Wednesday, January 21, 2004
Taking the cane to Christianity
A fight in the US Supreme Court over a child’s candy cane is one of the latest rounds in a growing movement to ban any form of Christian expression in public. A kindergarten pupil, Daniel Walz, had the candy canes confiscated by his teacher when he tried to give them as gifts to other kids just before Easter 1998, because they carried the message “Jesus loves the little children.� The school’s head objected to the message, and now attorneys for The Rutherford Institute have backed the family and this month have appealed to the Supreme Court to uphold Daniel’s right of religious expression.
It might seem just one of those things that could only happen in America. But some major rows have erupted in recent times that indicate that Christianity is in for a very rocky road publicly in the nation that was founded, as its Constitution says, “under God�. The most public recently was when Chief Justice Roy Moore of Alabama was removed from office in November because he placed a granite monument containing the 10 Commandments in his courthouse. For more background on the case, read here.
Actually, Christianity is under assault throughout the Western world, not just the US. For instance, a Canadian judge forced schools to teach homosexuality in kindergarten classes. Australian Christians were prosecuted for handing out Christian literature, even though there are no laws against doing it. In America, a Methodist bishop said that Christian evangelism is arrogant and it can lead to hate crimes. Canadian mayors have been fined up to $10,000 for not celebrating Gay Pride Week in their cities. The European Union is considering laws which might make some parts of the Bible illegal.
These are just some of the cases that Mary Ann Collins has been documenting. Her full report makes sobering reading.
A fight in the US Supreme Court over a child’s candy cane is one of the latest rounds in a growing movement to ban any form of Christian expression in public. A kindergarten pupil, Daniel Walz, had the candy canes confiscated by his teacher when he tried to give them as gifts to other kids just before Easter 1998, because they carried the message “Jesus loves the little children.� The school’s head objected to the message, and now attorneys for The Rutherford Institute have backed the family and this month have appealed to the Supreme Court to uphold Daniel’s right of religious expression.
It might seem just one of those things that could only happen in America. But some major rows have erupted in recent times that indicate that Christianity is in for a very rocky road publicly in the nation that was founded, as its Constitution says, “under God�. The most public recently was when Chief Justice Roy Moore of Alabama was removed from office in November because he placed a granite monument containing the 10 Commandments in his courthouse. For more background on the case, read here.
Actually, Christianity is under assault throughout the Western world, not just the US. For instance, a Canadian judge forced schools to teach homosexuality in kindergarten classes. Australian Christians were prosecuted for handing out Christian literature, even though there are no laws against doing it. In America, a Methodist bishop said that Christian evangelism is arrogant and it can lead to hate crimes. Canadian mayors have been fined up to $10,000 for not celebrating Gay Pride Week in their cities. The European Union is considering laws which might make some parts of the Bible illegal.
These are just some of the cases that Mary Ann Collins has been documenting. Her full report makes sobering reading.
