Monday January 13, 2003

SCALIA CHASTISES COURTS FOR OVERSTEPPING BOUNDS

FREDERICKSBURG, Va., January 13, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said judges in the United States have exceeded their bounds out of mistaken zeal for separating church and state.

Scalia explained, as every student of basic U.S. history and law should know, that the Constitution says the government cannot "establish" or promote a religion. But this never implied that God must now be stripped from every corner of public life. "That is contrary to our whole tradition," Scalia said, citing "In God We Trust" on coins, Thanksgiving proclamations by the President, chaplains in Congress and tax exemption for places of worship, a tradition "which has always existed in America."

To make his point, Scalia used a lone protester at the event carrying a sign that said, "Get religion out of government." Such a philosophy, he said "can be imposed on the whole country. I have no problem with that philosophy being adopted democratically. If the gentleman holding the sign would persuade all of you of that, then we could eliminate 'under God' from the Pledge of Allegiance," Scalia said, "That could be democratically done."

For news coverage see:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,75306,00.html

For court rulings that violate basic U.S. tradition see:
U.S. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2002/jun/02062704.html

URL: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2003/jan/03011309.html

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