Faith

TX City Council Votes to Reintroduce Prayer & the Pledge After 37 Years

Weatherford, Texas Votes to Add Invocation & Pledge Back Into City MeetingsThe church-state environment in Weatherford, Texas, differs greatly from the non-theist sentiment that so regularly overtakes communities across America. On Tuesday, the first time in nearly four decades, the Weatherford City Council voted four to one on Tuesday to usher back in the Pledge of Allegiance and an invocation at meetings.

Last month, the Parker County Ministerial Alliance petitioned for the return of these elements at government gatherings. Initially, politicians were hesitant and they discussed merely adding a moment of silence, but those in support of something more specific petitioned leaders to delve deeper.

“Prayer is beneficial to the whole city, saying we are under God,” explained Alliance President Scott Wilson.

But one resident, Bobbie Narramore, disagreed, contending that adding the prayer was exclusionary to those who don’t believe, CBS DFW reports.

 

“I am against an invocation,” he said. “I am for the separation of the church and state.”

“We have Muslims living here. We have Jews living here. By having prayer, we’re telling them forget you because you don’t have a recognized church,” Narramore added.

Even Mayor Dennis Hooks was on the fence regarding the initial vote, claiming that he wanted to be fair to all residents and not just those embracing faith. But in the end, the council decided to include prayer and the pledge.

Already, the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), led by Annie Laurie Gaylor and her husband Dan Barker, is already voicing opposition to the initiative. The group sent a letter to the city, warning that bringing an invocation back into the fold could violate the U.S. constitution.

In the end, one “no” vote that was cast by Mayor Pro-Tem Waymon Hamilton, who expressed worries over the potential of a costly legal battle with atheist groups. Rather than keeping the focus upon faith and its presence in government affairs, the politician lamented the potential fallout.

“I am not opposed to prayer. The Lord is the one who knows who prays. Putting the taxpayers at risk of litigation is not prudent,” he said.

(H/T: CBS DFW)

Comments (104)

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  • Yuuperguy
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:13am

    As an Atheist I have no problem with this, as an American I hope that other religions or creeds be allowed to speak or pray also. Not everyone in that town is Christian, freedom of speech means freedom for everyone.

    Report Post »  
    • WashingtonIsMyHero
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:36am

      You are way off. One bullying atheist wants their way over a large group of well-meaning Christians in a Christian country with Christian underpinnings at our founding and cites a phrase not found in the Constitution and a phrase interpreteted the opposite of what the Constitution and the founders intended. Yeah that’s reasonable. What are you guys afraid of?

      Report Post » WashingtonIsMyHero  
    • WashingtonIsMyHero
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:42am

      Try selling atheism to the Muslims in the middle east. They’re very open-minded about religion. It’s easy to slap Christians around, isn’t it?

      Report Post » WashingtonIsMyHero  
    • lukerw
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:47am

      I can support an Atheist… whom has Common Sense… and cites his Faith & is willing to let others do the same. What I cannot support… are those whom would Destroy their Opposition… alike Islam.

      Report Post » lukerw  
    • VRW Conspirator
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:16pm

      Any person should have NO problem with this if they understand the ACTUAL meaning of the words in the Constitution and the 1st Amendment. This is not Congress making any law about religion or even citing one religion over another, after all the God in “one nation under God” is the God of Abraham, the God of the Jews, Christians, and Muslim people.
      You can not cite the 14th Amendment and say that therefore ANY governmental body can’t pray or have prayer in public or mention God. Our Founders would LAUGH in your face for thinking they meant that.
      The word “religion” to our Founders, in the context of History of the English language in the 1700′s, meant DENOMINATION!! If you wanted to modernize the speech and words of the 1st Amendment it would read “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of a National denomination of Christianity…”
      The 1st Amendment was meant to stop the Church of England situaton in the United States. Saying “in God we trust” or “one nation under God” does not place one branch of any faith about any other branch on the national or state or local level. The 1st Amendment was meant to stop the government from interferring with the establishment and exercise of a PRIVATE CITIZENS worship of God.
      All levels of government since have said prayers, had invocations, and cited God in public, at meetings, and in private.
      That was the Original Intent, any atheists or other that says otherwise is delusional!

      Report Post » VRW Conspirator  
    • Cymry
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:51pm

      @ conspirator, Finally! someone understands the fallacy of the “separation of church and state” argument.

      Report Post » Cymry  
  • jenni gardner
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:29am

    It’s great seeing a city with a backbone. And unless Annie Laurie Gaylor and Dan Barker reside there, it is basically none of their business or that of the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF).

    Report Post »  
    • gperky
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 3:47pm

      I agree and we as Americans should support them. This country was founded on Biblical pricipals and we have let a very few minority stop us from expressing our religion and praying in public. If they don’t want to pray or they want to pray to Allah, then do so at the same time but don’t stop me and those around me from expressing my religious freedom. It’s time America stands up for a change. We have been going downhill since we took prayer and morals out of the schools! If you don’t like “IN GOD WE TRUST”, then get the hell out!

      Report Post » gperky  
  • ColoradoMaverick
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 7:10am

    Thank God and Amen! We need to turn to God, not away from him. Evil is taking over the world and people of faith have to learn to stand up and pray to God almighty to help us defeat evil wherever it is.

    Report Post » ColoradoMaverick  
  • Rip Curly
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 6:45am

    Do they put their hands on their hearts or just extend them arm raised and palm down as they did in Nazi Germany?

    I pledge to no government. Government is immoral. So is religion.

    Keep your delusions to yourself.

    Report Post »  
    • lgccac
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 7:52am

      Some day when you stand before Jesus, feel free to express your views.

      Report Post »  
    • Quiata
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:08am

      @RIP “I pledge to no government. Government is immoral. So is religion.” Etc.

      How exactly DO you power up your laptop out there in the woods? … Cot? Nice port-a-potty, too?

      Report Post »  
    • JohnHW
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:57am

      Hey RIP – just had a thought. When our hearts stop and we are no longer of this Earth, if you are correct, then we won’t know it. We will be gone – no thoughts, no knowledge, no nothing, no cares of any kind. BUT, if I, and million of humans are correct, we – including you – will be “standing” before our God and be asked to give an account of the life he gave you. Are you going to say, “you don’t exist, you don’t exist?” Then our God will say, “so be it,” but instead of you ceasing to exist, you will find yourself in the place where you will never die and have to see the place that He has prepared for his believers.

      And you will have to see all this without having any chance to change your little mind until time runs out. I hope you enjoy being lonely.

      Report Post » JohnHW  
    • FoxholeAtheist
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 10:49am

      You want to bet that it’s going to be YOUR god and not some other god of the thousands of religions who say just the very same thing?

      Report Post » FoxholeAtheist  
    • Cymry
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:55pm

      been there, done that (near death experience as a child).

      if hell is as bad as Heaven is good, then you really don’t want to go there because forever never ends.

      Report Post » Cymry  
    • goodwater
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 5:08pm

      When you appear before the Pearly Gates and are asked “Do you believe in God?’ what will your
      response be?
      Scripture teaches us one must believe in the Father otherwise you will be denied eternal life.

      Report Post »  
  • CrawfishFestival2
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 6:31am

    Reminder:

    Obama refused to allow our American Troops to fly the American Flag – when disbursing humanitarian aid in Haiti.

    Although it is our US taxpayer money – that is financing it ALL, Obama claims our American Flag is “a sign of aggression” – and commanded our American Troops to not fly it in Haiti.

    ***
    Michelle Obama: “All This Just for a Flag”
    http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/robbins-report/2011/sep/13/michelle-obama-all-just-flag
    *
    The Obamas at the Tenth Anniversary of the 911 Radical Muslim Terrorist Attacks on US soil:
    Michelle Obama – “All This for a Damn Flag”.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2SQUXjxUS8

    Report Post »  
    • Yuuperguy
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:54am

      You might want to check your facts, Obama had nothing to do with the flag not being flown, it was taken down at the request of the Haitian Prime Minister who thought the flag flying at the airport looked like the U.S. was an occupying force. So in deference to the people who we were trying to help, the U.S. Ambassador Kenneth Merton had it taken down. Just another example of right wing zealots making a mountain out of a mole hill. (When Presidents Obama, Bush and Clinton were over there the American Flag was prominently flown, and if you look through pictures of disaster aid there are Haitian children wearing USA shirts.) Another example of the lies the extreme right wingers like to tell.

      Report Post »  
    • Yuuperguy
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:08am

      As for the Michelle Obama thing, I have showed this to a deaf friend (who did not vote for Obama by the way) he says it’s hard to tell but the last three words were “flew that flag.” He’s sure of it. Either way people are making this stuff up just to disparage the first lady. Have some respect for the office of the president at least. I had no respect for George Bush as a person. But the Job he was hired to do is one of the hardest on the earth, and I respected him for doing what he thought was right, even if I disagreed with him at times. (I have more respect for him since he left office, for not doing what you have done. Which is to lie about the President and his wife.)

      Report Post »  
  • HaroldHeard
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 3:53am

    Is it any wonder that this could only happen in Texas, I thank God in heaven I live in Texas

    Report Post » HaroldHeard  
    • Dismayed Veteran
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 2:41pm

      Maybe one of these days Texas will become a red state. It always amazes me that people from Texas make it sound so conservative but it is not a red state.

      Report Post » Dismayed Veteran  
  • trueamerican40
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 2:24am

    Hello, SCIENCEISNOTEVIL. Can I try to indoctrinate you towards the truth of Jesus Christ? Free country and God is involved in peoples lives. You‘ll be amazed at the size of the universe that is inside of each ones’ souls. Jesus died for you and your countless sins just as He died for me and everyone else. You must have childlike faith before you can enter the kingdom of heaven. Are you ready? I pray you will be. As quoted by a wise man, “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”

    Report Post » trueamerican40  
  • TXFIRE1
    Posted on June 14, 2012 at 1:45am

    God created all the heavens and the earth, but He created Texas for a place to call home.

    Report Post »  
    • M24
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:08am

      Roger That ,No Place On Earth Like TEXAS “ Home Of The Brave And Land Of The Free ”

      Report Post »  
  • denkat56
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 11:41pm

    thank god and its about time.

    Report Post »  
    • lukerw
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:29am

      We bring our Religion with us wherever we go and whatever we do. We do not need Govenment to Regulate Religion… but to allow Office Holders to state their Faith.

      May GOD Bless this City!

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • FieldJudge
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 11:41pm

    In the end, one “no” vote that was cast by Coward Mayor Pro-Tem Waymon Hamilton, who expressed worries over the potential of a costly legal battle with atheist groups. Rather than keeping the focus upon faith and its presence in government affairs, the coward politician lamented the potential fallout.

    “I am not opposed to prayer. The Lord is the one who knows who prays. Putting the taxpayers at risk of litigation is not prudent,” said the COWARD.

    COWARDS
    What a perfect title for a book.
    Maybe one day…

    Report Post » FieldJudge  
    • nzkiwi
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 3:44am

      But where do the atheist groups get their money from?

      What they are doing must be expensive.

      Report Post »  
  • TXgranma
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 11:40pm

    I recently moved to a little town in Texas. At the middle school awards ceremony we not only stood up and said the Pledge of Allegiance of the United States, we also said the Pledge of Allegiance of the Great State of Texas. What a breath of fresh air. And yes, God Bless Texas!!!

    Report Post »  
  • TheirMom
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:24pm

    I attended a parks & rec dedication ceremony in Lake Havasu City not too long ago and it was started with the Pledge and a prayer. It ended with a benediction. We need freedom from freedom from religion. By the way, I’m agnostic myself.

    Report Post »  
    • txjb
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:35pm

      The day your body dies , you will find out real quick ,that agnostic stuff isn’t what you thought it was.

      Report Post »  
  • blackyb
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:18pm

    As well they should. As sould all America. Stand up and know this day whom you will serve.

    Report Post » blackyb  
  • blackyb
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:17pm

    If someone wants to say their own prayer as well, fine. If they do not want to hear yours, let them cover their ears or leave. Stand for your God, He created you and gave his Son to die on the cross for you sins. If you are ashamed of Him, He will be ashamed of you when you stand before Him. Those who wimp out do not deserve the Kingdom of Heaven. This is our land Under God and so Stand with Him, He has You. Do not care what anyone says or does, He gave you a stewardship in being a leader, so honor Him in all you do, always.

    Report Post » blackyb  
  • scrudge
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:54pm

    Ah Yes…. GOD BLESS TEXAS

    Report Post »  
  • Wolfgang the Gray
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:02pm

    Hey Bobbie Narramore, Annie Laurie Gaylor, Dan Barker, & Freedom From Religion Foundation, if you don’t like it, move to another town, state, country. This is America, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, indivisible, with LIBERTY and JUSTICE for ALL. If you want to sit there, not say the pledge, then cover your ears and hum while the invocation is given, go right ahead. You think you can force us to give up our liberty because you don’t like what we are proud to do? If you don’t like the show on the TV, change the channel. If you don’t like the format on the radio, change the station. If you don’t like the Pledge of Allegiance and a prayer, then move to another town, state, country.

    10-cheers for Weatherford, TX for standing up for Liberty, God, and Country! I support you 100%. God Bless Texas!

    Report Post » Wolfgang the Gray  
    • blackyb
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:19pm

      Yeah, way to go Texas. We are proud of you. Now the rest of the wimps need to get in line and show they are not ashamed of the God who gives them their next breath.

      Report Post » blackyb  
    • jeezpeeps
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 11:44pm

      Hip Hip Hooray x 10 = God Bless Texas!

      Report Post »  
    • encinom
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 11:47pm

      You are right this is America and not a theocracy, we are secular nation where are government is neutral towards religion. Where those that do not believe in the Christian myths and fairy tales are not punished, or did you Christian Fascist forget that.

      Report Post »  
    • Git-R-Done
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 11:57pm

      Encinom – We’re not going to be bullied by you Marxists anymore. We’re not going to let you silence freedom of speech and freedom of religion. If you don’t like that, you can move to your precious North Korea.

      Report Post »  
    • jeffile
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 1:38am

      Encinom, you continually show your lack of knowledge of the Constituiton. No, we do not live in a theocrat and that is precisely why the writers of the Constitution demanded freedom from Congress creating a favored religion. However, they also placed a requirement that Cpngress cannot interfere with one’s religious beliefs. If Town A wants to have a benediction then they have every right to do so but Congress cannot make a law requiring such. It‘s called not interfering with one’s religious beliefs. Much like the same writers of that amendment used to do in their political careers. The Constitution means exactly what the writers meant, not what some airhead judge decides.

      Report Post »  
    • encinom
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:37pm

      @jeffile
      YOur knowledge of the Constitution is the one that is lacking.

      A town or any political entity doesn’t have a religion, towns don’t have a First Amendment right to pray, they are a part of the government that is prohibited from establishing a religion. The 14th Amendemnt has expanded the 1st Amendment to regulate the actions of the States and the political subdivisions of the State. The rights of the individual were not violated, no individual is be prevented from praying.

      Your argument makes little sense, a town can never have a religion.

      Report Post »  
  • MrButcher
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:59pm

    This is not what conservatives should focus on.

    Prayer and pledges should be of a personal nature and should never be mandatory in any public arena.

    Trust me, this can come back to haunt you…

    Report Post » MrButcher  
    • chips1
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:29pm

      I didn’t see anything in the story that said it was mandatoy. Sounded more like it was a permissable option. Sit down and crack your knuckles if you want.

      Report Post »  
    • MrButcher
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:42pm

      *crack*

      what if someone wants to offer a non-christian prayer?

      what if they want to mock religion?

      what if they want to read from Das Kapital?

      Be careful who you give power to.

      Power never remains in one point.

      Think ahead.

      Report Post » MrButcher  
  • thibx
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:56pm

    from weatherford to the rest of america its about time. those who speak against God don’t know him but will one day meet him.

    Report Post »  
    • chips1
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:23pm

      On the contrary! Their eyes will never see God.

      Report Post »  
    • phillyatheist
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:03am

      when you’re dead your eyes stop working, along with the rest of your bodily functions. no one will be seeing anyone, including the big scary red guy with the pitchfork and the horns. that’s what you folks believe in, right? (laughing)

      Report Post » phillyatheist  
  • Sumrknght
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:32pm

    Let’s show them our support America! For every courthouse that had the 10 Commandments ripped out of it… .for every school that had a prayer removed from it’s walls… Let’s get ANOTHER city to re-instate the Pledge and Prayer!

    Report Post »  
    • ScienceIsNotEvil
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:57pm

      Are you going to fight for your “right” to kill disobedient kids like your holy book teaches you to as well?

      Is your religion really so weak that you require the use of governmental force to make people / kids pray? Sounds like a rather weak being you believe in now doesn’t it?

      Report Post »  
    • Eddie Estes
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:10pm

      And we have another supposed Bible scholar chiming in about killing kids. That was the Mosaic law. Jesus fulfilled the law. In effect God withholds his judgement now. Please find something relevant and use a little thought next time.

      Report Post »  
    • chips1
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:32pm

      SCIENCE:
      I don’t think muslims read the Blaze. Whom were you talking to?

      Report Post »  
    • ScienceIsNotEvil
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:43pm

      Eddie Estes,

      Deuteronomy 21:18-21

      “If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they discipline him, will not listen to them, then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place where he lives, and they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This our son is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.’ Then all the men of the city shall stone him to death with stones. So you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

      Report Post »  
    • scarebear83
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 11:11pm

      We put “kids” in juvenile detention, spank them when they do wrong, even some are tried as adults if the crime is really bad. The verses you have pointed out does not indicate the age of the son. A son could be 16 or 17 years old. Something also to remember is some cultures consider boys, men at younger ages than our own. Even back then a boy could be considered an adult at a much younger age than 18 therefore that son would be responsible for his own sins. So nothing indicates for one minute to stone “kids.” It‘s wrong to assume that it’s talking about say an 8yr old child like your comment seems to have proposed. This son is old enough to be tried and punished according to his own sinful behavior. Besides I wouldn’t imagine an 8yr old being a drunkard even back then.

      Report Post » scarebear83  
  • PhillyPD369
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:32pm

    If you go by the exact definition, I am an atheist. I made the decision that religion wasn’t for me. That being said, I respect what religion means to people and dispise how Christianity is constantly being **** upon. I actually hate being called ‘the a word’ because they are usually far-left, Marxists. If someone putting up a cross or saying a prayer is the worst thing going on in your life, you have a good life.

    Report Post »  
    • wakeus_com
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:59pm

      Thanks for being rational, and of course, God bless you. :)

      Report Post » wakeus_com  
    • Flag-Man
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:01am

      Amen

      Report Post » Flag-Man  
    • phillyatheist
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:06am

      PHILLY – really? you think that Christianity is getting a raw deal? and you hate being labeled an Atheist? i almost think you’re making this up.

      Report Post » phillyatheist  
  • itsjustgigi
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:26pm

    It’s about Christians stand up and band together. Way to go Weatherford! Thank God I live in Texas : )

    Report Post » itsjustgigi  
  • SgtB
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:24pm

    Congrats on reinstating the “Pledge of Alliegence” into your monthly meeting’s minutes. Once again you will be able to recite a phrase that was written by a self-avowed Christian Marxist that is meant to sway children to become beholden to the state. Way to go!… Dumbasses.

    Report Post » SgtB  
  • Bryan B
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:11pm

    “Already, the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), led by Annie Laurie Gaylor and her husband Dan Barker, is already voicing opposition to the initiative. The group sent a letter to the city, warning that bringing an invocation back into the fold could violate the U.S. constitution.”

    Prayer in a Government Building, by people representing the Government, in no way violates the Constitution of the United States, and that is a historical and legal fact……..

    Report Post » Bryan B  
    • encinom
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:15pm

      ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE!!!

      Keep your mythical beings out of our secular government.

      Report Post »  
    • americagreat
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:23pm

      Well said Bryan.

      Report Post »  
    • itsjustgigi
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:24pm

      Amen to that!

      Report Post » itsjustgigi  
    • Bryan B
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:28pm

      @encinom

      You are not only wrong but you are a liar.

      “I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that “except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain that build it.” I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better, than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our partial local interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a reproach and bye word down to future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing governments by human wisdom and leave it to chance, war and conquest.

      I therefore beg leave to move that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the clergy of this city be requested to officiate in that service.”

      Benjamin Franklin April 17, 1787

      Report Post » Bryan B  
    • The-Monk
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:55pm

      @Bryan B

      Hey Bryan, Glenn is doing a special for Jett for Fathers Day on Monday June 18th.

      Would you like to watch it live at 5pm on GBTV?

      Report Post » The-Monk  
    • ScienceIsNotEvil
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:58pm

      As long as they are Christian. If this was an Islamic person most of you would be up in arms about how wrong it was.

      You don’t want rights for anyone other than those who think precisely as you do which is sad.

      Report Post »  
    • Al J Zira
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:38pm

      @ScienceIsNotEvil: Another weak argument. The difference between Christians and muslims is Christians don’t bring their own laws into the argument. Christian beliefs only support the laws this country has already established especially since those laws were established on biblical law. Muslims, on the other hand, have admittedly brought sharia law in hopes to change the local, federal and constitutionals laws of the land to suit their needs.

      Report Post » Al J Zira  
    • ScienceIsNotEvil
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:44pm

      Al J Zira

      How do you justify the 1st amendment after reading the 1st commandment?

      Report Post »  
    • Bryan B
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:28pm

      @ScienceIsNotEvil

      “How do you justify the 1st amendment after reading the 1st commandment?”

      Your comment makes no sense at all……

      Report Post » Bryan B  
    • Judeo_Christian
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:37pm

      Sure about that secular idiocy Encicom? Check out the first law of our Government…the Declaration of Independence. Do a little research who set up Church services in both house of the Capitol building. I’ll give you a hint..it was Jefferson.

      No one is establishing a religion, and the last I checked, the city coucil down in Texas is not the Congress of the US.

      ENCICOM you’re an idiot.

      Report Post » Judeo_Christian  
    • ScienceIsNotEvil
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:41pm

      Actually it does.

      1st amendment = Freedom of/from religion.
      1st commandment = “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”

      Kind of hard to derive the 1st from the 2nd now isn’t it. If this was a Christian nation the 1st amendment would be specific to the Christian religion. It isn’t.

      Report Post »  
    • Bryan B
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:25am

      @ScienceIsNotEvil

      We are a nation of Laws, The Laws of God this is why the government can’t just take your rights or civil libertys from you, with out trial and conviction by jury, because you are born free according to Laws of God. The Laws of Man does not give you your freedom, God does……

      Report Post » Bryan B  
    • encinom
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 10:11am

      Bryan B
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:25am
      @ScienceIsNotEvil

      We are a nation of Laws, The Laws of God this is why the government can’t just take your rights or civil libertys from you, with out trial and conviction by jury, because you are born free according to Laws of God. The Laws of Man does not give you your freedom, God does……
      ____________________
      Our laws are drafted by men, they are not divine, were they of the divine they could not be changed, altered or revoked. If they were divine we sould still have biblically approved honor killings and slavery. No where in the Bible is the right to a trial by a jury of our peers is granted. The 1st Amendments freedom of Religion flies in the face of the Bible. The Bible commands followers to punish those that do not follow the same God, stone witches and heritics.

      Our Freedoms come from the very fact our fore-fathers reject theocracy and created a secular nation. Our freedoms are inspite of the Bible, not because of it.

      Report Post »  
    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 1:37pm

      The Liberty Window
      At its initial meeting in September 1774 Congress invited the Reverend Jacob Duché (1738-1798), rector of Christ Church, Philadelphia, to open its sessions with prayer. Duché ministered to Congress in an unofficial capacity until he was elected the body’s first chaplain on July 9, 1776. He defected to the British the next year. Pictured here in the bottom stained-glass panel is the first prayer in Congress, delivered by Duché. The top part of this extraordinary stained glass window depicts the role of churchmen in compelling King John to sign the Magna Carta in 1215.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006409.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 1:42pm

      George Duffield, Congressional Chaplain
      On October 1, 1777, after Jacob Duché, Congress’s first chaplain, defected to the British, Congress appointed joint chaplains: William White (1748-1836), Duché’s successor at Christ Church, Philadelphia, and George Duffield (1732-1790), pastor of the Third Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia. By appointing chaplains of different denominations, Congress expressed a revolutionary egalitarianism in religion and its desire to prevent any single denomination from monopolizing government patronage. This policy was followed by the first Congress under the Constitution which on April 15, 1789, adopted a joint resolution requiring that the practice be continued.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006663.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 2:11pm

      Military Chaplains Pay
      This resolution directed that military chaplains, appointed in abundance by Congress during the Revolutionary War, were paid at the rate of a major in the Continental Army.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006495.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 2:45pm

      Proposed Seal for the United States
      On July 4, 1776, Congress appointed Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams “to bring in a device for a seal for the United States of America.” Franklin’s proposal adapted the biblical story of the parting of the Red Sea (left). Jefferson first recommended the “Children of Israel in the Wilderness, led by a Cloud by Day, and a Pillar of Fire by night. . . .” He then embraced Franklin’s proposal and rewrote it (right). Jefferson‘s revision of Franklin’s proposal was presented by the committee to Congress on August 20. Although not accepted these drafts reveal the religious temper of the Revolutionary period. Franklin and Jefferson were among the most theologically liberal of the Founders, yet they used biblical imagery for this important task.

      Left side – http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/f0402as.jpg
      Right side – http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/f0402bs.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 3:28pm

      Congressional Fast Day Proclamation
      Congress proclaimed days of fasting and of thanksgiving annually throughout the Revolutionary War. This proclamation by Congress set May 17, 1776, as a “day of Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer” throughout the colonies. Congress urges its fellow citizens to “confess and bewail our manifold sins and transgressions, and by a sincere repentance and amendment of life, appease his [God's] righteous displeasure, and through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, obtain his pardon and forgiveness.“ Massachusetts ordered a ”suitable Number“ of these proclamations be printed so ”that each of the religious Assemblies in this Colony, may be furnished with a Copy of the same“ and added the motto ”God Save This People“ as a substitute for ”God Save the King.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/f0404s.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 4:13pm

      Congressional Thanksgiving Day Proclamation
      Congress set December 18, 1777, as a day of thanksgiving on which the American people “may express the grateful feelings of their hearts and consecrate themselves to the service of their divine benefactor” and on which they might “join the penitent confession of their manifold sins . . . that it may please God, through the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of remembrance.“ Congress also recommends that Americans petition God ”to prosper the means of religion for the promotion and enlargement of that kingdom which consisteth in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.’”

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006494.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 6:29pm

      The 1779 Fast Day Proclamation
      Here is the most eloquent of the Fast and Thanksgiving Day Proclamations.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006492.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 6:55pm

      Another Thanksgiving Day Proclamation
      Congress set November 28, 1782, as a day of thanksgiving on which Americans were “to testify their gratitude to God for his goodness, by a cheerful obedience to his laws, and by promoting, each in his station, and by his influence, the practice of true and undefiled religion, which is the great foundation of public prosperity and national happiness.”

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006491.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 7:36pm

      Morality in the Army
      Congress was apprehensive about the moral condition of the American army and navy and took steps to see that Christian morality prevailed in both organizations. In the Articles of War, seen below, governing the conduct of the Continental Army (seen above) (adopted, June 30, 1775; revised, September 20, 1776), Congress devoted three of the four articles in the first section to the religious nurture of the troops. Article 2 “earnestly recommended to all officers and soldiers to attend divine services.“ Punishment was prescribed for those who behaved ”indecently or irreverently” in churches, including courts-martial, fines and imprisonments. Chaplains who deserted their troops were to be court-martialed.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006576.jpg
      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006577.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 7:46pm

      Morality in the Navy
      Congress particularly feared the navy as a source of moral corruption and demanded that skippers of American ships make their men behave. The first article in Rules and Regulations of the Navy (below), adopted on November 28, 1775, ordered all commanders “to be very vigilant . . . to discountenance and suppress all dissolute, immoral and disorderly practices.“ The second article required those same commanders ”to take care, that divine services be performed twice a day on board, and a sermon preached on Sundays.” Article 3 prescribed punishments for swearers and blasphemers: officers were to be fined and common sailors were to be forced “to wear a wooden collar or some other shameful badge of distinction.”

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006525.jpg
      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006526.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 7:52pm

      Aitken’s Bible Endorsed by Congress
      The war with Britain cut off the supply of Bibles to the United States with the result that on Sept. 11, 1777, Congress instructed its Committee of Commerce to import 20,000 Bibles from “Scotland, Holland or elsewhere.” On January 21, 1781, Philadelphia printer Robert Aitken (1734-1802) petitioned Congress to officially sanction a publication of the Old and New Testament which he was preparing at his own expense. Congress “highly approve the pious and laudable undertaking of Mr. Aitken, as subservient to the interest of religion . . . in this country, and . . . they recommend this edition of the bible to the inhabitants of the United States.” This resolution was a result of Aitken’s successful accomplishment of his project.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006472.jpg

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    • Dudley Do-Right
      Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:50pm

      Northwest Ordinance
      In the summer of 1787 Congress revisited the issue of religion in the new western territories and passed, July 13, 1787, the famous Northwest Ordinance. Article 3 of the Ordinance contained the following language: “RELIGION, MORALITY AND KNOWLEDGE BEING NECESSARY TO GOOD GOVERNMENT AND THE HAPPINESS OF MANKIND, SCHOOLS AND THE MEANS OF EDUCATION SHALL BE ENCOURAGED.” (emphasis mine) Scholars have been puzzled that, having declared religion and morality indispensable to good government, Congress did not, like some of the state governments that had written similar declarations into their constitutions, give financial assistance to the churches in the West.

      http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/vc006502.jpg

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  • copatriots
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:05pm

    Not sure how prayer was ever removed in Weatherford, Texas but glad the majority of the good citizens decided to reinstate it!

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  • Magyar
    Posted on June 13, 2012 at 8:02pm

    Saints be praised! Thank you LORD!

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    • ScienceIsNotEvil
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:00pm

      So they are going to start praying again and you praise your deity but are you going to blame same said deity for all the kids who are going to starve to death today? This idea that you deity cares more about his Texas city then kids starving to death should make you wonder exactly how moral he really is.

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    • Snafu777
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:43pm

      I will praise him for the fact that he will place those innocent souls in a place above and beyond where the broken minds and hearts of those who’d hurt them with their actions and words or criminal lack thereof can no longer bother them.

      I will also praise him for the freedoms we enjoy like freedom of religion and of free speech. While I might have to listen to your speeches which I may disagree with; I have the freedom to speak my mind as well, and while I might have to hear you preach about the purported “evils” of faith and watch you proselytize others into non-belief, I have the freedom to exercise mine, show others the wonders of God’s creation, and for those who want to, introduce them to my dearest friend.

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    • Al J Zira
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 9:46pm

      Oh My God! You can’t be that naive and try and present argument. No God doesn’t get involved in what some local town does ever, with anything. Nor does He care about football games, Johnny’s test scores or anything else along those lines. You really need to do one of two things:? either stick to your science books and leave the debate about God to those that follow God or, and better yet, pick up the bible, read it regularly. Find someone who already knows and can interpret what you read and help you, then come back and let us know what you find.

      Report Post » Al J Zira  
    • ScienceIsNotEvil
      Posted on June 13, 2012 at 10:44pm

      “pick up the bible”
      “Find someone who already knows and can interpret what you read and help you”

      There are thousands of interpretations – which one is right?

      “No God doesn’t get involved in what some local town does ever”

      Read this site sometime every time something good happens it is because of god or jesus but never the result of the hard work of humans. On the other hand when something bad happens well that isn’t the all knowing all loving gods fault.

      You people use the bible as a chose your own adventure book picking and choosing what ever helps you make your point. None of you actually follow what the bible says for if you did you would be in prison.

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