my great fear that the wall of separation has been seen as a semi-permeable wall; that is, it is seen as unbreachable by Church but not by the State.
To give an example, I was advised of a special meeting of the Evesham Townsip Board of Education tonight in Marlton, NJ. A group of parents are planning to attend the meeting to speak out about compulsory education on sexual orientation and transgenderism which is contrary to their religious faith and beliefs. They fear a repeat of a ruling in Massachusetts which stated that such a program was required for children as young as kindergardners, and that parents had no option to opt out.
When the Danbury Baptist Association wrote President Jefferson in October of 1801, they expressed concern: (source)
Our Sentiments are uniformly on the side of Religious Liberty – That religion is at all times and places a matter between God and Individuals – That no man ought to suffer in Name, person or effects on account of his religious Opinions – That the legitimate Power of Civil Government extends no further than to punish the man who works ill to his neighbor.
To which Jefferson replied:
Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between Church and State.
If this ruling is any indication, the state of Massachusetts no longer adheres to this idea that an individual is answerable only to his God, and that in matters of their faith they are accountable to no one else, or to the idea that ‘legitimate’ powers of government are limited to actions and not opinions. It has been made clear that no opinion is acceptable save for the opinion to be taught in MA schools regarding sexual orientation, and failure to comply will result in the usual truancy charges which I believe still include prison for the parents.
The nightmare the Danbury Baptists feared – that someone might “suffer in Name, person or effects on account of his religious Opinions” has come true in Massachusetts in a country where the words that were meant to reassure them are repeated ad nausem “separation of Church and State.”
I can only imagine that:
1) The judge in the case saw, as many have, that the wall of separation may be breached by the State to legislate religious opinion, but that religious opinion may not influence the State.
2) That the said judge saw the religious opinions of the parents as accountable to him, and must have some delusion of being a god to whom an founding father thought reckoning of such opinions is due.
Either way, the ruling is blasphemous – which coming from an agnostic church is a pretty severe criticism.
While the Church of Man has no specific teachings on the subject matter to be taught, it is concerned when it comes to the rights of individuals to practice their religious freedom – including the right to hold moral opinions for which they are not answerable to any government representative or body. Therefore, the Church of Man wishes the parents involved at the Board of Education meeting in Marlton tonight the very best wishes in preserving their faith and convictions from the interference of their government.
Tags: Separation between Church and State, Separation of Church and State, Thomas Jefferson, Danbury Baptist Association, religion, politics, Board of Education, education, Religious Liberty, God, Massachusetts, Church, State, moral opinions, Church of Man
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