Merry Christmas, Texas

Things didn't exactly ease up as I took my first week off from these blogs in more than three years.

While I was gone, Texas Gov. Rick Perry  signed a law protecting Christmas and other holiday celebrations in Texas public schools from legal challenges — but also stressed that freedom of religion is not the same thing as freedom from religion. Dubbed the "Merry Christmas" bill, the bipartisan measure sailed through the state House and Senate to reach Perry's desk.

"It removes legal risks of saying "Merry Christmas" in schools while also protecting traditional holiday symbols, such as a menorah or nativity scene, as long as more than one religion and a secular symbol are also reflected. The inclusion of other religious and secular symbols seeks to avoid challenges to the law under the U.S. Constitution's Establishment Clause which prohibits the government from determining a national religion or expressing preference of one religion over another. "I realize it's only June. But it's a good June and the holidays are coming early this year," Perry said. "It's a shame that a bill like this one I'm signing today is even required, but I'm glad that we're standing up for religious freedom in this state. Religious freedom does not mean freedom from religion."

I try not to get too worked up about such things as this, which most assuredly will be challenged I would think in Federal Court, but I happen to agree with Perry in this instance.

Religious freedom does not, or should not, mean freedom FROM religion.

I read this about the subject:

Human rights include:
+ Freedom of Speech, not freedom from Speech
+ Freedom of the Press, not freedom from the Press
+ Freedom of Religion, not freedom from Religion

Freedom from Speech infringes on the Freedom of Speech.
Freedom from the Press infringes on the Freedom of the Press.
And Freedom from Religion infringes on the Freedom of Religion.

The Freedom from Religion movement is an attack on the Freedom of Religion by a few Atheist extremists. If this movement is successful then not only will we lose our Freedom of Religion but, using the same argument, the door will be opened to lose our Freedoms of Speech and the Press.

Oh, there's that Freedom of the Press thing? How's that working out when the government tries to spy on reporters?

Anyway, I thought it would be instructive to simply mention what our freedoms consist of.

The First Amendment contains two clauses about the Freedom of Religion. The first part is known as the Establishment Clause, and the second as the Free Exercise Clause. The Establishment Clause prohibits the government from passing laws that will establish an official religion or preferring one religion over another. The courts have interpreted the establishment clause to accomplish the separation of church and state.

The Free Exercise Clause prohibits the government from interfering with a person’s practice of his or her religion. However, religious actions and rituals can be limited by civil and federal laws.
Religious freedom is an absolute right, and includes the right to practice any religion of one’s choice, or no religion at all, and to do this without government control.

So, what scares those who don't want to have any religion the most? Those who have a religion, including. That Christians have a religion PLUS AND MOST IMPORTANTLY a savior simply rubs the lost, er, the unbelievers to no end.

Merry Christmas, Texas.