Defending the Sinai Ten
Diana Justice May/June 2000
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The Ten Commandments Defense Act Amendment was written in reaction to the Columbine High shootings last year. On June 17, 1999, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 248 to 180 to attach it to the Juvenile Justice Reform Act of 1999. While the Senate version of the bill does not contain this amendment, it is expected to be included in the harmonized version that is sent to the president. If signed into law, it will allow states to authorize the display of the Ten Commandments in U.S. public schools, courts, and public buildings.
Unfortunately, proponents for posting the Ten Commandments demonstrate their misunderstanding of the First Amendment. This is evident in Representative Robert Aderholt's argument that "something is wrong in America when our children can wear T-shirts that are emblazoned with profanity, that are emblazoned with violence, in the name of free speech, but simply the words, 'Thou shalt not kill' cannot be in our schools." Aderholt is suggesting that an individual student's freedom of expression is parallel to a religion-based posting on a wall in a public school. For a student to choose to wear an item of clothing carrying a religious or nonreligious message is one thing, but for the public school to post on its walls a portion of sacred text from one specific religious group is another thing altogether. The first is an example of constitutional free exercise of speech, the second of an unconstitutional mingling of church and state.
Current Case Law
The courts have established that it is acceptable for public schools to teach about the Ten Commandments and how they relate, for example, to the development of moral precepts of Western culture. (See School District of Abington Township v. Schempp [1963] or Edwards v. Aguillard [1987]. However, the courts have found that it is unconstitutional to hang the Decalogue on the wall of each classroom in a school. The Supreme Court case of Stone v. Graham (Kentucky; 1980) determined that displays of the Ten Commandments are to be barred in instances in which there is no secular purpose.
In the November 1999 issue of Church and State, editor and attorney Barry Lynn listed 10 good reasons that the Decalogue should not hang in public places:
The Constitution mandates the separation of church and state.
The Supreme Court and lower federal courts have settled the issue.
America is religiously diverse.
Religion doesn't need government's help to promote the Ten Commandments.
There is no "standard version" of the Ten Commandments.
The Ten Commandments are not a "secular" moral code that everyone can agree on.
The Ten Commandments are not a magic charm to make all of society's problems vanish overnight.
The Ten Commandments are interpreted quite differently by different faith groups.
Politicians and interest groups are exploiting the Ten Commandments for political gain.
The Religious Right's use of the Ten Commandments sometimes borders on blasphemy.
If Not the Ten Commandments, Then What?
Clearly, posting the Ten Commandments is not in step with the First Amendment of America's Constitution. But with an observable decline in moral values and the increasing tendency toward violence in some American public schools, this country is worried and restless. Too many of our American youth dishonor authority and show little respect for the precious gift of life itself. We are a country that has become afraid of our own children.
There is no simple solution to our societal angst. But can Christians and people of faith be indifferent as we see evil increase day by day? We see evidence that Satan is working on society in order to destroy righteousness and integrity. But we must be true to our faith in the power and promises of God. Evil will not, cannot, overtake us if we remain on His side and listen to His commands. We must intercede for God's Spirit of mercy to fall on these unbelieving and misled youth. We can befriend them in our neighborhoods and towns and provide activities and support for them. Church groups can work powerfully to affect society by reaching out to youth, inviting them to friendship camps, and supporting Christian schools. What American youth really need is the moral guidance that comes from having the Ten Commandments an activating principle in their thought processes (Proverbs 3:1-3).
Diana Justice works as an associate religious liberty and public affairs director of the Seventh-day Adventist Church for the Northwest region and writes from Portland, Oregon.