Religion makes people better department.
Let’s say you lived in Giles County, Va., a rural enclave of about 17,000 people in the southwestern portion of the state. Let’s say you were a high school student and you were opposed to the school board’s decision to post the Ten Commandments in your school.
Would you be eager to be public about it?
Nope. I’ve learned too much about how a great many people feel about perceived attacks on their religion.
At AU, we know from experience that plaintiffs in church-state lawsuits can and do experience harassment. When we sued Judge Roy Moore, Alabama’s infamous “Ten Commandments judge,” the plaintiffs were named. That means people could track them down – and some did.
During the litigation, plaintiff Melinda Maddox , who was newly married, returned from her honeymoon to find that the windows of her house had been shot out.
As I noted in a February blog post about plaintiffs in church-state cases, it can take real courage to stand up for church-state separation in court. Consider the case of Joann Bell, a mother in Little Axe, Okla., who protested religious activity in her children’s public schools in 1981. Her home was burned down by an arsonist.
But don’t forget: religion makes people better.
8 comments
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Wowbagger, Madman of Insleyfarne
September 20, 2011 at 3:52 pm (UTC -7) Link to this comment
As they say: you will know they are Christians by their love.
Brother Yam
September 20, 2011 at 3:59 pm (UTC -7) Link to this comment
You’re just focusing on the bad cases…
/snark
Roger
September 20, 2011 at 6:29 pm (UTC -7) Link to this comment
“But don’t forget: religion makes people better.”
Just think what they’d be like if they weren’t religious.
Katherine Lorraine, Chaton de la Mort
September 21, 2011 at 10:50 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment
It’s all in context, Ophelia.
julian
September 21, 2011 at 5:24 pm (UTC -7) Link to this comment
Obviously these aren’t true Christians.
ginmar
September 21, 2011 at 7:26 pm (UTC -7) Link to this comment
You’d think if Jesus loved them as much as they say he’d give them more brains.
Chris
September 22, 2011 at 8:34 pm (UTC -7) Link to this comment
No, see, clearly Christianity makes people better. If they had been Christians, there wouldn’t have been any arson, and it would have been better! QED
Ms. Daisy Cutter
September 24, 2011 at 8:45 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment
“You folks are allowing Satin to rule you!!!”
Religion also makes people S-M-R-T.