The Freedom From Religion Foundation calls a bill in the Texas Legislature requiring the state to display a Christian nativity at the Capitol an unconstitutional and purely pandering proposal.
A bill compelling the placement of a Christian nativity scene on the Texas Capitol grounds has been filed in the Senate by state Sen. Mayes Middleton and one in the House of Representatives by state Rep. Briscoe Cain. Of course, the Legislature is not in session at this time.
Middleton told Houston Public Media: “There is no such thing as the separation of church and state. That is a made-up doctrine that was in one letter from (Thomas) Jefferson to the Danbury (Connecticut) Baptists.”
Of course, President Jefferson didn’t “make up” the doctrine. He was asked by the Baptists of Danbury to clarify the meaning of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, reading “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” After clearing his letter with his attorney general, Jefferson responded:
“Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ thus building a wall of separation between Church & State.”
Jefferson’s metaphor has since been inducted into the legal lexicon and countless court decisions to describe the meaning of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause.
Middleton also told Houston Public Media: “Religious liberties and freedom of expression of our faith, Free Exercise Cause, are very important in our state Legislature and this is something that I thought was important for everybody in the state that celebrates Christmas.”
However, as the Texas Almanac reports, minimally more than 10 million Texans are not claimed by a religious group.
“There are tax-free churches and religious institutions throughout Texas communities that are free to put up nativity scenes, not to mention individuals in their homes or lawns,” points out FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor. “But the state of Texas should not have a religion, or take sides on religious debates, period.”
The Texas Constitution clearly would prohibit such an expenditure or display on public property, barring any citizen from being “compelled to attend, erect or support any place of worship,” and ensuring “no preference shall ever be given by law to any religious society or mode of worship.” (Article I, Section 6)
The Freedom from Religion Foundation has previously battled for the right to counter a nativity display placed by individuals inside the Texas Capitol in a so-called public forum, after Gov. Greg Abbott ordered its Bill of Rights nativity removed. Courts found the removal to be an unconstitutional suppression, and the forum was voluntarily closed. The state of Texas in January paid $358,073.67 to cover FFRF costs and attorneys’ fees.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with over 40,000 members, including about 1,700 Texans, across the country. Our purposes are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism.
