He also wrote in that dissenting opinion: "In Abington School District v. Schempp (1963), the Court made the truly remarkable statement that the views of Madison and Jefferson, preceded by Roger Williams, came to be incorporated not only in the Federal Constitution but likewise in those of most of our States. On the basis of what evidence we have, this statement is demonstrably incorrect as a matter of history. And its repetition in varying forms in succeeding opinions of the Court can give it no more authority than it possesses as a matter of fact. Stare decisis (the policy of the courts to rely on preceding case law or "precedent") may bind courts as to matters of law, but it cannot bind them a to matters of history. [Wallace v. Jaffree, pp. 2511-2512]
In other words, we are blindly following bad law. The Supreme Court, a branch of the federal government, has established law that is contrary to what our Founders devised, which was based on what the States themselves submitted and then ratified. The current hostility to religion is offensive to every Supreme Court decision, except perhaps the offensive decision in Everson.
How else do you characterize a federal court decision to ban the mere mention of Jesus Christ in a student presentation or a valedictorian address at a high school commencement ceremony because it might "do irreparable harm to some students and families." What "irreparable harm" could come of hearing such a name? The only "irreparable harm" that could occur is the confusion and frustration a child may suffer when he or she is taught to believe, offer praise when appropriate, seek prayer when needed, and not be ashamed and yet the school system classifies all that as a bad thing. Why are the rights of atheists more important than Christians? Why, in the name of tolerance, can't a Christian publicly acknowledge the spiritual aspect of his or her life that has had an impact on his/her achievement? Graduation is a personal achievement and I believe great latitude should be shown in one's expression on that momentous occasion. After all, isn't it the same tolerance that students nowadays are forced to show gays/ lesbians/ transgenders/ atheists/ ethnic minorities in their schools?
Why the growing hostility to a religion that provided so strong a foundation to the nation that has given us so much freedom and security? When did it become so hip and cool to openly criticize and denigrate Christians? Why did the federal courts turn their back on history and become complicit in the rejection and defamation of our most historically-relevant religion?
Is it the federal courts that have opened the door to the current wave of hostility to Christians which seems to be gaining momentum?
Jason Jackson noted the growing hostility to Christianity: "Its manifestations are seen in the advancement of moral decay, the dissemination of secularism, the reconstructionism of Christianity's role in American history, and the demonizing of Christian values. Consequently, if you morally object to homosexuality, society labels you as a 'homophobe' and a bigot. If you advocate creationism, you are castigated as a back-woods, superstitious individual, who likely was abused at church camp. If you allude to the divine references in the Declaration of Independence, you are characterized as ignorant of the original intent." If you strongly express your deeply-felt belief in our national religious heritage, then our own government potentially classifies you as a "rightwing extremist," capable of radicalizing others and therefore posing a grave security risk to this country. [See the Homeland Security Report, issued by Secretary Janet Napolitano on April 7, 2009 entitled "Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment"]
So-called comedian Bill Maher, an outspoken atheist and pig, let loose a profane tweet about Tim Tebow on Christmas following the Denver Broncos' loss to the Buffalo Bills. "Wow, Jesus just f--d #TimTebow bad! And on Xmas Eve! Somewhere in hell Satan is tebowing, saying to Hitler "Hey, Buffalo's killing them," he tweeted. Tebowing," of course, is the term inspired by the quarterback, to mean getting down on one knee to pray in a crowd no matter what else is going on. Tebow's conduct has been an easy target for ridicule, even inspiring a sketch on Saturday Night Live. He has even immortalized in song by some creative ESPN editors.
Maher, an unapologetic atheist, made a 2008 documentary called "Religulous," which mocked organized religion. He also routinely jokes about religion on his show. If the tweet is any indication of his comedic talent, then it's no wonder why no one thinks he's funny or relevant. On the other hand, Tebow is not only a brilliant and endearing quarterback, but he has also written the top-selling religious book of the year, "Through My Eyes" (a memoir) and has been named the Most Desirable Celebrity Neighbor by Zillow (which asks "Which celebrity would you most like to have as your neighbor?")
Tebow didn't bother to respond to Maher's tweet. Rather he posted: "Tough game today but what's most important is being able to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas everyone GB˛." GB2 is a phrase Tebow has made popular that means "God Bless + Go Broncos," according to his official website.
Avowed Atheist Bill Maher: Above.
But a week later, the morally-bankrupt Maher still couldn't let go. He tweeted two photos of himself "Tebowing" (mimicking the prayer position that the beloved quarterback assumes on the football field). In one photo, he assumed the pose in a tree, and added the caption: "Treebowing." He was yet another victim of the Christian Derangement Syndrome.
I've been writing about the growing hostility to religion for a few years now and it just keeps getting worse. But I believe an all-time low was hit when Dick Doyle wrote an intensely offensive piece for the Huffington Post which was published on February 24 (in the 'Comedy' section). The article was entitled "The Jesus-Eating Cult of Rick Santorum" and was an opportunity, under the guise of satire, to insult Christians and their religion.
In that article, Doyle opened the by saying that we "should take a look at Rick Santorum's faith." A real journalist would genuinely find a real story in that topic, linking it to his firm commitment to marriage and family, to the willingness to have a disabled child (rather than abort it), and to his firm belief in the sanctity of every life, including the unborn.
But that wasn't Doyle's particular direction. To him, those very traits must indicate that Santorum is brainwashed by some evil, religious cult. Why else would Doyle write: "Many of you will be shocked to learn what our possible future president believes, who he answers to, the bloody jihads his so-called church has carried on for centuries, and its current role as the tactical arm of the North American Man-Boy Love Association."
Personally, I think that if we're "taking a look" at anyone's religion, I think it should be Obama's.
Doyle continued to spew more vile, contemptible drivel: "Unlike Christians, Santorum and his fellow Roman Catholics participate in a barbaric ritual dating back two millennia, a "mass" in which a black-robed cleric casts a spell over some bread and wine, transfiguring it into the actual living flesh and blood of their Christ. Followers then line up to eat the Jesus meat and drink his holy blood in a cannibalistic reverie not often seen outside Cinemax...
Roman Catholics like Santorum take their orders from "the Pope," a high priest who, they believe, chats with God. Santorum has made no secret of his plans to implement his leader's dicta on allowed uses of vaginas and anuses, but has said little about what additional dogma he will be compelled to obey....... Santorum has also remained silent on his religious organization's various reigns of terror, in which good protestants and others were tortured and killed in imaginatively grisly ways. Even more chilling is a possible connection between the Roman Catholic Church pedophile program and NAMBLA, which I discovered after conducting some research on the internet."
But the coup de grace was in the way he wrapped up his "humor piece" - "Need I remind you that only once in our great history has a Roman Catholic been elected president, and how tragically it ended?"
What was the purpose of that vile line? My initial reaction was that it was hate speech. As Mike Opelka of The Blaze said: " Nothing says funny like the assassination of a President."
By the way, Doyle was a writer for such brainy hits as Beavis & Butt-head and The Simpsons - shows that I didn't and still don't permit my children to watch because time should be spent on building one's mind and becoming more cultured, and not learning to act and speak like an idiot.
The article generated a lot of outrage, as any decent person could imagine. And in an attempt to acknowledge the pain and insult he caused religious groups, Dick Doyle offered an apology.... NOT ! What he wrote was this: "Actually, I'm not sorry at all, but I suppose an explanation is in order. Last week, I wrote a piece with the somewhat provocative title 'The Jesus-Eating Cult of Rick Santorum.' My criticism took the form of a ridiculously over-the-top broadside against Roman Catholicism, a demonstration of the type of vicious religious ignorance and intolerance I too often see coming from too many so-called Christians, especially Santorum. I won't say that Catholics need to lighten up or learn to take a joke, because the piece wasn't intended to be light-hearted or funny. It was satire, meaning... well, you can look that up... It's traditional at this point for me to half-apologize, to say that I'm sorry if anybody was offended, but I really don't mind if anybody was offended. I hope they will now think twice before they question the faith of progressive Christians, or Mormons or Muslims. I doubt they will."
Oh, and it appears I must offer an apology. The writer's name is Larry Doyle and not Dick Doyle. My bad. I guess I was confused because he acted like a Dick. Needless to say, Catholics and others of faith are demanding that HuffPo editor Arianna Huffington issue an apology for allowing a column to be published on her website that "compares Catholics to pedophiles and attacks communion as a 'barbaric ritual.'" In a letter drafted to Ms. Huffington, protesters accuse the website of being 'complicit in bigotry." The letter was signed by Brent Bozell, founder and president of the Media Research Center; Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for Marriage; Brian Burch, president of Catholic Vote; Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List; Richard Viguerie chairman of ConservativeHQ.com; and Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council. Similarly, Catholics and others of faith should finally stand up and say: "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it!" The only thing low-lives understand is being taken to task and being made to answer for their conduct. What makes people low-lives is their belief that they can play by a different set of rules than the rest of society and their arrogance in that belief. It's always open season for Christians. Those who claim to embrace diversity are inclusive of such varied groups as gays, lesbians, transgenders, blacks, Hispanics, Muslims, atheists.... that is, everyone EXCEPT CHRISTIANS. And the very tolerance they demand from everyone for such groups as gays and lesbians and transgenders is the very tolerance they are incapable of showing to Christians. A 2005 CNS News poll showed that 64% of Americans believe that religion is under attack in this country. Those polled were selected at random. Furthermore, 80% of those who identified themselves as fundamentalist/evangelical/charismatic Christians said they "are keenly aware" of such an attack, meaning that they feel it in their personal lives.
As Brian Koenig of The New American wrote: "Saying 'Mexican' rather than 'Hispanic,' asserting that the majority of welfare recipients are black, or suggesting that most terrorists are of Muslim descent are remarks often characterized as racist or derogatory. But associating Catholics with pedophiles and referring to communion as a "barbaric ritual" is, apparently, politically correct, at least, according to some standards.
The same people who criticized the planned burning of the Koran in Florida for its extreme insensitivity to Muslims seem to have no problem attacking the most fundamental tenets of Catholicism. Roman Catholic worship centers around the Eucharist - the 'appearance' of the body and blood of Christ through the transformation of bread and wine. To call Mass a "barbaric ritual" and "cannibalistic" moves beyond satire towards outright hatred. Doyle's article reeks of utter disrespect and contempt.
Just imagine if Doyle had written his piece mocking the prophet Mohammed. In fact, I challenge him to do just that. Why doesn't he use the same pair of balls he used to write his article attacking the Catholic Church to write an equally scathing critique of Islam.
Between Doyle and Maher, we just don't see the "humor" in a vicious, vile, mal-intentioned attack on Catholics or Christians in general. Coming from an avowed atheist like Maher, there is no other way to take his remarks except with the contempt and hate they were inspired by. Everyone cries when their civil rights are violated. Courts had better start acknowledging that Christians have civil rights too. Christians may have thick skin, unlike other religious and racial groups, but they have rights just like everyone else.
Ben Witherington wrote: "Psalm 14 says: 'The fool says in his heart, there is no God.' How foolish indeed to confidently deny the existence of a Being simply because one has not yet personally found Him or been found by Him. This is the very definition of a lost, and in the end, unintelligent and unwise creature, standing as he does against the backdraft of the posture and position of most of the most brilliant minds in all ages of history, and spitting into the prevailing wind."
Atheists are in denial about God because they are, in fact, in denial about their own nature and condition. They don't want to believe they are created in God's image because they don't want to acknowledge there are expectations and consequences for their lives.
Sadly, they don't realize that had atheists founded this country and designed our foundation and drafted our founding documents, we would likely be just another failing democracy. It is only in a country as profoundly free and dedicated to individual liberty and equality that they could have hoped to have the power they hold today. And that power they hold is the power to destroy the very foundations and institutions which have made us strong and free.
There are clearly a lot of things happening in this country that indicate that we have increasing anarchy in this country. And for those who haven't taken notice, the Obama administration and even members of Congress are reacting by giving the government greater powers to watch over us, investigate us, confiscate our property, and even detain and condemn us as "radicals" and "belligerents." It doesn't take a rocket scientist to equate the increasing immorality and anarchy with the decreasing emphasis we place on religion in our communities and in this country as a whole. As the country turns away from Christianity, and even begins to discriminate against Christians, we continue to pay an even greater price, including our very freedoms.
The fact is that there is an energized bigotry in this country, endorsed by our current administration, fueled by the left-wing media, taken advantage of by the very small minority of atheists in this country against the Catholic religion and its insistence on maintaining its tenets, its conscience, and its projects in order to teach and instill morality in our depraved society and to bring a little of God's light into a dark, Godless world. The Huffington Post is taking advantage of this bigotry for all it's worth.
References:
Dee Wampler, 'Never Hostile to Religion," Liberty Magazine, July/August 2005. Referenced at: http://www.libertymagazine.org/index.php?id=1396
Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States (5th ed.), 1891.
Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, Vol. I, 1831.
Patrick Mr. Garry, "The Cultural Hostility to Religion," First Principles, (written: Spring 2005). Referenced at: http://www.firstprinciplesjournal.com/articles.aspx?article=786&theme=home&page=1&loc=b&type=cttf
House Report No. 22 Summarizing the 14 & 15th Amendments (January 30, 1871). Referenced at: http://www.federalistblog.us/h-r-report-no-22-bingham/
P.A. Madison, "Historical Analysis of the Meaning of the 14th Amendment's First Section," Federalist Blog, Aug. 2, 2010. Referenced at: http://federalistblog.us/mt/articles/14th_dummy_guide.htm
Rehnquist's Dissent in Wallace v. Jaffree (1985). Referenced at: http://www.belcherfoundation.org/wallace_v_jaffree_dissent.htm
Larry Doyle, "The Jesus-Eating Cult of Rick Santorum," Huffington Post, Feb. 24, 2012. Referenced at:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/larry-doyle/the-jesuseating-cult-of-r_b_1296358.html
John L. Esposito and Shiela B. Lalwani, " Combating Religious Intolerance When Freedom of Speech Enables Hate Speech," Huffington Post, July 7, 2011. Referenced at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-l-esposito/combating-religious-intol_b_890537.html
Mike Opelka, "Outrage After HuffPo Contributor Calls Catholics "Jesus Eaters," The Blaze, Feb. 29, 2012. Referenced at: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/outrage-after-huffpo-contributor-calls-catholics-jesus-eaters/
Conservative Leaders Demand Apology from Huffington Over Anti-Catholic Column," Fox News, Feb. 29, 2012. Referenced at: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/02/28/conservative-leaders-demand-apology-from-huffington-over-anti-catholic-column/?intcmp=trending
Brian Koenig, "Huffington Post Urged to Apologize For Anti-Catholic Hate Screed," The New American, March 1, 2012. Referenced at: http://www.thenewamerican.com/culture/faith-and-morals/11044-huffington-post-urged-to-apologize-for-anti-catholic-hate-screed
David Limbaugh, Persecution: How Liberals Are Waging War Against Christianity, Regnery Publishing (DC), 2003, p. ix-x
