[Image from Davidmacd.com]Can't pray without a prayer box? Of course you can! But a prayer box helps!
But 'tis a problem in Rensselaer, Indiana. Local pastors in that city asked the city government to install a prayer box in City Hall in which they could deposit their prayers. Prayers for what? Better city council members? Less taxes on the rich? Put the homeless on buses out of town?
I guess they figured with the entire city council comprised of Repugnicans, and because Repugnicans like to nod to god, they would have no problem getting a prayer box installed at the center of the city's government.
Not to be. The Repugnican city council members are afraid they'll get sued by people like the ACLU or other atheistic, agnostic nasties.
Rensselaer is the place to go, though, if you are a devoutly desperate. According to the Rev Garry Wickert, there are prayer boxes all over the city in which people can deposit "notes with requests for prayers." Someone comes by weekly and collects these prayer notes and gives them to local churches. I'd guess the pious in the churches then pray the prayers on the prayer notes.
Back a few years ago, someone (probably the Gideons) had a policy of handing out bibles to all the public school 5th graders. Someone sued. That policy was abandoned.
That's the trouble. Damn near every time you try to do something to help God out in this world, the nogoodniks show up with a lawyer. If only we could get rid of our Constitution! What were our Founding Fathers thinking not to even so much as mention god in our Constitution? How can we be good people and do good things without a constitutional god?
2 comments:
Society is based around behavioral morale and not theological morale. I'm hoping, mainly for your own mental sake, that this entire entry can be chalked up to sarcasm...but out of fear for MY own mental sake, I can't risk reading into you any further.
If the worshiping community in Rensselaer wishes to have a city-wide prayer box, then so be it. Christianity is a Big Business, no bailout needed there, build it yourself. It has no business on Government property.
I don't quite understand your first sentence. What does "behavioral morale" and "theological morale" mean?
Yeah, it was satire!
Why are you worried about your "mental sake?" You can read me forever without fear!
And yes, if the christianists in Rensselaer want to establish a "city-wide prayer box," they certainly can do so, just not on government property! As you said.
Peace!
Thanks for writing.
Jacob
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