Posted on 01/18/2009 6:39:18 AM PST by kellynla
A Southwest Florida man who in past years has been allowed to distribute free Bibles to high school students on Religious Freedom Day was turned down this year by the district's superintendent.
Jerry Rutherford, president of World Changers, appeared before the Collier County School Board on Thursday to ask for a reversal of the decision but received the same response.
"This rejection is a slap in the face," said Rutherford, according to Naples News. "The decision to deny access to community groups that are religious in nature is censorship and bias."
In November, Rutherford routinely submitted his request to set up tables offering free Bibles to district students on Religious Freedom Day. But Superintendent Dennis Thompson, who had allowed the activity in the past two years, denied his request last week.
During the meeting with the district board, Rutherford cited the 1998 decision by a federal appeals court in Peck vs. The Upshur County School Board. The case upheld a West Virginia school district’s right to give out any outside materials both religious and non-religious in a passive manner one day a year.
The Orlando-based Liberty Counsel also sent a letter on behalf of Rutherford to the board asking for the reversal of the decision. The Christian legal group had even offered to litigate the district’s position for free.
But the board said it would stand behind the decision made by Thompson.
Rutherford says it's unconstitutional that he has been barred from passing out Bibles when the district allows other community groups, like the military, to distribute literature to students.
"We're losing our religious freedoms and that is very scary to me," he said, according to WINK News.
(Excerpt) Read more at christianpost.com ...
ping
CHANGE!
He probably could have passed out copies of the Quran with no objections.
There WILL be a judgement day for all of this.
Absolutely!
Needs to be appealed to the USSC....
"We're losing ALL of our religious freedoms and that is very scary to me,"
I’m not sure God is going to do anything if we don’t get busy!
Of that you can be sure.
3.1 BASE SALARY: The Superintendent’s base salary for the period of August 21 2007 and through and including June 30, 20011 shall be Two Hundred Forty Thousand Dollars ($240,000.00). The Superintendent’s base salary in subsequent fiscal years shall be established in accordance with Section 3.2 of this Agreement. In no event shall Dr. Thompson’s base salary be reduced during his employment without his written consent.From here.
Take the Dennis Thompson Quiz....
This guy is a total putz.
Wait until “The One” packs the Supreme Court. This sort of thing won’t even be on the Radar. Freedom of What? Surely you jest.
He WILL, eventually, but it will be in His own time. But, one thing IS certain. There WILL be a judgment day.
Don't be surprised when other groups want to hand out “The Book of Mormon” , “Koran”, or other material.
The fundamental problem here is that government schools the First Amendment and freedom of conscience can not co-exist!
The children are essentially prisoners. Unless the parents can pay extra ( in addition to supporting the government schools) the child by law must be there. If they are not, police action will be taken against the child and the parent.
Once in the school, the problems with the First Amendment emerge, as in this example with the Bibles. What are the choice available to the government school:
1) The government school can allow the Bibles. If it does this, then it must open the program to every other religious group in the community, even atheism. The children are then exposed to religious, political, and culture indoctrination of anyone who chooses to take advantage of the program. The government is assisting in the establishment of religious belief that the parents, and taxpaying citizen find abhorrent.
2) It can reject the Bibles and all other religious material. If it does this, it is preventing the children free expression of their religious belief. The government is herding children into a religiously sterile environment and ordering them to shut up, forbidding free pres, and violating their God-given right to freely assemble. It is also teaching the children to compartmentalize their faith, and teaching them that religion is somehow shameful. ( as if it were a bathroom activity.) In essence the government is establishing the religion of atheistic secular humanism.
Please read post #14. The man is a putz because he accepted an impossible job that violates the First Amendment and freedom of conscience every minute of every school day.
“bible giveaway banned at school on religious freedoom day”
thou shalt have no false gods before the “ONE”.
/s/
IMHO
"The children are then exposed to religious, political, and culture indoctrination of anyone..."Hint: They already are. They are being indoctrinated by teachers and their anti-religious biases, their anti-military biases, and their anti-American biases on a daily basis. They are forced to "respect the wishes of Muslims" but are banned from celebrating Christian holidays.
Waiting for help is no good. We need to close primaries to registered republicans only. Independent voters can't be pandered to or we get to elect McCain types forevermore.
The Courts have made it clear that religous material and gatherings can not be stopped in schools if other groups are allowed the same access. I believe a strong law suit is in order here.
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