The idea of amending the Alabama Constitution to require the posting the Ten Commandments in public schools is a violation of the sanctity between church and state! This is another move by religious fundamentalist politicians to win voter sympathy while turning our state government into a theocracy. It is clearly a violation of the principle of separation of church and state which has made our nation great!

I have a copy of the Ten Commandments posted on the wall in my home. I also have a Holy Bible on my bookshelf and the King James version available on CD. In the home, not the public schools, is where the Ten Commandments ought to be.

Historical document displays should not include the Ten Commandments as the Ten Commandments is NOT a historical document. It is supposedly the word of God as given through Moses. But anyone who studies history will know the origins of law extend to the very beginnings of human culture and society and were generally made by man, not God.

It is false and fallacious to include in our state Constitution any requirement that the Ten Commandments as the word of God be displayed in public schools. Why do some legislators want this when they exclude the Gettysburg Address and the Emancipation Proclamation from such displays? Could it be these legislators are white bigots who view God and Jesus Christ as white and Abraham Lincoln as insignificant?

Where is the requirement to post the Hammurabi Code or the Napoleonic Code in public schools or at least require these be part of public school libraries? Where is the requirement that every public school should have a Buddha upon display or a copy of the Koran?

Already any student can go on the Internet and view the Ten Commandments. Amending the state Constitution to require the Ten Commandments be displayed in public schools is certainly unnecessary given this fact. Besides, there are many versions of the Ten Commandments and these are best studies in context; i.e., in their original form as presented in the Holy Bible.

Christian fundamentalist politicians or a majority of sympathetic voters can not be allowed to turn our state into a theocracy. To do so will essentially make fundamentalist Christianity a state sponsored religion.

The only way to fairly and justly handle this issue is to leave the Ten Commandments in the home, in the church and in the heart where it belongs. For politicians, no matter how well meaning, to make a public issue out of this matter is to corrupt our state Constitution for the selfish and political gain this may bring to those who grandstand upon this issue.

Sincerely,
Terry Lynch
Date: 7 Feb., 2002

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