ADDENDUM::ACLU asks Supervisors to reverse resolution honoring Door of Hope - Calaveras Enterprise: Calaveras County's Most Trusted News Source

Now as a side note there are two interesting, and troubling, statements that have come out of researching this debacle. The first is by the sponsor of the Resolution.

Supervisor Darren Spellman, who sponsored the resolution, said it was reviewed before the April 8 meeting by the county counsel and that he believes it is legal and that it does not endorse a particular religion.

“Christianity is not a religion,” Spellman said. “Christianity is a concept, a philosophical concept.”

On the other hand, Spellman said he believes it would be inappropriate if the Board of Supervisors were to endorse a particular church, such as the Methodist, Lutheran or Catholic denominations._

This harkens back to a statement made by Bill O'Reilly in conversation with Dave Silverman of http://atheists.org/ American Atheists concerning the "war on" Christmas. (Notice a theme here!)



"Mr. Silverman, it is a fact that Christianity is not a religion. It is a philosophy," O'Reilly stated,,,. For O'Reilly, denominations such as the Methodist and Catholic faiths are "religions," but Christianity itself is a philosophy. "So you're going to actually tell me on live television that Christianity is not a religion?" Silverman asked. "Correct," O'Reilly responded. Silverman tried to explain that Catholicism and other denominations were sects, but O'Reilly would have none of it. (00:59 - 1:05 mark and again at 1:42-1:47)
Without getting to deep into this, what O'Reilly is doing is a form of special pleading, "to claim a unique status for Christianity among the world's religious-looking movements, or in an attempt to recruit seekers disillusioned with their previous religion." RationalWiki delves a bit more into this rhetoric based thinking if you're interested.

For shits and giggles, I love David Pakman's take on the matter, “Since when do we give federal holidays for philosophies?”  (2:18 mark)


Teresa MacBain, American Atheists Public Relations Director, and former minister:

But tonight Mr. O’Reilly surpassed even the tides. During the November 28, 2012, taping of an interview with Mr. Silverman, Mr. O’Reilly informed the world that “Christianity is NOT a religion, it’s a philosophy.” Really? I’m a former pastor, who served many churches for over 20 years. I would consider myself somewhat of an expert. Trust me; Christianity is a religion by any modern definition. According to my theology professors, Christianity has been and always will be a religion.  Every priest, every pastor, every Sunday School teacher, choir member, deacon, usher, and pew sitter will tell you that Christianity is a religion. So where did Mr. O’Reilly come up with this idea? Oh! I know! The tides told him.

So no Mr. Spellman, Christianity is not a philosophy - it is a relgion.

The second troubling statement comes from an audience member:

During the hours of debate on the matter, the public statements and board discussion were often emotional. Door of Hope supporters said they felt the proposal to remove references to Christianity from the county government resolution was an attack on them and their freedom.

“The ACLU – their origins are communistic and they want God removed from the town square,” said Cathy Mason of Murphys.

Said Barbara Craddock of San Andreas: “I personally am getting sick and tired of people telling me I can’t say Jesus. I’m tired of everybody coming down on Christians just because we outnumber them.”

"[J]ust because we outnumber them."  Wow, what an uneducated statement and no understanding of the importance of SOCAS.  What's worse it is an ideology embraced by the late, conservative libertarian Andrew Breitbart.



"Because I know who's on our side. They can only win a rhetorical and propaganda war. They cannot win. We outnumber them in this country, and we have the guns. I'm not kidding. They talk a mean game, but they will not cross that line because they know what they're dealing with."  (00:33 mark)
As with most cases concerning SOCAS, this incident most likely will be before the Court but not because  "[t]he ACLU -  their origins are communistic and they want God removed from the town square." But due to the fact that religionists can not leave their religion at the doorway of public service.

Spellman said he used the lunch break to seek guidance on a possible compromise.

“I asked for God’s advice through his holy spirit,” Spellman said.

Spellman proposed a modification of the April 8 resolution, removing the phrase “teachings of Christ” and replacing it with “according to God’s word.”

ACLU asks Supervisors to reverse resolution honoring Door of Hope - Calaveras Enterprise: Calaveras County's Most Trusted News Source