Christian Nation My A@#...

When I logged on to my AOL this evening, I was greeted by an article on the Supreme Court's split decision regarding the display of the 10 commandments. They decided that the displays outside of the Texas courthouse could stay, but the displays inside the Kentucky courthouses had to go. AOL, loving polls as they do, asked people to vote on whether display of the 10 Commandments should be allowed on government property. I develop surveys for a living, so I love polls, too. So, I voted. So did 107,135 other people, and counting. By the time I get to the end of this paragraph, another 1,000 or so people or will have voted, and not just because I'm a slow typist. People are voting like hotcakes.

For the record, I voted with the majority (66%) that display of the Commandments should always be allowed. Twenty percent said it should never be allowed and 14% said it should sometimes be allowed. Clearly this is a divisive issue, and one that is very important to at least 107,135 people. Granted most of these people are routinely grossly overcharged by their ISP, so these might not be the sharpest crayons in the 64-pack. Still, I'm one of them, and I can't be the only idiot savant in the AOL family. So, let's not discount them, out of hand. Anyway, I voted. But, for me, this issue is like the gay marriage issue. I honestly don't care.

Before I launch into my main point, as is my custom, I must digress. I need to clear up one thing for all of the good people fighting in the name of Christian symbology. The 10 Commandments are more rooted in Jewish theology than in Christian theology. While the wisdom of the Commandments is not to be disregarded, the New Testament is quite clear that Jesus' death freed us from the curse of trying to earn our salvation by doing good works and trying to live according to the letter of the law (Galatians 3:10-13). We're saved by grace, now, so the 10 Commandments aren't really central to our belief system (Romans 5:20). But, hey, if they ever come up with a symbol for grace and faith in the truth of Jesus' birth, death and resurrection, I might join the fight to get that displayed...but probably not.

Either way, I don't understand why people are acting so surprised about the ruling. Given the current state of our society, the concept of America as a Christian nation is laughable. To be honest, it's an insult to Christianity. I think we should consider a legal change from "Christian Nation" to "Capitalist Nation" or "Relativist Nation". We only really drag out that "Christian" moniker when we want to feign self-righteous indignation and separate ourselves from the Hebrews, Muslims, or Buddhists. So what's the point?

If displaying the 10 Commandments really meant to us, as a nation, what everyone wants to pretend it does, we wouldn't need to display them. The truths that they symbolize would be evident in everything we did, because they would be written in our hearts. But, they're not written in our hearts, are they? So what difference does it make if they're sitting in front or inside of some courthouse that the majority of us will never visit. They've been written in the Bible for 2000 years. We don't visit them there, either.

Is it scary to see freedoms of Christian expression dwindling as our nation kneels before the gods of Diversity and Tolerance? Yes, of course. But, in the end the question is not "Who is going to let me worship my God?" The question is "Who am I going to let stop me?" And no branch of the government, no law, and no symbol can answer that question for you. Being the light of the world that God created you to be doesn't require an act of Congress. You don't need a Supreme Court decision to love or forgive.

CHRISTIANS: There's a saying: "Living well is the best revenge." If you really want to affect non-Christians, live well. Be a real Christian. Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul and mind, and love your neighbor as yourself. I know it sounds radical and "fringey," but give it a shot.

ANTI-CHRISTIANS: Stop fighting a battle you've already won. We're a secular nation. Leave the Christians their symbols. For some of them, they're all that they have.