Posted on 10/07/2009 1:53:57 PM PDT by La Enchiladita
Deep in the heart of the Mojave National Preserve in California stands a five foot cross carefully disguised in a plywood box.
The U.S. Park Service was forced to cover the cross until the Supreme Court decides whether the cross can remain in its place as a monument to fallen soldiers during World War I, or whether it must come down because its presence violates the Constitution.
The case is the latest in a recent flurry of challenges to religious symbols placed on public property.
The cross was constructed more than 70 years ago by the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
...Frank Buono, a retired National Park Service employee, expressed his dismay that the government was showing favoritism of one religious symbol over another.
...In 2003 Congress found a novel way to deal with the situation: it passed legislation to transfer the land to private ownership.
...Lawyers for Buono say that the proposed transfer is merely a sham and an ineffective way to try to get around the constitutional violation. They argue that although the land might be transferred to private hands -- owned by the Veterans of Foreign Wars -- the government still has too close a relationship to the cross. The cross would still be designated as a national memorial and the government will maintain oversight of the property.
...Before even reaching the question of whether Congress acted appropriately, the Supreme Court will first have to decide whether Buono has the right -- or the legal "standing" -- to bring the case against the government.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
When they ignore,”...the free exercise thereof...”.
When they ignore, “...shall not be infringed.”.
Their time is up.
WWWLD?
>>Damn the ACLU, just damn them.
I’m fairly certain that they already are.
Because the Constitution says: "Congress shall stamp out all religious expression in public".
Oh wait, it doesn't.
Because the no-god God is the official state religion. You can follow another faith, but the official position of the government is that god does NOT exist.
“A monument to fallen soldiers.” It’s not a church.
I fail to see how this impinges upon the Constitution. A cross neither establishes a Govermental religion, and the Gov’t insisting upon the removal of this landmark certainly falls under the ‘preventing the free exercise thereof’.
I fully expect the court to rule that the cross should come down, but not because of “separation of church and state”, which they will assiduously avoid (hey, I think that’s the first time I ever actually used that word!).
I imagine that they will say that the veterans who put up the cross (in 1934, I believe) had no permission to do so, and so it should never have been there in the first place.
Spell it out. I don’t get the acronym.
THAT OFFENDED ME!
I’m just guessing....
What
Will
Wise
Latina
Do
The court must decide whether Buono is sufficiently harmed by the matter at hand to be able to bring the case.
He lives in Oregon, several hundred miles away from the remote location of the cross in the CA desert. Yet he claims he must travel to the area 3-4 times per year and somehow try to avoid viewing the cross. Of course, it is now covered up AND it is on private land.
If the Supreme Court finds that Buono has no standing, it may never get to the question of whether Congress succeeded in avoiding the constitutional question by transferring the land.
The cross is on private land?
A cross on church property is okay, but allowing a cross display on public property is “respecting an establishment of religion” and a violation ot the First Amendment.
Jesus said there would come a time when the Word would be hidden...people too ashamed of their own actions to confront the Truth of the cross. Go ahead...cover it, or tear it down.
Soon the government will be coming after Christians. There are already courts in Canada when people of religious beliefs are confronted by government bureaucrats and forced to recant their public religious views...or face fines or imprisonment.
It is just a matter of a few years...it will be so here too
Read the article. Congress voted to transfer the land to private hands.
This is the aCLU displaying its hatred of Christians and God. It is the Mother of all Hate Crimes. These piggies were offered a piece of land five times bigger in size for this one little piece of land. That wasn’t good enough for the Christian haters. They want God and all Christians gone. They are not compatible with the aCLU’s perverted, communist lifestyle.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.