Supreme Court Considering Constitutionality of Ten Commandments Displays

By Linda Orlando

The U.S. Supreme court is hearing arguments Wednesday in regard to two cases involving displays of the Ten Commandments in Texas and Kentucky. The last time the Supreme Court weighed in on the issue was 1980, when it struck down a Kentucky law that required displays of the Ten Commandments in public classrooms. Since then, more than two dozen courts have ruled on such public displays in conflicting ways.

The Ten Commandments are commonly displayed in public places such as courthouses, town squares, and government-owned land and buildings around the country, and have been for years. But many people feel that they violate the First Amendment ban on any law "respecting an establishment of religion," or simply represent a secular tribute to America’s legal heritage. Many heated legal battles have been waged over the issue including one by state Chief Justice of Alabama, Roy Moore. He was relieved of his position a year ago after he defied a federal order to remove a 5,300-pound monument of the Ten Commandments that the had installed in the state courthouse.

Several groups of demonstrators gathered in front of the Supreme Court in the icy cold for rallies and protests, after a candlelight vigil last night conducted by supporters of Ten Commandments displays. On one side of the issue are groups who believe that the government should not be involved in the business of morality, and that doing so starts our legislators on the slippery slope toward theocracy. However, many demonstrators, such as Rev. Patrick Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition, say that most Americans support public display of the Ten Commandments. "The court should be very careful to respect the viewpoint of the overwhelming majority of the American people," said Mahoney. "The Ten Commandments do not divide Americans; they unite Americans." In fact, an AP-Ipsos pol taken in late February found that 76 percent support it and 23 percent oppose public displays of the Ten Commandments.

Interestingly, the high court itself is meeting in a courtroom that contains a wall carving of Moses holding the sacred stone tablets. But the frieze depicts Moses and the tablets as well as 17 other figures including Hammurabi, Confucius, Napoleon and Chief Justice John Marshall. Because it includes secular figures in a way that doesn't endorse religion, Justice John Paul Stevens suggested in a 1989 ruling that the display is constitutional.

When it comes to public displays of the Ten Commandments, the bottom line for many people is very simple. Crime rates are skyrocketing, morals and values are on the decline, and today’s society is fraught with problems that are getting worse instead of better. In light of these indisputable facts, what can be the harm in posting public displays of perfectly valid rules for living—rules that no one can dispute as excellent guidelines for proper citizenship, and what’s right and what’s wrong? Perhaps such public reminders, even if they were originally presented in a religious context, are one of the things keeping our society from heading down the slippery slope toward chaos.