JaBbA's Hut

The city fathers of Casper, Wyoming didn't see how a monument to the Ten Commandments in a city park really caused any church and state problems. Who could be offended, they reasoned? So 40 years ago, a monument was erected.

With the recent court cases in Alabama, the Freedom from Religion Foundation asked the city council to remove the monument. The request was ignored, as most of the city still didn't see anything wrong with a depiction of the Judeo-Christian underpinnings of our common moral code.

Then, two weeks later, Fred Phelps got involved.

I'm no fan of Fred Phelps. But he's making my point for me.

Fred, who pickets the funerals of people who die of AIDS to make sure that people understand that he sees AIDS as God's Justice, plans to erect another monument in the same park. He is using an existing law that was passed to allow that original 10 Commandments monument to exist. Basically, the city said "Hey, if you have a religious monument to erect,you can do so. The government takes no sides in religion". And that's how they justify the original monument.

So good old Fred now says "I have a religious monument to erect, and you must allow me to do so." And, if you read the law, he may be right. The city fathers chose Exodus as the inspiration for their monument. Fred's favorite book is Leviticus. And in that spirit, Fred wants to erect a monument to Matthew Shepard, the UofW student who was beaten to death for being gay. The inscription will say:

Matthew Shepard entered hell October 12, 1998, at age 21 in defiance of God's warning: "Thou shalt not lie with mankind as with womankind; it is abomination." Leviticus 18:22.

Separation of Church and State. ALWAYS. NO EXCEPTIONS. It's a good thing.