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Friday, August 8, 2008

Church-State Stuff You Can't Make Up


1. It’s one thing to place a temporary roadside memorial after a tragic traffic accident, it’s another to post large permanent crosses in a roadside field

USA Today reports
“A church-state watchdog group has joined Hindu and Jewish organizations in arguing that a Utah court erred in ruling that a highway cross memorializing a fallen state trooper is a "secular symbol of death. "When used as a burial marker, the cross does not signify death in the abstract," they argued. "Instead it connotes the deceased Christian faith."

I’m surprised religious groups aren’t protesting the designation of the cross as something other than a religious symbol representing their savior Jesus Christ. Oh well, at least the crosses are front and center for everyone to see, because that’s what really counts.

2. Bringing Guys back into Church with Manly stereotypes

USA Today: Churches nationwide are fretting and sweating to reel men into their sanctuaries on Sundays. So hundreds of churches are going for a "guy church" vibe, programming for a stereotypical man's man. One church, 121 Community Church in Grapevine, Texas, was designed with dudes in mind, from the worship center's stone floor, hunter-green and amber decor and rustic-beam ceilings to woodsy scenes on the church website.

David Murrow, author of Why Men Hate Going to Church. "We've wrapped the Gospel in this man-repellent package." A 2002 gathering of comedian Brad Stine's GodMen ministry, featuring videos of karate fights, car chases and a song with lyrics urging, "No more nice guy, timid and ashamed … Grab a sword, don't be scared — be a man, grow a pair!" Congregations across the Sun Belt are holding "Beast Feasts," where the flock's outdoors men invite their unchurched male pals to a game banquet.

I can’t follow that up with anything more ridiculous, so enough said.

3. Please God Let the Republicans have their way In Florida and let's see what happens.

I loved this Sun-Sentinel Michael Mayo article “Sneaky school amendments might pull fast one on Florida voters.” He is writing about the total destruction of government in Florida, and how stingy taxpayers are going to love sending their hard earned dollars to tax free religious organizations and churches. Or maybe they won’t.

Patricia Levesque, the executive director of former Gov. Jeb Bush's educational think tank, is a driving force on the Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission …helped bring two ideologically charged amendments to the Florida ballot this November. Amendment 7 would allow direct state funding of religious institutions, including religious schools.

Amendment 9 would allow the expanded use of public vouchers at private schools, including religious schools, reversing previous court rulings. Gov. Charlie Crist threw his support behind the controversial proposal this week.

Please God make it so. Florida is already in a recession due to high property taxes and suffers from traffic congesting sprawl. God don’t you love those Republicans?

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