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Since 2008 – Progress Through Politics

H. Con. Res. 121–The Year of the Bible

For those of you who may want to write your Congresscritters.

Sponsor:

Rep. Paul Broun [R-GA]

Cosponsors [as of 2009-05-08]

Rep. Lynn Westmoreland [R-GA]

Rep. John Carter [R-TX]

Rep. James Forbes [R-VA]

Rep. John Gingrey [R-GA]

Rep. Zach Wamp [R-TN]

Rep. Todd Akin [R-MO]

Rep. Thaddeus McCotter [R-MI]

Rep. Mike Pence [R-IN]

Rep. Louis Gohmert [R-TX]

Rep. Trent Franks [R-AZ]

Rep. Jim Jordan [R-OH]

Rep. Doug Lamborn [R-CO]

Rep. Kenny Marchant [R-TX]

My own Representative, Rep. Trent Franks got this letter this evening. I thought I’d share. I encourage everyone who has Representatives who are on this committee or have sponsored this divisive piece of legislation to write them.

Congressman Franks,

I am concerned about your co-sponsorship of H.Con. Res 121.

I am concerned as a Republican, and as a member of your district. The freedom of religion in this country is of the utmost importance. It was so important that it was listed in the very first of our Bill of Rights.

While I can appreciate a love of Bible, and one’s faith, part of the freedom of religion, is a freedom to practice one’s faith freely. When the state endorses one faith over another, it creates a climate that endangers that. The state endorsing one faith over another, even if it is your own, is a tenuous thing. It sets precedence for the state to promote one faith over another. And while it may seem like a good thing now, it’s a dangerous precedent to set.

The freedom of religion is the freedom to practice a faith that is not popular. It is the freedom to practice freely, and without fear. By endorsing one faith over another, we create an environment that infringes on every other faith–and if the political winds change, it creates a precedent for meddling with faiths by the government.

The freedom of religion is not the freedom to promote one faith over another. It is designed to protect faiths from interference. I urge you to remove your support of this bill in order to bolster the freedom of religion, and to send a bold statement of that support of the 1st Amendment.

As a nation, and as a party, we need to promote unity as Americans, not as slices of the population. Not just Christians. Not just Jews. Not just Buddhists. Not just Muslims. Not just Catholics. Not just Wiccans. But Americans. This resolution only emphasizes divides, it does nothing to promote our unity. It is the antithesis of the spirit of the 1st Amendment, and it is a terribly un-American resolution. It shames me as a Republican to have to remind my own Representative of this. And it shames our nation as well. I hope that you will do the right thing, and remove your support of this resolution, and that you will take steps to reinforce our Constitution, and bring unity back to the nation, instead of divisive resolutions to placate those who are so insecure in their faith, that they want the bolstering of the state, even if it means putting their own freedom of religion in peril, because they are so short sighted to understand the potential consequences. As Conservatives, we are supposed to be able to take the long view. Please, take that long view and remove your support of this divisive and ultimately  ill-conceived resolution.


Categories: Uncategorized.

/ 15 Comments

15 comments

  1. sricki

    any of my representatives listed yet.

    This is part of the problem with the current incarnation of the GOP, though. They have developed an unsettling tendency to pick and choose which parts of the Constitution they will honor and fight for.

    Full agreement on your letter. Preferential treatment by the government of any single religion is always a mistake, in my opinion. There seems to be a misconception amongst a lot of people, perhaps Republicans especially, that the United States was, despite the first amendment, intended to be a “Christian nation”, and I think that belief feeds into resolutions like this. Extremely bad form.

  2. Chris Blask

    Encouraging the President to designate 2010 as “The National Year of the Bible”

    “Answer yes or no: Have you stopped beating your wife?”

    How about 2011 as “The National Year of the Koran?”  For me, we can name 2011 as “The National Year of The Flying Spaghetti Monster”.

    How much more incredibly un-American can you get?  This is why the GOP needs to shed the Religious Right.  The Founding Fathers would have seizures if they could see American politicians foisting rancid dishwater like this on the country.

  3. Jjc2008

    Doug Lamborn.  He’s on the list.  He is a freaking idiot and yet got elected over a highly qualified dem.

    Lamborn claims to be pro military but never served.

    The dem was an AFA grad and served in the Gulf war.

    In their debate, Lamborn was so bad I was literally embarrassed for him. I have see 8th graders debate better than him.  I am a diehard liberal and I just wanted the debate to be over, the dufus was so awful.  

    He was elected in 2006, beating out a contingent of six republicans in the primary, one of whom was the brother of L. Paul Bremmer. And Lamborn and Bremmer were heavily supported by Focus on the family….and New Life Church and Ted Haggard.  

    But Lamborn also had Club for Growth funding him.

    Lamborn was a rubber stamp for W for the two years and easily won reelection here where the religious right rules.

    We, the dems, worked our arses off, had a highly qualified, likeable dem, and still could not make a dent.  Ignorance reigns here.

    So since Lamborn publicly said he wanted to be “God’s man in Washington,”  I doubt any letters from me would affect his decision.  It’s pathetic that such a low intellect loser is representing us in Congress.

  4. creamer

    Part of this is to incite their base. They know Obama can’t sign this. Their looking for amunition for the mid-term elections.

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