Americans United Hails Appeals Court Ruling Protecting Employee Access To Contraceptives

 

Church-State Watchdog Group Says Owners Of Secular Corporations Have No Right To Impose Their Theology On Workers

Church-State Watchdog Group Says Owners Of Secular Corporations Have No Right To Impose Their Theology On Workers

Jul 26, 2013

                  

A federal appeals court today upheld an Obama administration regulation requiring most secular companies to include no-cost contraceptives to employees in health insurance plans, rejecting arguments by sectarian groups that the policy infringes on religious freedom.

 

 

Americans United for Separation of Church and State hailed the ruling.

 

 

“Interpreting religious freedom in a way that allows for-profit corporations to make moral and medical decisions for their workers stands that principle on its head,” said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. “This court made the right call.”

 

Added Lynn, “The religious beliefs and practices of the owners of this company are in no way infringed because some of their workers might choose to use birth control.”

 

 

The case, Conestoga Wood Specialties Corporation v. Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, concerns a firm in East Earl, Pa., that manufactures wood cabinets, doors and other products used in home construction and remodeling. The firm’s Mennonite owners say including birth control in its health-care plan would burden their Christian beliefs.

The U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals rejected that argument, holding that Conestoga, as a for-profit corporation, does not exercise religion.

 

“We simply conclude that the law has long recognized the distinction between the owners of a corporation and the corporation itself,” wrote Judge Robert Cowen. “A holding to the contrary – that a for-profit corporation can engage in religious exercise – would eviscerate the fundamental principle that a corporation is a legally distinct entity from its owners.”

 

 

The lawsuit is one of several that have been filed challenging the contraceptive mandate of the Affordable Care Act. Most of the cases are being sponsored by Religious Right legal groups and are supported by the Roman Catholic bishops.

 

 

Americans United filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the Conestoga case, urging the appeals court to uphold the mandate.

 

 

“The court's decision prevents companies from imposing their owners' religious beliefs on their employees,” asserted Gregory M. Lipper, senior litigation counsel at Americans United. “It frees employees to make their own medical decisions. And the precedent protects a range of federal laws – designed to help workers and prevent discrimination – from attack by for-profit corporations."

 

 

Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom.

 

https://www.au.org/media/press-releases/americans-united-hails-appeals-court-ruling-protecting-employee-access-to

     

Constitutional Bully?

Constitutional Bully?: La. School Board Member Must Learn Religious Freedom Is No License To Discriminate

Jul 23, 2013 by Simon Brown in Wall of Separation |

Religious freedom is an extremely important right that is enshrined in the Constitution. But that concept cannot be turned into a club and used to attack others – metaphorically or literally.

It’s frustrating when a single misguided public official tries to hijack an otherwise reasonable governing body, and that’s almost what happened last week when a school board member in a Louisiana jurisdiction attempted to cut discrimination based on sexual orientation from an anti-bullying policy.

 

The Orleans Parish School Board was considering some very minor changes to its policy against bullying, which says that a whole slew of bad things won’t be tolerated. These include discrimination based on race, religion, gender/sexual orientation and the like; the policy also defines bullying and mandates teachers to monitor and report bad behavior.

 

 

Not many people would take issue with something like that. Apparently board Vice President Leslie Ellison isn’t most people.

 

 

Back in 2012, the New Orleans Times-Picayune said, she argued that charter schools should be able to exclude gay students as part of their right to “religious freedom.”  This makes no sense, of course, because charter schools are public institutions.

 

 

This week, Ellison along with board member Cynthia Cade, said the parish anti-bullying policy shouldn’t be so clear cut. The Times-Picayune reported that Ellison went on to claim that banning discrimination based on sexual orientation would necessitate teaching 5-year-olds about gay sex.

 

Ellison was also asked at one point during the meeting how she feels about church-state separation. Her response? “There is no such thing.” No surprise there.

 

At one point, the debate turned ugly. Another board member, Seth Bloom, who happens to be gay, said to Ellison, “I just find it perplexing that certain minorities seek protection for certain minorities but not for others.”

 

Ellison, who is African American, replied, “This has nothing to do with being black. I can't change my blackness at all.”

 

So not only is Ellison a budding theocrat who seems to have a blasé attitude when it comes to bullying certain groups of people, she also makes claims about homosexuality that have absolutely no basis in fact or reality.

 

Ultimately the anti-bullying policy was left alone, as Ellison and Cade lost on a 5-2 vote.

 

This debate was a pretty sad turn of events for a school board that recently voted to keep religion out of science classes, but at least the majority didn’t go along with Ellison’s narrow-minded agenda.

The Religious Right has been saying for years that “religious freedom” should grant the faithful exemptions from all sorts of laws, and this anti-bullying debate is just one of many examples.

Religious freedom is an extremely important right that is enshrined in the Constitution. But that concept cannot be turned into a club and used to attack others – metaphorically or literally.   

 

 

We can never allow religion to be used as an excuse to bully. That’s not something we at Americans United will ever tolerate. Fortunately most of the Orleans Parish School Board seems to feel the same way. 

https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/constitutional-bully-la-school-board-member-must-learn-religious-freedom-is

This is the year for elections to the OKC chapter.

Cartoon courtesy of http://churchandstate.org.uk/

Dear friends, supporters, and newcomers to Americans United for Separation of Church and State,

This is the year the Oklahoma City area chapter will have elections for president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer.

The details of time, date, and place are being developed now and the current officers will notify our list as soon as possible.  We know for sure it will be late September or early October.

We want to announce the elections now so that those interested in a leadership position can prepare.

Naturally, officers are required to be members in good standing and can do that by joining on the national AU website by using this link--
https://au.org/donate/donate-now 

Additional information about AU and its important work supporting the First Amendment's freedom of religion, speech, press, and association can be found here--www.au.org  Let me remind you that Americans United is NON-Partisan and NON-Denominational.  It's sole purpose is to protect all citizens's right to freedom of region and from religion in the public square.

Jim Nimmo, communications chair, www.okau.org

School and Church Combo Flunks Test

Poor Partnership: Federal Court Derails Tenn. County’s Relationship With Christian Academy

Jul 11, 2013 by Rob Boston in Wall of Separation

A partnership between a Tennessee public school and a Christian academy flunks a constitutional test.

It’s a sad fact of life that some youngsters get into trouble in school. They might cut class, get involved with alcohol or drugs, start fights and so on. Sometimes public school officials find students like this too disruptive to keep in the classroom.

What should be done with such kids? If your response is, “Send them to a Christian academy at taxpayer expense,” that’s the wrong answer.

In Jefferson County, Tenn., local education officials decided to try that. A federal court has just told them to stop.

Jefferson County used to have an alternative school to serve troubled young people. But money got tight, and the county decided to shut it down. Officials then began contracting with Kingswood School, a private school in a nearby county, to take on the job.
Kingswood isn’t tied to any particular church or denomination, but its Christian mission is clear. The school’s website states that it “provides to displaced children a Christian home-like environment where every effort is made to develop in each child a personal faith in God, in himself, and in his fellowman.”

The school goes on to say that it focuses on “fostering personal and spiritual growth” and adds that each student “will have benefit of participation in a mainstream interdenominational church through the Kingswood Campus Minister at the A.E. Wachtel Chapel on the Kingswood campus…. No child placed in the care of Kingswood will ever be made to feel compelled to adopt the doctrine of a particular denomination or church. Within this context, each child will develope (sic) his or her own chosen church or denominational affiliation for worship.”

Kingswood vows that it will help a youngster grow “in his or her spiritual and religious life.”
Whatever led education officials in Jefferson County to believe that a school like this could operate as an adjunct to the public system? It clearly cannot, as U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Phillips wrote.

“The average student that attended Kingswood would arrive on campus and see a church within the grounds,” Phillips observed. “She would then see an intake staff member who was also an ordained minister. After intake, the student would attend secular classes, but would take home report cards branded with Christian language and symbols. In order to progress though the level system, she would need to have her parents routinely sign and return Family Feedback Forms that also contained Bible verses. If she visited Kingswood’s website, she would be greeted by the phrases ‘Christian environment’ and ‘Christian education’ among others. Benefactors would receive fundraising correspondence that contained Christian references and iconography, and assemblies would be held in the campus church.”

Added Phillips, “[T]he facts plainly establish that Kingswood is a religious institution – a fine institution – but an institution that should have never sought to operate a public alternative school as part of its ministry. The appearance of governmental endorsement of the Christian faith is too pronounced and non-believers, or students of a different faith, would likely feel divorced from Kingswood, a well-intentioned, but overtly-Christian school.”

The judge is right. It looks like Kingswood does some good work with young people. But the school does it within the context of the Christian faith. That makes it an inappropriate partner for a public school system.

Rather than ship kids off to a Christian academy, perhaps educators in Jefferson County should reopen the alternative school or design a new program that serves all young people in need, no matter what they think about God and religion.

https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/poor-partnership-federal-court-derails-tenn-county-s-relationship-with

False Choice: Wisc. Private Schools Are Happy To Take Tax Money But Don’t Want Certain Students

False Choice: Wisc. Private Schools Are Happy To Take Tax Money But Don’t Want Certain Students

Jul 10, 2013 by Rob Boston in Wall of Separation |

Private schools (most of which are religious) are happy to take all of the taxpayer money they can get their hands on. But they don’t want any accountability, oversight or regulation.

Supporters of school voucher schemes love to throw around the world “choice.”

 

“You’ll get to send your child to the school of your choice!” they blare. To a lot of people, it sounds good. After all, everyone likes having choices, right?

 

Unfortunately, all of the rhetoric in the world doesn’t do you any good when it comes to vouchers because you don’t really have the choice. The private school does. Many of those schools will simply choose not to admit your child.

 

Some parents in Wisconsin are learning that the hard way.

 

WisconsinWatch.org, a project of the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, recently took a hard look at vouchers in the Badger State, specifically how students with learning disabilities and other challenges are faring in private schools.

 

 

The answer is not too well – because the private schools taking part in the voucher program mostly refuse to serve them.

 

The author of the piece, Rory Linnane, interviewed Milwaukee resident Kim Fitzer, whose daughter Trinity suffers from medical and behavioral issues.

 

Fitzer used a voucher worth $6,442 to enroll Trinity in Northwest Catholic School for kindergarten during the 2011-12 academic year. In March of 2012, the school expelled Trinity, citing “continuing behavior issues” – but it kept the money.

 

Not surprisingly, Trinity ended up in a public school. There she was enrolled in a program designed to meet her special needs, although the school didn’t get any extra money to help her.

 

This has been a problem with just about every voucher plan in the country. The private schools (most of which are religious) are happy to take all of the taxpayer money they can get their hands on. But they don’t want any accountability, oversight or regulation. Furthermore, they demand the right to deny admission to or expel students as they see fit.

 

“The problem with the voucher program is that it cherry-picks which students it’s going to take,” Rep. Cory Mason, a Racine Democrat, told WisconsinWatch. “That’s not really a public education system, when you’re not opening it up to everyone and giving everyone a chance to participate.”

 

Jane Audette, a social worker at Hawthorne Elementary School, a public school located just one block away from Northwest Catholic, noted that every year Hawthorne ends up enrolling several “cast-off” students from Northwest Catholic and other private schools who are in need of special-education services.

 

“What has happened over and over with Northwest Catholic is they will tell a parent, ‘Your child needs more than we can give your child, so we suggest you go down the street to Hawthorne,’” Audette said.

 

Wisconsin’s voucher program is currently limited to Milwaukee and Racine. In Racine, schools taking part in the “choice” program reported enrolling a grand total of one student with a disability. By contrast, the Racine Unified School District reports that about 18 percent of its students have disabilities.

 

The situation has gotten so bad that the American Civil Liberties Union and Disability Rights Wisconsin are suing the state. Their complaint asserts, “The voucher schools tend not to admit or accommodate students with disabilities.”

 

The complaint cites an anonymous parent who sought to enroll her son in Messmer Catholic Schools in Milwaukee. The boy needed speech therapy, and she was told not to even bother; he’d have to get that in the Milwaukee Public Schools.

 

Incredibly, under Wisconsin’s voucher law, private schools get to keep half of the voucher as long as a student is enrolled on the third Friday of September. They get to keep the entire amount if the student is enrolled on the second Friday in January.

 

You can guess what happens: Students with disabilities are enrolled in private schools and then kicked out once those deadlines are met and the check is safely in the bank.

 

“We have seen that children with behavioral issues are signed into a voucher school, and once they get past the third Friday – the Kodak moment for determining headcount – there’s a phenomenon that occurs that students are no longer able to participate in the private school,” said Gary Myrah, executive director of the Wisconsin Council of Administrators of Special Services, a group that represents special-education professionals.

 

Vouchers have a lengthy history in Wisconsin. When the program first took hold in the early 1990s, Americans United and other groups warned that private schools would demand tax funds and resist any attempt to hold them accountable. That is exactly what is happening. Yet legislators refuse to do the right thing and put some brakes on the program. In fact, they are expanding it statewide.

 

For Trinity, the story has a happy ending. She’s taking part in a special program in her public school and is doing well. About 10 weeks from now, a new flock of special-needs kids will likely be unceremoniously tossed out of “choice” schools despite the vouchers their parents have in hand.

We can only hope they manage to land on their feet as well.

 

https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/false-choice-wisc-private-schools-are-happy-to-take-tax-money-but-don-t

Mad Over Marriage

Mad Over Marriage: Religious Right Responds To Today’s Supreme Court Rulings

Jun 26, 2013 by Rob Boston in Wall of Separation

This is not a good day for the Religious Right.

You could say that the American Family Association (AFA) isn’t pleased about today’s Supreme Court rulings on marriage equality.

By a 5-4 vote, the high court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), meaning that same-sex couples who are lawfully wed in states with marriage equality will have access to a range of federal benefits. This is a pretty big deal.

The court also dealt with a legal challenge to California’s Proposition 8, a ballot initiative that banned same-sex marriage. The case was dismissed on procedural grounds. Most legal observers believe the practical effect of this will be to restore same-sex marriage to the Golden State.

In short, this is not a good day for the Religious Right.

Check out this tweet from Bryan Fischer, resident theocrat-in-chief at the Tupelo, Miss.-based AFA: “With the DOMA decision, we have ceased to be a constitutional republic. The words “We the people’ are now meaningless.”

Fischer then followed up with this gem: “The DOMA ruling has now made the normalization of polygamy, pedophilia, incest and bestiality inevitable. Matter of time.”

Fischer’s boss, Tim Wildmon, issued a statement that read in part, “We are deeply saddened by today’s decision to not only allow but encourage same-sex marriage in our country – a country that was founded on biblical principles. We mourn for America’s future, but we are not without hope.”
Wildmon added, “The homosexual lobby and agenda is running rampant across America, and is even pervading our elementary schools….Now, we must warn against the coming persecution, the barrage of criticism and the aggressive action of the homosexual agenda to indoctrinate and change the thoughts and convictions of Americans to accept this lifestyle as the new normal.”

Out in Arizona, the Alliance Defending Freedom also has a case of the grumpies: “This effectively means we will no longer have a national definition of marriage,” carped the group in a statement. “The federal government may now be required to accept any legal definition of marriage that a particular state invents.

This leads to many unanswered questions, new government burdens, and consequences that we will have more to say about in the coming days and weeks ahead as we analyze and further unpack this disappointing decision.”

Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, attempted an outrageous spin.
“While we are disappointed in the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), the court today did not impose the sweeping nationwide redefinition of natural marriage that was sought,” Perkins said in a statement. “Time is not on the side of those seeking to create same-sex ‘marriage.’ As the American people are given time to experience the actual consequences of redefining marriage, the public debate and opposition to the redefinition of natural marriage will undoubtedly intensify.” (Dude, what polls are you looking at?)

Even the Christian Coalition (yep, that group is still around) got in on the act. Roberta Combs, president of the group, issued a petition supporting “traditional marriage” that reads in part, “[T]he Court has put state marriage laws at risk as well as the religious liberties of tens of millions of America’s Christians….The simple fact is that liberals cannot get their way at the ballot box, so they try to push their radical agenda through our nation's courts by convincing judges to overturn the will of the American people.”

The Liberty Counsel, a project affiliated with Jerry Falwell Jr.’s Liberty University, has been dilatory in getting out a statement. But earlier this week, the group opined, “No matter what the Supreme Court decides, the battle over marriage will continue. This is the defining culture line.”

I actually kind of agree with Liberty Counsel on that one. This is a defining line – and the Religious Right is on the wrong side of it.

Today’s rulings won’t be the last word on this matter. The Religious Right is pledging massive resistance. Recently, dozens of luminaries from that movement came together to sign a statement asserting that any high court ruling backing marriage equality would be illegitimate.

“As Christian citizens united together, we will not stand by while the destruction of the institution of marriage unfolds in this nation we love,” asserts the statement. “The Sacred Scriptures and unbroken teaching of the Church confirm that marriage is between one man and one woman. We stand together in solidarity to defend marriage and the family and society founded upon them. The effort to redefine marriage threatens the proper mediating role of the Church in society.”

The statement is a tad unclear about what these groups plan to do (hold their breath until they turn blue?) but concludes darkly, “[M]ake no mistake about our resolve. While there are many things we can endure, redefining marriage is so fundamental to the natural order and the true common good that this is the line we must draw and one we cannot and will not cross.”

Americans United sees it differently. We’re pleased that the narrow religious views of fundamentalist Christians won’t govern civil marriage law. At the same, we’ve pointed out repeatedly that no houses of worship anywhere will be forced to provide a ceremony for a same-sex couple. That sounds like real freedom to us.

If the polls are right, the Religious Right appears to be on the losing end of this battle. But it’s pretty clear that these groups don’t intend to go down quietly. Brace yourselves; I see plenty of turbulence ahead.

https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/mad-over-marriage-religious-right-responds-to-today-s-supreme-court-rulings

Citizenship Confusion: You Don’t Have To Join A Church To Become An American

Citizenship Confusion: You Don’t Have To Join A Church To Become An American

Jun 24, 2013 by Rob Boston in Wall of Separation |

No one is required to make any type of religious affirmation to receive U.S. citizenship.

There has been a lot of talk lately on social media networks about a woman named Margaret Doughty.

Doughty was born in England but has lived in the United States for 30 years. Recently, she filed paperwork to become a naturalized citizen and ran into a bit of a problem: The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in Houston initially denied her request for conscientious objector status because Doughty is an atheist and not a member of a recognized pacifist church.
She was told to submit a letter on “official church stationery” proving that she is “a member in good standing” of a church that opposes the bearing of arms.


To back up a bit: Naturalized citizens are required to swear a citizenship oath that includes a promise to “support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic” and to “bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law.”
Members of pacifist religious groups (such as Quakers) are routinely given an exemption from the vow to bear arms. Doughty is a pacifist but she’s also an atheist, so obviously she was unable to submit a letter from a religious group attesting to her belief in non-violence.


She should never have been asked to submit such a letter. It’s a long-established principle in the law that conscientious objection can’t be limited only to those who hold religiously based objections to war. The issue came up during the Vietnam War, resulting in a Supreme Court opinion in which the court ruled that those whose opposition to war derives from a “sincere and meaningful belief” that is akin to a belief in God also deserve an exemption from compulsory military service.


The good news is that Doughty will be able to become a citizen without joining a church. The office of U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas) intervened on her behalf, and the USCIS withdrew the demand and told Doughty that her application for citizenship has been approved.


I’m glad Doughty’s issue was resolved, but there seem to be some larger problems with the naturalization process that cry out for attention. Since 2005, Americans United has had to write to the Immigration and Naturalization Service four times on behalf of people who were told they had to say “So help me, God” to take the oath of citizenship. (They don’t; it’s optional.)


Just last week, I took a call from a woman going through the naturalization process who ran into the same problem. I asked our attorneys to help her out.


Americans United and other groups can usually get these matters resolved by writing letters to the appropriate officials. In fact, our attorneys are currently preparing a letter to INS officials about the Doughty case in the hope that we can keep this from happening again.


We shouldn’t have to keep sparring over this issue. By now it should be clear that no one is required to make any type of religious affirmation to receive U.S. citizenship.
For some reason, that message is not getting through, even to officials and staff members at the INS. It needs to.

https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/citizenship-confusion-you-don-t-have-to-join-a-church-to-become-an-american

From the Desk of Barry Lynn

From the Desk of Barry Lynn

The United States Supreme Court recently announced it will hear an Americans United case that challenges government-sponsored, clergy-led sectarian prayers before meetings of the town board in Greece, New York. It will be the first time the Supreme Court has weighed in on this issue in 30 years! And if the justices rule the wrong way, it could set a terrible nationwide precedent. You can help Americans United build the strongest argument possible by renewing your membership today! AU took on the case in Greece in 2007 because what was happening there was an affront to many residents and a blatant violation of the separation of church and state. For years, local officials began their government meetings with prayers that were almost always Christian. Local residents felt like second-class citizens in their own community but couldn’t get the city government to listen. When they asked Americans United to help, I knew we couldn’t say no. Since then, battle lines have been drawn. AU represented the plaintiffs. Opposing us was the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a wealthy and powerful Religious Right legal group founded by TV and radio preachers that signed on to represent the town.  Americans United lost the first round but won on appeal, leading the ADF to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Now that the case is before the highest court in the land, we have to do all we can to bring it to a successful conclusion. AU’s legal director, Ayesha Khan, will personally argue this case before the Supreme Court. Americans United urgently needs your renewed help to build up the resources that this effort will require. This case is going to involve countless hours of work for AU’s dedicated legal team. They’ll be involved in research to frame the best possible arguments, lining up allies to stand with us by filing amicus briefs before the court, and engaging some of the country’s leading legal minds on this issue. And it comes at a time when our resources are already stretched thin. Please renew today! Your continued support will ensure that AU has the funds it needs to support this lawsuit and our vitally important efforts to keep the church-state wall strong. Let me be clear about one thing: This was not “voluntary” prayer in Greece. These prayers were offered as part of the official meetings of the town. Members of the town board could have engaged in truly voluntary prayers before the session got under way, but they insisted on making these public pronouncements of faith. What's more, the governmental prayers were almost always Christian. In fact, during one 9-year period, every single one of the town’s prayer-givers was Christian. You read that right: every single one! And over the 18-month period before the case was filed, almost 90 percent of the prayers were overtly Christian, referencing “Jesus Christ,” “Jesus,” “Your Son” or the “Holy Spirit.” The town board was choosing sides on religion. They were sending a message: We have a favorite religion. It’s this one. If it’s not yours, too bad! If the U.S. Supreme Court allows this, you can bet that there will be communities large and small all over America that will decide to adopt their “favorite religion” as well. A gaping hole will be blown in the wall of separation between church and state. With your renewed help, Americans United will have the resources we need to present the best possible case to the Supreme Court to ensure that neither conservative Christianity, nor any single religion, becomes enshrined as a de facto state-supported faith. Please renew as generously as you are able, so Americans United can craft the most powerful argument possible to make sure the Religious Right’s dream world doesn’t become our nightmare. With thanks,

Oklahoma License Plates Become Targets of Lawsuit

Supporters of religious separation--

A lawsuit has recently been re-instated allowing a Methodist minister to sue Oklahoma to remove the Rain Arrow Warrior representation from the state's license plates.

At first glance we thought the Rain Arrow Warrior lawsuit was a satirical look at religious belief. However, the objection raised by Mr. Keith Cressman is still highly ironic and a prime example of hypocritical, clouded thinking. If Mr. Cressman were truly concerned with the depiction of religious symbols in government functions and tax-paid services he would expand his lawsuit and be objecting to the use of "In God We Trust" on currency, coins, postage stamps and public buildings, including the Oklahoma Capitol north lawn with its recently added Ten Commandments monument privately funded by the family of Rep. Mike Ritze.   Prayer is frequently used to begin many public meetings, inevitably a prayer to a Christian deity.

Mr. Cressman can not honestly pick and choose which religion can be favored.   His Christian bible commands him to pray in private according to Matthew, chapter 6.

Mr. Cressman refers to the statue depicted on Oklahoma licence plates as pagan. How little he knows of history. Every cycle of civilization finds that the preceding society's religious beliefs to be quaint, irrelevant, and pagan.

People who hold truly sincere religious beliefs would not want government to interfere in their devotions.  Nor would they want to impinge on the beliefs of others who hold differing points of view. This strategy is the basis of the First Amendment of the Constitution--it is not the job of government to give its stamp of approval to any religious worship.

Mr Cressman is headed in the right direction, he just hasn't gone far enough, yet.

Here is a link to an earlier story by Gregg Horton that appeared on Huffington Post.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/17/pastor-suit-against-oklahoma-license-plate-ok_n_3455129.html

Barton Backs Down: ‘Christian Nation’ Corrects Bogus Statements

Barton Backs Down: ‘Christian Nation’ Advocate Corrects Some Of His Bogus Statements About U.S. History

Jun 21, 2013 by Simon Brown in Wall of Separation

No matter how many times Barton tries to correct his mistakes, several damaging facts will remain. He has no training as a historian (his sole degree is a bachelor’s in Christian education from Oral Roberts University) and his gross misstatements are well documented.

Faux historian David Barton, a “Christian nation” advocate who made a name for himself by peddling pseudo history to gullible Religious Right audiences, has come under fire of late for distorting the truth or flat out making things up. So what’s a bogus scholar to do? In this case, correct some old errors.

Back in 2007, Barton headlined a tour of the U.S. Capitol on behalf of Religious Right advocacy group the Family Research Council (FRC). FRC made a video of that tour, in which Barton made numerous false and misleading claims about the Founding Fathers and the supposed “Christian origins” of the United States.

The video received over 4 million views on YouTube, but that high visibility may have backfired on Barton and the FRC. So outrageous were some of Barton’s claims, that 34 Christian historians and social scientists asked FRC to pull the video from YouTube, said Warren Throckmorton, a professor at Grove City College, a conservative Christian institution in Pennsylvania.

Throckmorton said FRC admitted Barton’s errors, and made the video private. Barton then corrected some of his previous comments by placing new audio in the old video, Throckmorton added.
Barton posted the updated video on his WallBuilders website this week, and because Throckmorton has made it something of a mission to debunk Barton, he compared Barton’s 2007 statements with his newer ones. He concluded that the pseudo scholar has made progress toward the truth, but quite a bit of distortion still remains in Barton’s version of history.

For example:

• Barton claimed in 2007 that 29 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence had degrees from Bible schools or seminaries. In the updated video, Barton said 29 signers were educated at schools founded to train ministers.

Throckmorton’s take: “This narrative is more accurate and is a significant admission concerning a claim for which Barton has frequently been scrutinized.”

• In the first video, Barton said: “Most people have no clue that [Thomas] Jefferson started a church in the Capitol.” In the new video, Barton said: “Jefferson helped start a church in the Capitol."

Throckmorton’s take: “Jefferson attended the Sunday meetings but there is no evidence that Jefferson had a role in starting them.”

• In 2007, Barton stated that Congress printed the first English language Bible in America for use in schools. In the new version, he says Robert Aitken printed the first English language Bible in America with congressional approval.

Throckmorton’s take: “Barton continues to say Congress intended the Bible to be used in schools; this is false. Congress had nothing to say about using the Bible in schools.”

• The first time, Barton claimed Congress wanted paintings in the Capitol that tell “the Christian history” of America. The second time, he said the paintings show “important Christian events from the history of the United States.”

Throckmorton’s take: “Other paintings in the Capitol do not have any religious significance; the common theme is the depiction of events of political importance.”

While there is still significant misinformation in the video, as Throckmorton noted, it’s progress. That’s about all you can reasonably expect from the likes of Barton.

But no matter how many times Barton tries to correct his mistakes, several damaging facts will remain. He has no training as a historian (his sole degree is a bachelor’s in Christian education from Oral Roberts University) and his gross misstatements are well documented.

Now that even Christian scholars are exposing Barton for what he is, hopefully it will only be a matter of time until his career as a phony historian is over. 

https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/barton-backs-down-christian-nation-advocate-corrects-some-of-his-bogus