Cal Thomas said it well

I'm a lefty, would one of you righties please explain to me how this goes.  America, majority rules.  In the house, 218 (?) passes an act.  In the senate, it takes 60 out of a hundred (60%) to pass an act.  At a major college football game, 1 person out of a 100,000 can stop a prayer before a game.  About 1960 (?)  one woman (Ohara ?)stopped schools nationwide to quit having prayer in the morning.  Is it the judges, each side can claim about half of the appointed judges.  There's a problem somewhere.  Any answers?

PS  I wish the schools and ballgames still opened with a prayer.

Majority rules? Why then do we have obamacare among other things the majority of people DID NOT want?  Madalyn Murray O'Hair, didn't do anything alone.  O'Hair was one of the litigants in the case of Murray vs. Curlett, which led the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 1963 decision, to ban organized prayer in public schools. (http://www.who2.com/bio/madalyn-murray-ohair) Organized prayer, not prayer itself like some want to make people believe. What prayers do you want at the beginning of ballgames? Is every religion going to be allowed to offer prayers? How is that going to work? WHY should there be any prayer at public events? How about atheists? If I wanted too, could I take a slice of time before a game to talk about my non-belief, or any other subject I want to talk about? If not, why not?

Spring Hill, Florida -- A Hernando County teacher has been suspended after forcing a 4th grader to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

Anne Daigle-McDonald, a teacher at Explorer K-8 School in Spring Hill, forced the student to place his hand over his heart and recite the Pledge. The student is a Jehovah's Witness, and his religion forbids him from participating in activities considered to be the worship of objects.

The boy reportedly protested, but Daigle-McDonald told him, "You are an American and you are supposed to salute the flag."

The following day she allegedly forced him again to take the Pledge, telling the classroom that "if you can't put your hand on your heart, then you need to move out of the country."

After an investigation, the school suspended Daigle-McDonald for five days without pay, and instructed her to take diversity training.

In a conference with Hernando school officials, the teacher says that while she knew the boy did not practice birthdays or holidays, she was unaware he was forbidden to say the Pledge.

Still, Hernando County school policy says students don't have to recite the Pledge of Allegiance if they don't want to, and that no reason needs to be given.

Parents with students at Explorer K-8 were shocked to hear what Ms. Daigle-McDonald did to the boy.

"He is a Jehovah's Witness and he is only doing or not doing what his parents raised him to do," says parent Kelly Babcock.

"She touched a child and that is no-no,"says grandparent Donna Walker. "She should not be teaching here. She should not be teaching children." 

http://www.wtsp.com/rss/articl...ge-teacher-suspended

Hi all,

Our Friend who leans heavily toward liberalism and legalism in his Christian beliefs, tells us his interpretation of the editorial written by Cal Thomas, "This conservative columnist does not side with the Christian nationists who complain about the alleged "removal of God and prayer from the public sphere."

In his efforts to push God into a closet and hide Him, my Friend offers the writing of Cal Thomas, which he seems to misunderstand.  So, let's take a look at that editorial:  http://www.timesdaily.com/opin...f6-10604b9f1ff4.html

It begins with:

Commentary:  The Court, not to mention the country, has long struggled with the First Amendment, which simultaneously prohibits Congress from establishing an official state religion -- while protecting its (religion's)“free exercise.”

It is very clear that the First Amendment prohibits the government from establishing a state religion as had been established in England, with the Church of England, the Anglican church. 

And, the First Amendment is mandated to protect the American citizens right to worship, or not to worship, as each person has chosen.

No "separation of church" and state, only protection for the church from government control.  And, President Jefferson's letter to the Baptist pastors of Danbury, Connecticut, only adds emphasis to that understanding of the First Amendment.

And, further down Cal Thomas writes:

During the recent partial government shutdown, Senate Chaplain Barry C. Black received national attention when he used his opening prayer to chastise lawmakers. . .

Yes, the Congress of America has had a Christian Chaplain since the First Continental Congress -- an unbroken succession.

Why?  Because America was founded as a Christian nation -- and our early leaders recognized the need for God in the daily lives of Americans.  So, whether each of our founding fathers was a strong Christian believer, or a lukewarm one, or even a theist -- they voted back then to have a Chaplain and to allow him to pray before the opening of each session of Congress.   Why change a good thing at this late date?

What is Jesus Christ really telling us in Matthew 6:6, which Cal Thomas quoted?

Matthew 6:6 "But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you."

What is your "inner room"?

The phrase "inner room" is the Greek word "tameion" -- which Strong's Concordance tells us means, "a storage chamber, storeroom a chamber esp. an inner chamber, a secret room."

So, is Jesus Christ telling us to hide in a closet, ashamed to be seen praying?

No, that is not what He was saying.   He is telling us that our prayers are our very personal conversations with God, not to hold in shame or to hide -- but, a time when we can be very personal, for we are talking with our Lord, our heavenly Father.   And, if one cannot be honest and
sincere with his/her father; where else can we take our sincere, personal needs and desires?

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, "Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

Does this Scripture verse mean that Christians should stay in our closed rooms, our closets, hiding from the world?   Well, if we are told to "pray without ceasing" -- and if what you are implying about Matthew 6:6, that it tells us to only pray in a closed room -- then, I suppose God means for Christians to stay locked in a closed room forever.  WRONG!

No, my Friend, Jesus Christ is really telling us to approach the throne room of God the Father from our inner being, from our hearts.   And, He tells us to pray for one another:

James 5:16, "Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed.  The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much."

What is this Scripture verse telling us?  Is it saying that, as a man, I should go to another man to confess my sins as the Roman Catholics do in their confessional?   No.  It is telling us that Christians are to hold one another accountable.   And that accountability is good when we, as Christians, have a brother or sister with whom we can share our problems, our needs, our sins, per se -- that we might help a brother or sister better handle their burdens of this mortal life.

And, it tells us to "pray for one another" -- which can be seen as a personal one-on-one prayer for a brother or sister, or it can be taken to pray for our nation of Christian believers.  And, that is what happens in Congress when that body opens a session to do the work of guiding our nation.

Why?  Because, as this Scripture verse tells us -- "The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much."

But, how can prayer that is prohibited accomplish anything?

So, my Friend -- if you are ashamed to be seen praying to God -- so be it.  But, I will continue to pray whenever and wherever it seems appropriate and thank my God for that privilege.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

Anybody who thinks the majority rules needs to go back to remedial civics class.

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No one is stopping you from praying. 

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We must be tolerant & allow Billie boy to enter a stupid comment in every thread regardless of how wrong he always is.

No court has ever banned prayer in public places whether it be schools, government buildings, grocery stores, sporting events whatever. What the courts have consistently done is ban people in positions of authority in government from mandating prayer or any religious observance. I think we can all agree that this is as it should be in a Republic where the rights of all are guaranteed. I've often wondered why this is such an issue for many of my faith because as Thomas points out Jesus said that His kingdom was not of this world. As for separation of church and state "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, render unto God the things that are God's." Seems pretty clear to me.

Concerning prayer before ballgames, some want it, some don't want it.  How do we decide who's rights gets trampled?  Isn't there always a judge involved?

Judges have been involved. You have the right to pray all you want, just don't expect to be allowed to force others to do the same. I still don't see the need to pray before ballgames or meetings or such. That's supposed to be what all your tax exempt churches are for.

Bill Gray,

The silliness--and the legalism and liberalism--to which you will descend is exemplified in your comment, below:

"Does this Scripture verse mean that Christians should stay in our closed rooms, our closets, hiding from the world?   Well, if we are told to "pray without ceasing" -- and if what you are implying about Matthew 6:6, that it tells us to only pray in a closed room -- then, I suppose God means for Christians to stay locked in a closed room forever.  WRONG!"

Let's examine the implications of your warped interpretation, Bill.  It is ludicrously simplistic to interpret the instruction to "pray without ceasing" to mean that one's prayers can never be interrupted to permit us to undertake some other activity of life.  But that is precisely the underlying "logic" of what you are saying. 

"Pray without ceasing" in no way means that one is obliged to pray 24/7/365, but that is the interpretation you have to place upon it to get to your absurd conclusion that one who prays without ceasing and who prays in his "closed room" would therefore be obliged never to leave that "closed room".   "Without ceasing," as used in  I Thess. 5:17 (as well as in  I Thess.1:3 and 2:13 and Romans 1:9) does not mean uninterruptedly in the absolutist sense that your LEGALISTIC interpretation would demand.  Common sense ought to tell you that.  No one restricts his or her activities entirely to prayer and no one is expected to do that, but you have torqued the passage to claim that meaning in order to make a "point" that you have failed to make. People who twist and wrest scripture, as you have done,  to squeeze from it a meaning that is not there are LIBERALS!

Contendah,

My Friend, are you telling me that you cannot walk, chew gum, and pray at the same time?  I am truly sorry to hear that.   But, maybe if you pray about it:

James 5:16, "Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed.  The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much."

However, since you are ashamed to be seen praying in public -- maybe we should ask some of our Christian Friends on the forum to join with me in praying for your healing.   Will that be okay?  Or should we all hide in our closets to pray for you?

Bless your heart!

Bill

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I need your prayers, Bill, like a fish needs a bicycle.

Once more you toss out flak in a vain effort to conceal your unresponsiveness to the issue under discussion.  Your illogic has been exposed once again and it can not be covered up by deflection and irrelevant cutesy cartoons.

I need your prayers, Bill, like a fish needs a bicycle.

Once more you toss out flak in a vain effort to conceal your unresponsiveness to the issue under discussion.  Your illogic has been exposed once again and it can not be covered up by deflection and irrelevant cutesy cartoons.

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See now, that "gift of writing" he always claimed to have, is nothing but the "gift of BS"?

Ah, these "deep" online ministers. They know it all, until someone asks them the most simple questions, then, they know nothing. 

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Yes, and he needs to find a "returns label" and send that alleged "gift" back to whoever gave it to him, since it is extremely defective.

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Can you believe there's 2-3 people on this forum that actually believe Bill has a gift for writing? What's up with that?

Can you believe there's 2-3 people on this forum that actually believe Bill has a gift for writing? What's up with that?

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Who? His other ids?

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Of course, his other ID's would.  But there's a couple of other people here that believe Bill to be a Christian, so they would believe his "God given gift of writing".