Christmas is one week and one day away. Because of this, I have chosen to deal with
the idea of the War Against Christianity from a “Christmas” standpoint today.
Christmas – the very word brings certain visions to one’s
mind that do not appear but during this special season. Christmas trees, decorative lights and
tinsel, holly and mistletoe, a certain “jolly ol’ Elf and his magnificent
flying reindeer, and, most importantly, a baby wrapped in ‘swaddling clothes’
and lying in a manger surrounded by an assortment of farm animals, shepherds and
three particularly well-dressed men from afar, as well as his mother and
earthly dad; all gazing intently down at this newborn child. And while the wise men did not actually arrive until sometime later - "...behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him:..." (Matthew 2:9-11) - the depiction of the Christ-child's birth has been presented in cities, towns, and hamlets from early times of our nation's history.
And then those who were intent on rewriting history and resetting our moral compass engaged in a plan which stealthily injected their ideology of decay into the foundations of society. what had been a century-and-a-half of precedent was now cast aside. Why? Because throughout time there have been those intent on undermining the religious foundations of any people who serve the One true God.
Let us analyze the concept of precedent first. I mentioned it briefly in the last post, and pointed out that it had been blatantly ignored. A precedent is "a legal decision or form of proceeding serving as an authoritative rule or pattern in future similar or analogous cases" - and/or - "any act, decision, or case that serves as a guide or justification for subsequent situations" according to Dictionary.com.
Court rulings have upheld the ability of governments to place Nativities in their courthouse lawns, entryways, and anywhere else, including a ruling as recent as 1984 where the Supreme Court ruled that a Nativity was not in violation of the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution (Lynch v. Donnelly, 465 U.S. 668 (1984) In fact, the Court insisted that the Constitution and associated Amendment "affirmatively mandates accommodation, not merely tolerance of all religions, and forbids hostility toward any."
And then came 1989. The Supreme Court, ignoring the precedent of five years prior, and in keeping with the agenda of disassociating all Christianity with government (for some reason the idea of other religions doesn't seem to bother them), found that a Nativity in a government building, and, thereby, on government property, unconstitutional.
Court rulings prior to 1948 found no difficulty in an association of Christianity with government proceedings. In fact, in the case of Holy Trinity v. the United States (143 U.S. 457 (1892), the court stated very clearly, after referring to business and government closures on Sundays, churches in every town, and other indicators, "These, and many other matters which might be noticed, add to a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic utterances that this is a Christian nation."
Then in 1948 the Supreme Court found that religious instruction in public schools was a violation of the "Establishment Clause" of the First Amendment. (It amazes me that our Founding Fathers and 150 plus years of previous rulings and actions did not see it so.) Then in 1961 the Court found that no state could require a public official to acknowledge the existence of God. This was followed in 1962 and 1963 with rulings stating that no prayer could be exercised in public schools, and no Bible reading over public address systems, or any other school-sponsored activity, could be performed. In 1968 a ruling stating that a ban on teaching evolution was unconstitutional, and this was followed by a ruling in 1987 that no school could require "creation science" to be taught whenever evolution was taught. (Trust me, I will get to the ridiculous nature of these rulings in the future.)
Many other rulings have ignored well over one hundred years of precedent. Had our Founders perceived that such activities were unconstitutional, they would never have initiated them in the first place! Even the more un-Christian Founders had an active role in being certain the Bible was taught in the public schools of the nation.
And now back to Christmas. Oh...there can be trees decorated in festive colors. There can be other such displays. But NO JESUS, according to many.
I watched a Sean Hannity program last week where a guest he had on the program stated that you could most definitely celebrate Christmas without religion: That a Christmas without Jesus was most definitely acceptable and could be accomplished. REALLY?!!! A CHRISTMAS WITHOUT CHRIST?!!! What does he think CHRISTMAS is?
The Christian is under assault in so many ways in today's society. I, for one, believe it is time to be certain our voices are heard. And if our leaders cannot accommodate us in our faith, then I believe we should assist them in seeking employment elsewhere; to give them an opportunity to reestablish themselves in other work possibilities. I believe it is time to elect those who share our values, and who will place those in judicial positions who will return us to the place we were intended to be.
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord..." Psalm 33:12 (NKJV)
Merry Christmas to one and all. And may the Peace of God fill your hearts this glorious season in celebration of the Born Savior, Son of God, Jesus Christ, Lord of All.
Rex Louth
Colorado Springs, Colorado
And then those who were intent on rewriting history and resetting our moral compass engaged in a plan which stealthily injected their ideology of decay into the foundations of society. what had been a century-and-a-half of precedent was now cast aside. Why? Because throughout time there have been those intent on undermining the religious foundations of any people who serve the One true God.
Let us analyze the concept of precedent first. I mentioned it briefly in the last post, and pointed out that it had been blatantly ignored. A precedent is "a legal decision or form of proceeding serving as an authoritative rule or pattern in future similar or analogous cases" - and/or - "any act, decision, or case that serves as a guide or justification for subsequent situations" according to Dictionary.com.
Court rulings have upheld the ability of governments to place Nativities in their courthouse lawns, entryways, and anywhere else, including a ruling as recent as 1984 where the Supreme Court ruled that a Nativity was not in violation of the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution (Lynch v. Donnelly, 465 U.S. 668 (1984) In fact, the Court insisted that the Constitution and associated Amendment "affirmatively mandates accommodation, not merely tolerance of all religions, and forbids hostility toward any."
And then came 1989. The Supreme Court, ignoring the precedent of five years prior, and in keeping with the agenda of disassociating all Christianity with government (for some reason the idea of other religions doesn't seem to bother them), found that a Nativity in a government building, and, thereby, on government property, unconstitutional.
Court rulings prior to 1948 found no difficulty in an association of Christianity with government proceedings. In fact, in the case of Holy Trinity v. the United States (143 U.S. 457 (1892), the court stated very clearly, after referring to business and government closures on Sundays, churches in every town, and other indicators, "These, and many other matters which might be noticed, add to a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic utterances that this is a Christian nation."
Then in 1948 the Supreme Court found that religious instruction in public schools was a violation of the "Establishment Clause" of the First Amendment. (It amazes me that our Founding Fathers and 150 plus years of previous rulings and actions did not see it so.) Then in 1961 the Court found that no state could require a public official to acknowledge the existence of God. This was followed in 1962 and 1963 with rulings stating that no prayer could be exercised in public schools, and no Bible reading over public address systems, or any other school-sponsored activity, could be performed. In 1968 a ruling stating that a ban on teaching evolution was unconstitutional, and this was followed by a ruling in 1987 that no school could require "creation science" to be taught whenever evolution was taught. (Trust me, I will get to the ridiculous nature of these rulings in the future.)
Many other rulings have ignored well over one hundred years of precedent. Had our Founders perceived that such activities were unconstitutional, they would never have initiated them in the first place! Even the more un-Christian Founders had an active role in being certain the Bible was taught in the public schools of the nation.
And now back to Christmas. Oh...there can be trees decorated in festive colors. There can be other such displays. But NO JESUS, according to many.
I watched a Sean Hannity program last week where a guest he had on the program stated that you could most definitely celebrate Christmas without religion: That a Christmas without Jesus was most definitely acceptable and could be accomplished. REALLY?!!! A CHRISTMAS WITHOUT CHRIST?!!! What does he think CHRISTMAS is?
The Christian is under assault in so many ways in today's society. I, for one, believe it is time to be certain our voices are heard. And if our leaders cannot accommodate us in our faith, then I believe we should assist them in seeking employment elsewhere; to give them an opportunity to reestablish themselves in other work possibilities. I believe it is time to elect those who share our values, and who will place those in judicial positions who will return us to the place we were intended to be.
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord..." Psalm 33:12 (NKJV)
Merry Christmas to one and all. And may the Peace of God fill your hearts this glorious season in celebration of the Born Savior, Son of God, Jesus Christ, Lord of All.
Rex Louth
Colorado Springs, Colorado
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