Mt. Juliet Update
Posted on October 25, 2006
Cross Posted from Reveal The ACLU: Tonight , about an hour ago, over 600 people met at Lakeview Elementary School in a prayer vigil in response to the ACLU Suit against the school. You can read my previous articles on the topic here and here.
From Tennessean.com:
MT. JULIET — At 6:22 p.m. Tuesday, 600 people — some of them complete strangers — held hands, bowed their heads and began to pray.
“Our Father, who art in heaven.…”
Bundled up in jackets, hats and scarves, they stood behind Lakeview Elementary School here, determined to send a message that the fight to keep God in public school has just begun.
The prayer rally, organized by two Mt. Juliet commissioners, drew hundreds, with about 200 stuck in a 1.5-mile traffic jam. The event, which also attracted some local politicians and pastors, took place outside the school recently named in a lawsuit for alleged constitutional violations.
The Tennessee chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union in late September filed a suit claiming that the Wilson County school district and Lakeview Elementary endorsed and promoted religious activities on campus, crossing the line between church and state.
But those who came Tuesday night, some of them waving American flags, said it just isn’t so.
“I am a Christian and think that the ACLU is misguided in its efforts to keep the Praying Parents from meeting at the school,” said Melissa Groome, who has one child at Lakeview now. Two others previously attended the school.
She referred to a group of parents at the school that meets regularly and prays for the school, students and faculty.
“I think numbers show support,” Groome said, her three children standing beside her.
I can think of little more fitting response to the ACLUs ongoing attacks against the rights of Christians to participate in our public Schools that this. Non-violent, solemn, calm, and prayerful. I am sure this will not deter the ACLU, and hope it does not.
There was some opposing view at the prayer ralley, however.
Shortly before she and others listened in darkness to local leaders who proclaimed ACLU’s actions futile, two men stood quietly in front of the school building, holding protest signs.
“I came as a balance to the strong fundamental Christian community,” said Stan Bodner of Mt. Juliet.
“I am a spiritual person and respect everybody’s right to worship. But they should do this at other places than school and government places that peoples’ taxes support.”
Some passers-by offered to pray for the men.
The wackos at Westboro Baptist Church could learn a thing or two from this group. No hate, no hurled insults, just offers of prayer.
The response of this group in Mt. Juliet is what I would expect from a good Christian community. We do not set fires, kill nuns, or burn mosques in uncontrolled rage. Nor do we, to borrow a line from a dead emperor and a live pope, spread our faith by the sword.
It will be interesting to see how the ACLU responds.
» Filed Under 1st Amendment, ACLU, Church And State, News
Trackback URL
Comments
6 Responses to “Mt. Juliet Update”
Affiliations
The Giants
-
While it is beautiful to see people standing up against the ACLU it will not deter them. You want to know how they will respond? They will say they support these people’s right to protest and express their religion. They will say they just wish these people understood that they are trying to protect religion by attacking it.
They won’t stop the ACLU from proceeding, and perhaps the ACLU will win and get their way. But there’s nothing to stop the people of that community from acting in civil disobedience and praying anyway. Yes, that’s a major commitment, but if it’s something they feel that strongly about regarding their children, then it should be worth it.
The First Amendment GUARANTEES that no law can prohibit the free exercise of religion nor prohibit the people from assembling peaceably.
NOWHERE in the Constitution does it state there is to be “a separation of church and state”, which is their rally cry as to why such an action should be Constitutionally illegal. So their argument is without merit on its face, which may not mean anything to the courts, but it does to the American people.
While groups like the Alliance Defense Fund and the ACLJ help greatly by battling it out in the courts, I think the only thing that will ultimately stop the ACLU and their allies from criminalizing Christianity is the people of this country. The American desire for freedom was and is the foundation of this country and the foundation of the Constitution.
The ACLU may believe they are slowly converting this country to a socialist state, but if the desire for freedom is still strong within the American people, it won’t happen.
Very well said.
ACLU’s Double Standards
Crossposted from Stop The ACLU Liberals always act shocked and astonished that conservatives believe that an organization claiming to be the guardian of religious liberty is actually is actually America’s number one religious censor. They will spout o…
[...] There is no doubt that the ACLU are overzealous in their quest to secularize America and erase its Christian heritage. The good news is that there are organizations out there fighting them, and people standing up to protest against them. Currently they are attacking Lakeview Elementary School for promotion of a Prayer at the Flagpole event, a National Day of Prayer event, the activities of a “Praying Parents” group, teacher-led voluntary classroom prayers, and a Christian theme and overtly religious songs at a Christmas program. The school is not denying these charges but asserting that Muslim, Jewish, and Hindu students have “a constitutional right to pray or to read their scriptures at school as well. They did not cave in to the ACLU’s threats but gathered a group of over 600 people to protest the ACLU in a prayer vigil. The prayer rally, organized by two Mt. Juliet commissioners, drew hundreds, with about 200 stuck in a 1.5-mile traffic jam. The event, which also attracted some local politicians and pastors, took place outside the school recently named in a lawsuit for alleged constitutional violations. [...]
Jay,
If more people do what the people of Mt. Joliet have done then the politicians will respond. Congress has the ability to control the federal courts but chooses not to use it. If the people pressure them then they will use it or they will find themselves out of a job.
If Congress and the executive branch act together the judicial will give.