Costly Error

Bruce Prescott noted in an Ethics Daily column today the costly consequences of not following the First Amendment's promise of religious liberty rights. Haskell County in Oklahoma lost a lawsuit over a Ten Commandments monument that County officials erected on the County courthouse lawn in 2004. As a result of the settlement, the County (via the citizens) will have to pay $199,000 over the next ten years. Prescott argued that if the County leaders--many of whom are Baptist--had followed the historic principle of separation of church and state that Baptists originally fought for, then this money would not have been wasted. He added:

This nation was the first nation in world history that was not founded on religious authority. It was founded on the consent of the governed. We have a government that is of the people, by the people and for the people, because every person in our society - no matter what their faith or lack of it - has an equal right to justice and liberty.

Amen! Religious liberty makes our nation better--and apparently can also save county governments some money!