Court sentences bishop for ringing church bells (though songs played quieter than traffic)

By court order, the electronic chimes that were rung each day by Cathedral of Christ the King Catholic Church in Phoenix, Ariz., are now confined to Sundays and special occasions, while the cathedral's leader, Bishop Rick Painter, faces potential jail time for playing the daily melodies.

Responding to complaints that the electronic bells at the northern Phoenix church were rung too loud and too often, a municipal court gave Painter three years probation and a suspended 10-day jail sentence on charges of violating city noise ordinances.

The judge further ordered that the church – which had been ringing the bells daily on the hour from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. – may now only ring the bells on Sunday mornings and a court-ordered list of select religious holidays.

"It's ridiculous to be sentenced to jail and probation for doing what churches have traditionally done throughout history," said a statement from Erik Stanley, senior legal counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, which has been retained by Painter. "Christians shouldn't be punished for exercising their faith publicly."

Separate investigations found the bells to be no louder on the street than a conversation or even local traffic, yet according to a report from KNXV-TV in Phoenix, neighbors testified the music disturbed them and made them feel like captives in their own homes.

I often feel that I’m living in Bizarro world these days.

Isn't that the truth! Notice how the media twist and distort every word spoken and analyze the motives behind that particular choice of words. At times I wonder if this is the era of Babel.

Even more bizarre is the switch in television signals. Folks are scrambling to purchase very expensive HD tvs ... to watch what? Cable television has deteriorated into round the clock infomercials, shopping channels, and news commentary. Even the cartoons we watched for years are now gone, replaced with new ones that lack any moral instruction. Were it not for EWTN and TCM, I would have the cable disconnected. TCM just aired Ben Hur, commercial free. No matter how many times I watch this movie, it brings great inspiration to watch those scenes where Jesus gives the slave, Judah Ben Hur water to drink and, later in the film, he returns the favor. At one time in our culture, movies like Ben Hur, the Bells of St Mary's, Spartacus, The Robe, The Silver Chalice and so many other great films that carried a positive, faith-based message. Today, we live in a world replete with secularism and relativism. Anything goes! Truth is no longer of interest to the "illuminated" college grads. The signs and symbols of the christian faith are rapidly being removed from society. Today, people turn to government, rather than to God, to meet their needs. In so doing, they shackle themselves to government restrictions. Those of us who turn to God, are truly liberated. We are rapidly becoming the minority.

“I know this issue is not in the Constitution,...”

...but prohibiting the free exercise thereof is.

This separation of church and state has been twisted and turned around ad nauseum and two many people don’t even know what it is all about.

I live in a small town in Germany. The bells of the local Church ring every 15 minutes, ‘round the clock. They ring again for weddings, funerals, calls to service, and when the Lord’s prayer is said during services. There are no complaints. In some ways, Europeans are becoming more free than some who live in the so-called “Land of the Free”.

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