If you need a reason to understand why religion must stay out of the
government, let me give you a good one. In 2012, Oklahoma allowed the
placement of a Ten Commandments monument. Now, the Satanic Temple has
formally submitted its application to place its own monument on the
Oklahoma capital grounds. The Yahoo.com news article describes the monument as“depicts Satan as Baphomet, a goat-headed
figure with horns, wings and a long beard that's often used as a symbol
of the occult. In the rendering, Satan is sitting in a pentagram-adorned
throne with smiling children next to him.”
Keep in
mind that the Satanic Temple is not asking for any public money to place
their monument. They already have half of the money needed. What they
are wanting is their right to also place a monument where another
religion has already placed one. A Hindu leader in Nevada and the
Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster have also submitted their
applications for the same right. The Church of the Flying Spaghetti
Monster has already won the right in a Florida case.
Yet,
we can see that Rep. Don Armes, R-Faxon does not intend to allow any
other belief other than those that match his belief to place a monument.
His statement in the article clearly sums this up "’I think we need to
be tolerant of people who think different than us, but this is
Oklahoma, and that's not going to fly here.’" He contradicts himself in
the same sentence. He is clearly showing a partiality to one religion
and intolerance towards another in the discharging of his duties. Would
he allow a monument to the Virgin Mary, or one of the Saints? Would he
allow the Hindu monument and deny the Satanic Temple? Or, does he get
to pick and choose whose religion is acceptable and whose is not? Do
you see the problem here?
I believe in a highly secular
government and I think that this helps point out why it should be. To
do otherwise invites the oppression and hate that is inherent in all
religions. It also needlessly distracts the political process and
prevents progress on the smallest of issues, which in the end hurts us
all.
