Easter is not merely a 'Spring Break'

We live within a society today that has a diminishing view of Christianity. Actually, there is a diminished view of religion in general. According to polls, more people identify themselves as atheists or non-religious than at any other time throughout our nation's history (and for that matter, the history of the world). These non-religious people seek to remove anything that has a religious overtone to it from the public square or from the public discussion.

We have seen many people try to remove the true meaning of Christmas, by not allowing nativity scenes in public places or allowing Christmas carols to be sung in the schools. The courts have ruled that prayer is not allowed in public schools, as it violates the non-Constitutional clause of separation of church and state. We have people suing the government to have the words 'one nation, under God' removed from the pledge of allegiance or the words 'In God We Trust' removed from our currency. There is an antagonism toward God in this country.

And now, we have Easter. Where I work, it is now referred to as Spring Break (as if we needed a break from spring only a couple of weeks into the season). There are many at work that are offended by calling this tiem of year Spring Break, even amongst those who are not very religious or do not go to church at all. However, this so-called 'Spring Break' happens to coincide with Easter (as it also does with many public schools today). We also celebrate 'Winter Break' (a mere 4 days into winter, when a break is not needed) at a time that coincidentally falls at the same time as Christmas.

Anyway, Easter is a season that now emphasizes baskets of candy and goodies, easter egg hunts, and easter bunnies (although I am still trying to figure out the connection between the bunny and the eggs). It is a time for new fashions in the stores, when women can wear white shoes, the unofficial beginning of spring.

Are these things bad? No, they are n ot. They are innocent things that have no evil or no malice attached to them. However, they are used by many to distract from the real meaning of Easter. Our focus becomes the giving and receiving of goodies from each other. For many, they have no understanding of why there actually is a holiday we call Easter.

Easter is a time when many people who are normally un-churched might actually go to church. Many churches today, though, water down the real reason behind Easter in favor of a feel good message about being kind to your fellowman, peace on earth, etc. These churches may give a cursory mention to the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but that is not their focus. They treat it as a nice story to go along with the holiday, not the reason for the holiday.

The ironic thing here, at least in my eyes, is that churches today are busy telling us to be kind to our fellowman, to help them out in times of need, to give of ourselves to those less fortunate. Yet, they fail to teach how Christ did that for us by coming to earth to die for us. They will give us examples of how we can help out each other. Yet they do not take the opportunity to tell others what Christ did to help us to avoid an eternity in hell.

I am not bemoaning the need to be kind to our fellowman and to help others out in times of need. As Christians, we are to do that. However, we are also told to tell others about the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ and what that means for our lives and where we will spend eternity.

Oftentimes, we will read a story, whether in the newspaper, on the internet, in a magazine, about a hero what risked his/her life to save another person. I remember hearing the stories immediately after 9/11 of the police and firefighters who went into the World Trade Centers in order to help others get out. Many of them did not get out alive. They gave of their lives so that other lives could be prolonged here on earth. These men are true heroes, and I am not trying to diminish by one iota the things that they did that day.

However, these men gave of their lives so that someone else could spend several more years here on this earth. These men laid down their lives so that others could live. That is noble and they should be honored for the sacrifice they made. We have no problem telling others about these heroes who gave of their lives. However, we have a Savior who died on the cross to save us from our sins. He died, not just so we could live a few years longer here on earth, but so that we could spend an eternity with Him in heaven, yet we are somehow afraid to share this others?

The Great Commission tells us to go out and tell others about Christ. We are not to keep it a secret and save it only for other Christians. Why would we do that, as they already know the reason for Christ's death? Why are we not out telling others that this time of year is not just for a break in our lives to take it easy for a few days? We should be out letting others know that Jesus Christ is the reason we celebrate Easter.

Overlooking our religious heritage

The new Capitol Visitors Center opened today. After many years of construction and budget overruns, it is now open for the general public to go see. I am sure that this place is very nice, and I hope to have the opportunity to visit at some point in the future.

However, one Senator who is none to happy with this is SC Republican Senator Jim DeMint. He points out that this visitors center does not make mention of the religious heritage of this country. In my opinion, this is sad.

Our country was built on religion and religious freedom. After a casual reading of the documents written by many of our founding fathers, it does not take long to realize this. What I find interesting are the comments posted below the column. Many are praising Sen. DeMint for his comments.

However, several very uninformed people are stating that we have a Constitutional separation of church and state. This could not be further from the truth. That never appears in our Constitution. Our founding fathers never intended this to be. However, we have allowed the liberal progressives to promote this idea, and now many people are buying into this.

To exclude the religious heritage of our country is a tremendous oversight. The reason people came here from Europe in the first place is so that they could worship freely. As the Constitutional Convention was occurring, the men took time to pray so that they could get this country started properly. Schools were started in this country so that people could learn to read, mainly from the Bible. Read the writings of the founding fathers. Read the state constitutions. The worship of God was meant to be an integral part of our lives. Yet, the designers of this facility saw fit to leave God (and religion) out of this.

I am not saying this new center should be a shrine to God, a place of worship. However, to ignore the fact that our founding fathers relied on God and prayed to him for wisdom is a terrible mistake and omission, and it should be corrected as soon as possible.

Public School vs. Prayer

This week, the school board in Carlisle, PA voted to allow teachers to meet with students in the "Meet You at the Pole" campaign, where students meet at the flagpole to pray (it passed 8-1). To me, this seems like a no-brainer. What is the problem with this?

Well, the one person that voted against this did so because he thought it would lend itself to a government establishment of religion. He wondered how this would affect the students if they saw their teacher going out to the flagpole to pray. Maybe, their religion is different from a teacher's religion. Maybe the student believes in no religion. Either way, why should it bother the student how someone practices their faith. (As a sidenote, isn't it interesting how these atheists do not want someone else to 'force' their religion on them, yet they want to push their beliefs on others.)

Anyway, after doing a little bit of reading, I found out that these prayers at the flagpole are not audible prayers. The students meet and pray silently, which would allow people of any religion to come together and offer up their prayers without offending anyone else (I am not speaking to the idea of ecumenical prayers, I am just addressing the issue of a teacher and prayer). How could this possibly be an establishment of religion when the teacher never has to say what religion he/she adheres to?

But, where do we draw the line? Do we tell teachers that they cannot go to church, because an atheist student (or parent) may see that teacher walking into a church that they do not agree with? Do we get offended if they go to a church of a different religion? Can we tell them to stop praying in restaurants, just in case they may be seen by a student? This is utter foolishness.

The Constitution gives us freedom of religion, not freedom from religion. These complainers need to read many of the documents written by the founding fathers. They need to read many of the state constitutions. The founders had a tremendous faith in God and wanted him to be an integral part of the lives of those who served the people. However, they were smart enough not to condone a state-sponsored religion. They never said our leaders should not be religious.