Liberals use the courts to separate God from society

e-mail this story discuss this issue in our forums Guest column • Jan B. Brown: Domestic violence does not discriminate (12/16/03) • John Warner: State's industries don't measure up in productivity (12/16/03) • Edwin Leap: Spirit of Christmas still glows brightly amid excess (12/14/03) • Phyllis Henderson And Brent Clinkscale: Economic incentives necessary in our global economy (12/13/03) • Glenn Andrews: Company protects online records (12/13/03) More details Sen. Mike Fair, a Republican from Greenville County, was elected to the state Senate in 1995 from District 6, and he is the chairman of the Senate Corrections and Penology Committee. He has served in the state House of Representatives and on the Greenville County Council.

Consider a circumstance at The Citadel.

The religious underpinnings of The Citadel are undeniable. A new book, "Remember Now Thy Creator in The Days of Thy Youth," chronicles the Christian history of The Citadel. It is a rich history and tradition.

Retired Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Grinalds is the current president of The Citadel and is a committed Christian. He recently ordered cadets to stop leading in mealtime prayers! This order came as a consequence of a federal court ruling which ordered the cadets at VMI to stop similar prayers.

This example of judicial activism and heresy is among a litany of strong-arm tactics employed by the unholy alliance of activist judges and the political left.

Another case occurred this fall when Congress passed a law to stop abortions on full-term infants (partial birth). Liberals, having lost in Congress, rushed to get the federal judiciary to stand against morality and democracy. On Nov. 7 a federal judge placed a stay on the law passed by Congress and signed by the president.

This kind of action occurs frequently because the left rules with a heavy hand within the federal judiciary as the legislative branch of government is regularly circumvented by judicial fiat.

When the template of constitutional oversight is placed onto statutory law, it is the law that must be molded to conform to the Constitution and the re-moulding is a legislative function.. Through case law, it appears that liberal judges keep trying to reshape the "template" to fit their schizophrenic legal prisms.

Application and interpretation do not mean reconstruction.

Does legislating by fiat violate the Separation of Powers Doctrine? How can legislatures and Congress stand against this onslaught on constitutional "checks and balances?"

In 1787 our newly formed government permanently replaced the notion of a tyrannical monarchy with the Constitution. Among other mandates, our new "king," the Constitution, promoted the idea that people were to be permitted to worship wherever and whatever and whenever they wanted to worship ... or not. It was and is a choice.

The First Amendment says: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people to peaceably assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." This language is axiomatic!

Americans have been protected by the Bill of Rights guaranteeing the right for Americans to make choices to "secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and to our posterity." However, the hedge of protection is being removed as liberal judges have aided the political left in perverting the First Amendment to deny the very freedoms that it guarantees!

As our Founders wrote and spoke, they were weaving Christian doctrine into the fabric of our nation. The Judeo-Christian ethic has held our society together and is the essence of the character of our king.

Indeed, Patrick Henry said that religious freedom was a consequence of America's status as a Christian nation! A Christ-absent society will not preserve religious freedom for all.

The Establishment Clause was no paradox to the Founders. There would be no "English style" state religion but the Framers wanted and expected religious faith to be an integral part of government and education (Northwest Ordinance, 1787).

While the Framers were walking in the Halls of Congress and the courtrooms of America, the Constitution would not be subverted. However, as memories and character faded, the framework began cracking. Separation of church and state became separation of church from state.

Today the left is infinitely more interested in separating God from society than it is in simply separating church and state. For over 150 years "the king" prevented this societal suicide. During the 20th century, a classic role reversal was unveiled. The "king," or law, must now gain approval from an omniscient federal court which insist on giving permission rather than interpretation.

The Founders understood that separating religion from an institution also removes moral virtue form that very same institution.

In 1787 religious freedom and moral integrity abounded in our institutions of government and education. The crystal clear freedoms glistened in the beacon of America's beaming light!

However, as Bastiat said, when law and morality contradict each other, the citizen has the cruel alternative of either losing his moral sense or losing his respect for the law.