Tis the Season to Remove Manger Scenes from Town Squares



For some reason many people do not get the fact that displaying a nativity scene by itself is unconstitutional. Every year people protest when their town's letter arrives from the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the Mayor orders the display off of public property. It's almost as predictable as Christmas Eve services.

Some Mayors play macho man for a while saying they will not be intimidated by some group in far off Wisconsin. This goes on until the legal bills come in and/or a judge orders it off.

Other Mayors allow all kinds of displays, Jewish, Hindu, atheist and Satanic. These, of course, are legal because they are considered educational.

From what I read about public opinion polls, religion is overlapping more and more with politics. Thus, a group that might self identify as religiously conservative endorses a President that is the opposite of what we traditionally have thought to be religious. This group is forming around political grievances and interpreting them to be religious. It makes perfect sense to them but remains puzzling to many of us.

In this analysis the group that wants the nativity scene is a political group. Probably those who most want it moved are another political group.

Maybe this is not all bad. The "town square" is a traditional place to debate political issues. 

If Christmas has become a celebration of a political debate there is not much anyone can do about it.


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