10.3.06

An Early Christmas Gift for Our First Liberty...
Nearly three years ago, Joel Curry - then a fifth grader at a Saginaw, Michigan, elementary school - participated in his school's "Classroom City" product marketing project. The project was a simulation to teach economics and citizenship.

But instead of just learning about these topics, Joel got a first hand lesson on religious intolerance and the First Amendment.

Since the project was happening at Christmas time, Joel decided to "sell" candy canes to his classmates. Attached to the candy canes was a card presenting a Christian message based on the popular Christmas time treat.

And that's when Joel received the civics lesson he wasn't expecting.

A teacher, misled by the so-called "separation of church and state" arguments perpetuated by the ACLU and its allies, notified school officials of the cards, who quickly ordered their removal. Never mind that Joel's cards could not possibly be considered an endorsement of religion by the school. Nevertheless, after years of the ACLU's "separation of church and state" campaign of "fear, intimidation, and disinformation," too many school officials believe they must censor anything that even remotely mentions Christ - or even the secular - history of Christmas.

ADF attorneys filed a lawsuit in June 2004 to protect Joel's constitutional right to share the true heritage of the candy cane with his classmates. On September 18th, nearly three years after the "Classroom City" project, a federal judge ruled that the school officials violated Joel's First Amendment rights.

Judge David Lawson wrote: "The exercise and its objectives did not preclude incorporating religion. There is no evidence that a child's use of a religious product would prevent other students from learning what the assignment was designed to teach. The concern that the religious message on Joel's product would interfere with the [educational] exercise is not a legitimate basis on which to restrict his speech." You can read the full opinion at http://www.telladf.org/UserDocs/CurryOpinion.pdf.

ADF Senior Legal Counsel Jeff Shafer adds: "The First Amendment speech rights of Christian students are just as protected as those of other students. The religious nature of their speech does not diminish that protection."

Later this year, ADF and its allies will be launching our fourth annual "Christmas Project" to defend, protect, and affirm the First Amendment rights of all Americans to wish their neighbors and friends a "Merry Christmas." Please watch for more details in coming weeks.

In the meantime, thank you again for your prayers and support that make courtroom victories for our liberty like this possible!

Learn more by reading the ADF press release...

ADF and Family Research Council Send Letter to Thousands of Pastors Informing Them of Their Free Speech Rights...

ADF, in conjunction with our ally, the Family Research Council, has sent a letter to thousands of pastors across the United States, informing them about their right to speak to congregations on the values and issues which will be critical for voters to make decisions for this year's elections.

"A pastor has the same free speech rights as any other American," says ADF Senior Counsel Gary McCaleb. "Pastors who want to speak out on life and marriage issues, for example, need not fear the tax man, despite what some in the media would have them believe."

The joint letter, signed by ADF Chief Counsel Benjamin Bull and FRC President Tony Perkins says: "Plainly stated, there is nothing in federal tax law to prevent a pastor from directly telling his congregation to support legislation that the church believes to be beneficial to the community. On the other hand, IRS regulations do prohibit tax-exempt organizations - including churches - from endorsing candidates. However, churches remain free to educate their congregations through distributing voter guides, registering voters, and hosting candidate forums."

Interestingly, despite his organization's ongoing campaign to intimidate churches to remain silent on moral issues in fear of losing their tax-exempt status, the head of Americans United for Separation of Church and State admitted to Focus on the Family CitizenLink's Steve Jordahl that ADF's letter was accurate. He said: "It is true that the tax law doesn't stop pastors from telling congregations about legislation at all, and I've never said otherwise."

A copy of the letter is available at http://www.telladf.org/UserDocs/ADF-FRC-pastorletter.pdf. Please share it with your own pastor, church leaders, and others in your community.

Learn more about these cases by reading the ADF press release...

Prayer Requests | Visit the ADF prayer page
"Without Christ, we can do nothing." - John 15:5

1. Please continue to pray for the same-sex "marriage" decisions presently pending in New Jersey, California, and Maryland.
   
2. Please pray for continued wisdom for the many legal battles ahead.