The debate over the appropriateness of having the Ten Commandments displayed in a public place always seems to gloss over what is actually stated in the Ten Commandments. They are a decent list of rules to live by for everyone, right? Why does anyone have a problem with them?
I am not against religion or even against religious views shaping public policy. It is inevitable if the people in the government believe in God and the Bible, and use that as the foundation for their morality. But, the first commandment clearly states that we are to have "no other gods" but the Judeo-Christian God - Yahweh, YHWH, or whatever you choose to call Him.
But what if I choose to worship a different god, or a pantheon of deities, such as in the Hindu faith? How am I to feel when this publicly displayed document invalidates my faith or my religion? That is not the America our founding fathers wished to create - see the First Amendment.
The founding fathers were Christians, or deists, but they did not mean for there to be a state-endorsed religion. The displaying of the Ten Commandments on public grounds does just that.
Nathan Schoenack
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Moorhead
