| If you are living in a cave, you might not have heard
about Justice Roy Moore, Alabama's Supreme Court chief justice and his
Ten Commandments monument. There are a variety of arguments for and against his
defiant installation of what has for all practical purposes become a
religious shrine in the Alabama Supreme Court House. It is, as I
hear, a "washing machine sized" chunk of granite with a
replica of the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments atop, and biblical
engravings referencing Divine law all around it.
There are some facts in the case that I feel undermine the
potentially valid claims that the monument is not an infringement of the
federal constitution.
America's founding fathers were not all Christians. Some
were atheists and some were deists. Their intention was clearly to
prevent the establishment of any specific state religion. However,
it is clear that American history is saturated with reference to and
dependence on the Judeo-Christian tradition. The homogeneity of
this nation was such that the Judeo-Christian tradition became by
default, a practical state religion. However, during the past
forty years, immigrants from non-European nations and growing secular
and new age movements have made this Judeo-Christian tradition a relic of
a past age in regards to the public and legal arena. Whereas in
1954 it was quite possible for the Judeo-Christians to bully the secular
humanists into adding the phrase "under God" to the Pledge of
Allegiance, the question of which God this might be, and the
question of His very existence have made this seemingly innocent phrase
controversial. Consequently, it seems completely reasonable to
acknowledge the historical role of that tradition, but we must be very
cautious not to suggest that there is any connection between our system
of justice and a particular faith. I see no
logical reason to hold that religious monuments in public legal
buildings built before 1954 are controversial. These monuments are
found all over the country. They are
historical artifacts. However, Roy Moore's shrine was installed at
midnight, without the knowledge of other Supreme Court justices or the
community in 2001. Under these circumstances, it is evident that
Moore personally wanted to spark controversy and offense at the same
time that he wished to assert the primacy of his Christian faith.
This monument is not innocent in intention, but rather a blatant
statement that those who don't accept those laws are out of line with
the laws of Alabama. It has nothing to do with the sort of
historical acknowledgement that they attempt to hide behind.
Furthermore, Moore campaigned on his Ten Commandments crusade.
Everyone knew he would do something like this, and his religion is an
overt part of his personality as a judge. One could easily argue
that this position itself--minus the monument--disqualifies him as an
impartial dispenser of justice in American society. It underscores
the nefarious and contra-legal aspect of this monument.
The monument has become a religious shrine. Believers
are coming to pray in front of it, in what could be described
as a violation of the Commandment not to worship graven idols.
Also, there are plans to defend it from forced removal by US
Marshals. I predict that an ironic throng of Christians
will handcuff themselves around it and sing the same songs Martin
Luther King sang in the civil rights movement. Keep in
mind that Alabama is the location of the battle over the Confederate
flag flying over the capital. It is not clear that Moore
is one of those who supports the flag, but it is blatantly clear
that the Confederate flag wavers are also fervent supporters
of this monument. The irony of this situation is palpable,
and makes me feel nauseous.
As we know, the federal court has determined that it must be removed.
Moore and the his followers--supported by groups like the League
of the South--are appealing the decision to the Supreme Court.
They plan to put up a big fight. Whether or not the monument
might be interpreted in an innocent way, it is quite
clear that it has become a vile symbol of intolerant Fundamentalist
Christian and even southern neo-nazi thought. Whereas
there is a quite innocent statue of Moses in the Supreme Court
of the United States which holds the stone tablets, the Alabama
monument should be removed and pulverized in front of the eyes
of weeping, confederate flag waving members of the League
of the South. Links: [1
, 2 ]
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