Written by Don Byrd
While we wait to find out if federal courts will find a Ten Commandments display at the Oklahoma Capitol constitutional or not, groups are lining up to include their own monuments alongside it if it is allowed. Most recently a group claiming to represent a “Satanic” church in New York has unveiled its proposed statue. Associated Press has published a drawing of the plans, and describes it this way:
The 7-ft.-tall (2.1 m) sculpture would feature Satan depicted in the form of Baphomet, a bearded, goat-headed, winged hominid with horns seated on a throne beneath a pentagram with two smiling children to either side.
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In addition to representing the Satanic religion, the monument “will also have a functional purpose as a chair where people of all ages may sit on the lap of Satan for inspiration and contemplation,” said Satanic Temple spokesperson Lucien Greaves.
Meanwhile, in a story that strangely feels related to me, a newly elected New York Town Council member who claims to be a member of the farcical Pastafarian religion, whose deity is the Flying Spaghetti Monster, was sworn in wearing a colander on his head. He called it a “statement of religious freedom.”
In Florida, a group’s proposed Satanist display was rejected by the state, though it’s unclear the grounds for rejection after allowing a Festivus beer pole and Flying Spaghetti Monster display next to a Nativity scene. Indeed, some atheists and Christians in the state are finding common ground in the desire to maintain a public forum at the state’s Capitol for such displays.
This appears to be the future of religious displays so long as state and local governments insist on allowing religious displays. They can show no favor to one religious perspective over another. Does this feel like a positive development for religion?
Many religious advocates for the separation of church and state – including the Baptist Joint Committee – argue that government religious displays do religion no favors. Wouldn’t it be better to leave government out of the business of religious displays altogether? Or do you prefer the Christian-Satanist-Spaghetti Monster lineup at the State Capitol as a good way to honor your faith?
