We have all probably read, ad nauseum, about the different states trying to institute pieces of religious practice into the public schools. Whether it’s school sponsored prayer times or posting the 10 Commandments in classrooms, a variety of politicians and religious leaders have worked tirelessly to “bring God back into the schools.” I have had the opportunity to visit a lot of public schools over the years, and I can assure you that God never left. I see God through the many acts of kindness and sacrifice that teachers, staff, and personnel do every day, and I know a lot of faithful Christians who serve in these roles. None of them leave their faith at the door when they go to work. They may not be shouting about the Bible, or the impending damnation of those who don’t agree with them, but their lives proclaim their faithfulness every day.
In Texas, there are schools that are refusing to follow the law, saying rightly that this is against the US Constitution. Galveston school district is one of those fighting back, and they are being sued by Attorney General Paxton (look up his moral track record – he could benefit from having the 10 C’s in his office). Gov. Abbott, a self-avowed practicing Christian, has been strident in his defense of this action, and as an aside, I wonder if any research has been done into its effect on moral behavior of children in the state. As I said in my sermon this last Sunday, the 10 Commandments are a good starting place for faithful living, but they aren’t the end point. Especially when we break a number of them, legally, every day.
Here is what Abbott, Paxton, and other supporters miss about all of this – in their attempt to force their opinions about faith on everyone else, they are missing one of the essential parts of following Jesus. They are missing the Golden Rule – the guidance that exists in almost every religion, that we are to treat others as we would like to be treated. I doubt that any of the proponents of these laws would want to be forced to live by religious laws that are not part of their personal faiths. I doubt that they would like to be forced to call God Allah, even though that is just the name for God in a different language. Their legalistic approach to religion is missing the most important parts of what they claim to believe, and they are acting like hypocrites, one of the few things that Jesus openly disliked. Abbot and Paxton and others of their ilk might do well to re-read the Bible they so proudly support and pay attention to what Jesus actually said. It might change their minds. Or not. Jesus isn’t the point for them, is He?
Prayer – Holy God, thank You for giving us the freedom to practice our faith without others forcing theirs on us. Amen.
Today’s art is “The 10 Commandments”, but I couldn’t get to the website to find the name of the artist.