Texas cannot require public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom, a judge said Wednesday in a temporary ruling against the state’s new requirement, making it the third such state law to be blocked by a court.
A group of Dallas-area families and faith leaders sought a preliminary injunction against the law, which goes into effect on Sept. 1. They say the requirement violates the First Amendment’s protections for the separation of church and state and the right to free religious exercise.
Texas is the largest state to attempt such a requirement, and U.S. District Judge Fred Biery’s ruling from San Antonio is the latest in a widening legal fight that’s expected to eventually go before the U.S. Supreme Court.
No, the puritans fled England to flee people’s response to their godawful rule. But they went to the Netherlands, which was known for its religious tolerance. Unfortunately, the Netherlands tolerated all religions not just theirs, which was absolutely unacceptable so they fled to north America as they’d rather deal with new England weather than people with different ideas about the same God.
We do have some states founded on European religious oppression. Maryland was given to Lord Baltimore to get the catholic nobleman out of England (hence it being named after Mary and having a ton of Jews). And Pennsylvania was founded to be a refuge for Quakers and good old Quaker values of tolerance, nonviolence, and friendship towards those who are different.
We also had New
AmsterdamYork which was founded by the Dutch where they exported their religious tolerance and mercantile capitalism, resulting in a large, diverse, and well off city.