On the 10 Commandments, the Christians, and the ACLU- Micah

The 10 Commandment issue has finally arrived in the Supreme Court. It was all over NPR today. Can I just say that some people need more to do with their lives? Both sides of the fence on this one are completely bored if all they have to do is fight about whether or not we can look at the Big 10 in public places.

But here are my two cents: If I were about to be tortured unless I chose a side about this, I would probably side with the ACLU. That's because Christians are saying that they want the 10 displayed publicly because "the 10 Commandments were foundational in the formation of America." Since when have Christians really given a rat's ass about what the founding fathers were thinking when they founded America? They don't really care about that, they just know that they cannot say, "We really like the ten commandments and since we want the whole nation to be just like us, we think everyone should be forced to look at them in all public places so maybe, just maybe they will be convicted of their sins, fall on their knees, and ask Jesus into their hearts." Because if they said that they would be laughed out of court. So they have chosen to stand on the (debatable) premise that they are just reminders of our history.

What I find hilarious, though, is the fact that most of this hubbub started around a display in Texas of the 10 carved in granite. It has been there since the 50's. Since then many of the Christians have deemed this their modern ark of the covenant and think it should be repeated on all government sites. What cracks me up is the fact that this specific display was a gift from Cecil B. DeMille as a promotional tool for his famous movie, "The Ten Commandments." It didn't even start out as a religious statue. It would be kind of like me going to the movie theater and finding a life-size standup of Constantine, embossing it in gold and placing in front of a post office. Then fifty years later all my Christian grandchildren are fighting the ACLU because they think all post offices should have their own life size standup embossed Constantines. And the crazy circle continues.

Okay so maybe that's not the best example, but hopefully in 50 years Christians will have begun to take a stand for things that matter and leave alone so much of the stupid stuff most of the world knows us for.

Comments

[cheek]

I generally consider myself to be radical about the separation of church and state, but I think I'm with you on this one Micah. It just doesn't seem to matter, but I'm hoping for the ACLU to triumph as well because I think Roy Moore is a cockass, and it pisses me off when cockasses compare their own religious bigotry to Martin Luther King.

[kristen]

Thanks to Zalm (http://www.fromthesalmon.com/)for his Vonnegut quote:

"For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us never mention the Beatitudes. But, often with tears in their eyes, they demand that the Ten Commandments be posted in public buildings. And of course that’s Moses, not Jesus. I haven’t heard one of them demand that the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, be posted anywhere."

[zalm]

you just can't go wrong with a reading out of the KVJ.

the idea of a golden keanu in front of the post office still makes me laugh. then again, i've actually made a pilgrimage to pay tribute to a bronze jimmy stewart, so maybe i'm not one to talk.

(thanks for the mention, kristen. i tried me one of them trackbacks i hear the kids talking about, but wordpress apparently didn't deliver the goods. it has been suitably punished.)

[Brandon]

Good call, Micah.