The United States is the only country that has an explicit separation of church and state built into its Constitution. As a result, religion has not disappeared in this country; it has flourished. Religion has more influence on the U.S. government than in most other countries, aside from theocracies like Iran and Saudi Arabia. This power is precisely the reason religious imagery of any kind should be excluded from federal buildings, and why the Supreme Court should rule that the Texas State Capitol remove its Ten Commandments monument from its property. Prominent displays highlighting one particular religion on government property are obvious endorsements of one religion over the many others that make up the cultural fabric of our country.
The Constitution provides for all religions to be accepted, and none to take prominence over others, at least in government. This does not mean religion is not a part of any public policy debate; a person's creed cannot be extricated from their public life. Religion influences public policy through the way it affects citizens' viewpoints, not by imposing itself as intimidating monuments in places that should be open forums for various ideologies, like any federal building, public school, or courthouse.
The monument at the Texas State Capitol in Austin is an example of a monument that goes beyond a historical artifact and implies Texas State Law is a religious institution. Supporters of the monument say that since it has been in place since 1960, it plays a significant historical role, symbolizing the origin of U.S. law. This is just not the case. All religions and society have their own form of the Ten Commandments, with stipulations against murder and theft. The other Ten Commandments have nearly nothing to do with the law and are unenforceable. Lying is a gray area, as it is against the law to perjure in a court of law, but politicians and others lie all the time on the campaign trail, or so it is assumed. There currently is no federal law against adultery - otherwise President Clinton would have been in far more serious trouble. The last six - that God is Lord, no graven images, not taking the Lord's name in vain, the Sabbath, honor thy parents, do not covet thy neighbor's property or wife- are not reflected in U.S. law. So a quick tally shows that only two of the 10 have actually made it into U.S. law, a pretty low percentage to be the basis for our law system.
The debate over placing such an obvious religious statement on federal property boils down to using a divisive issue for political gain. Not to point fingers, but a stark majority of those lawmakers who are in favor of maintaining the religious monument are Republican, and the most prominent Republican in the country, President Bush, has been known to use religion and conservative religious groups for political gain. It seems this is just another case of some people on the right using religion as leverage for the moral value vote.
The historic separation of church and state has proven religion does not need government sanctions to survive in the United States. The strength of Christian, Muslim and other religious groups show religions have in fact thrived because members adhere by choice, not by what the government requires. Posting the Ten Commandments on federal property is, therefore, a form of religious restriction that's worse for democracy than separation of church and state.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
