Sometimes, I wonder about the legal expertise of so-called "legal experts." Last Thursday, US District Judge Barbara Crabb ruled that the National Day of Prayer was unconstitutional. It seems that a law calling on Americans to engage in a religious activity is a promotion of religion and, as such, is a violation of the First Amendment. In a saner world, you'd have to agree with her. But we don't live in a saner world. We live in a world where any excuse to freak out is a good excuse to freak out -- and, in this Great Freaking Out, to make incredibly stupid statements.Take this reporting from Christian News Service:
"If the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional, then the Constitution itself if unconstitutional," Mathew Staver, president of Liberty Counsel and dean of the Liberty University School of Law in Lynchburg, Va., told CNSNews.com.
"The National Day of Prayer -- or prayer itself -- is older than the Constitution," Staver said. "There is no question (this ruling) will be overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court."
This Supreme Court? He's probably right, if it gets that far. The current majority is hardly unbiased. But "older than the Constution?" The National Day of Prayer was established as law in 1952. There have been other calls to prayer, but not as a recurring legal holiday. The president can ask people to pray -- he has First Amendment rights too -- but the Constitution clearly states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." It's the very first clause of the very first amendment listed in the bill of rights. There doesn't seem to be a lot of ambiguity there... [CLICK TO READ FULL POST]
