Protest centers around right to pray
http://rdu.news14.com/content/headlines/?ArID=96552&SecID=2
[excerpt]

12/18/2006 7:34 AM
By: Adrianne Flores, News 14 Carolina


WINSTON-SALEM -- The battle over separation of church and state is heating
up in Forsyth County.

The American Civil Liberties Union is asking city and county leaders to
stop allowing sectarian prayers before public meetings, but a group of
ministers is threatening a holy war, of sorts, and they plan on taking it
all the way to court if necessary.

The word "God" shows up in everything from the pledge of allegiance, to
the
nation's highest courts to money and the Rev. Shawn Dobbs, of Edgewood
Baptist Church, says that's how it should be.

"We're asking about 2,000 people of all faiths to come tonight at about
6:30 and let the city government hear their voice and know how they feel
about the possibility of exercise of free faith being infringed upon," he
said. "The mayor and city council is considering not allowing us to pray.
They're considering a nonsectarian prayer, which is really
government-imposed prayer. So, we're asking that people of every faith
come
tonight and let their voice be heard."
Dobbs says neither the U.S. Constitution nor the Bill of Rights creates a
separation of church and state.

"The ACLU is talking about the establishment clause and they're
overemphasizing that," he said. "The reality is we're guaranteed our
rights
of free exercise of faith by the constitution."
[end excerpt]

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You are invited to check out the following:

The Rise of the Theocratic States of America
http://members.tripod.com/~candst/theocracy.htm

American Theocrats - Past and Present
http://members.tripod.com/~candst/theocrats.htm

The Constitutional Principle: Separation of Church and State
http://members.tripod.com/~candst/index.html

[and to join the discussion group for the above site and/or Separation of
Church and State in general, listed below]

HRSepCnS · Hampton Roads [Virginia] SepChurch&State
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HRSepCnS/

[Its not just Hampton Roads folks who are members, there are members from
all over the US and a couple from overseas as well]

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. . . You can't understand a phrase such as "Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of religion" by syllogistic reasoning. Words
take their meaning from social as well as textual contexts, which is why
"a
page of history is worth a volume of logic." New York Trust Co. v.
Eisner,
256 U.S. 345, 349, 41 S.Ct. 506, 507, 65 L.Ed. 963 (1921) (Holmes, J.).
Sherman v. Community Consol. Dist. 21, 980 F.2d 437, 445 (7th Cir. 1992)
. . .
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USAF LT. COL (Ret) Buffman (Glen P. Goffin) wrote

"You pilot always into an unknown future;
facts are your only clue. Get the facts!"

That philosophy 'snipit' helped to get me, and my crew, through a good
many combat missions and far too many scary, inflight, emergencies.

It has also played a significant role in helping me to expose the
plethora of radical Christian propaganda and lies that we find at
almost every media turn.

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THE CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLE:
SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE

http://members.tripod.com/~candst/index.html
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