If you visit the San Jacinto County Courthouse in Texas, you can see giant Christian crosses in the windows. There are four all around the building, and they’re apparently lit up during the holiday season. It’s an obvious sign that only Christians are truly welcome in the building.
So much for justice.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation wrote a letter to local officials two weeks ago calling for the removal of those crosses, and conservatives were up in arms over this attempted religious neutrality. (Or, as they prefer to think of it, this attack on Christianity.)
Yesterday, county lawmakers caved in and agreed to keep the crosses up, setting up a potential court case.
The county judge and four commissioners made the decision at a packed Commissioners Court meeting, where about 600 people showed up, following nearly two and a half hours of public comment.
“I am a Christian woman, a child of God. I’m here today as a servant of Jesus Church, our Lord and Savior, asking that the crosses on our courthouse in Coldspring be left on this building,” said one woman.
…
Pastor Phil Herrington of First Baptist Church said the FFRF conflicts with their freedom to express their religion.
“Their religion is humanism. What they’re saying is Christ followers cannot express their freedom, their voice of worship, their voice of God. Yet, they want to express themselves,” Herrington said.
“Freedom from Religion Foundation, you’re forcing up your beliefs upon others,” said Christian Stanley, a student of Cavalry Christian Academy.
All of those people are inadvertently proving FFRF’s point: This is government-sponsored Christianity. The crosses are meant to advertise one faith and one faith only.
Christians can obviously express their faith. The government cannot and should not take sides. For that pastor to claim FFRF is preventing the courthouse from expressing Christianity implies that the courthouse is promoting Christianity.
Also, that poor kid is the victim of educational malpractice.
Religious neutrality is not government-sponsored atheism. Putting up crosses in the courthouse is government-sponsored Christianity.
The fact that the citizens don’t understand that is a reflection of their ignorance. The fact that the elected officials choose not to understand it is a reflection of their incompetence.
The question now is whether the person who spoke to FFRF has the courage to move forward with a lawsuit given the inevitable backlash that would create. There can’t be a lawsuit without a local plaintiff affected by the crosses, and FFRF wouldn’t even bother suing unless someone was willing to take on the county. It’s not an easy request to make of anyone. But I hope someone in the community steps forward, otherwise these Christians are going to keep pushing their religion on everyone through the government.
The people deserve better than Christianity. They deserve neutrality.
(Screenshot via FOX. Thanks to Brian for the link)
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