Click here to subscribe today or Login.
Tuesday, January 25, 2000 Page: 8A
I’m dismayed at the poor grasp many Americans have of their country’s roots.
Like it or not, the 55 framers of our Constitution were predominantly
Christians who, according to Russell Kirk, “drew their primary assumptions
about the human condition … from the Bible and … from the Book of Common
Prayer.”
The bedrock of our Constitution is the fundamental that our rights come,
not from the political caprices of governments, but from our Creator or God
and are, therefore, inviolable.
It does not follow that after proclaiming God the author of our rights, the
framers would then declare Him persona non grata on public property – that’s
like recognizing the lawful owner of a house and then forbidding him from
setting foot inside it.
Is it unconstitutional for public school teachers, officials, etc. to lead
children in denominational prayers? Yes.
Is it unconstitutional for students to lead themselves in prayer? No. The
government cannot prohibit the free exercise of religion. Period. The First
Amendment does not contain the words “except on public property.”
The argument goes that atheists, Hindus, Muslim Americans et al are
offended by Christian prayers and customs. Well, tough darts. They’re part of
America’s heritage and, without Christianity’s impact, there would be no free
soil to stand on to be offended.
Besides how can a country both guarantee religious expression and shield
such expression from its citizens? It can’t. It wasn’t meant to.
The influence of the Old and New Testaments on our Founding Fathers and the
institutions they created is inextricably woven into the fabric of American
culture.
Excise that influence and you unravel the country. Then where would the
offended go to be offended?
Fran McMullen
Dunmore