TD Again Out On A Limb

3/13/2007 – AU Exists to Protect U. S. Constitution

Editor, Times-Dispatch: I admire Del. Donald McEachin. We share a belief in the omnipresence of God. I do not know why you would choose the occasion of his furthering his religious education to take a jab at a fine organization, Americans United for Separation of Church and State.   Your suggestion that groups such as AU “stand poised to pounce on any perceived transgression of the wall between faith and public policy” went well beyond hyperbole. There is a big difference between the separation of church and state that is required by the Constitution and separating faith from public policy, which would be impossible.

The purpose of AU is to protect the establishment and free exercise clauses of the First Amendment. In this AU members attempt to follow in the footsteps of three great Virginians: Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Mason.

W Young. richmond.

 

Attacks Continue

McEachin’s Morals – Richmond Times-Dispatch Feb 24, 2007
Richmond Del. Donald McEachin’s pursuit of a divinity degree at Virginia Union is commendable. At his age — 45 — many people are content to coast on the momentum they built up in younger days. But McEachin, inspired by a sermon on the Book of Isaiah, heard a religious calling in addition to the one that summoned him to public service as a state legislator.

It was fascinating to read how his spiritual pursuits have changed his political ones. As reporter Pamela Stallsmith’s article on McEachin noted:

“His theological studies have reshaped his political outlook. For instance, he introduced a bill this year to increase the minimum wage, which stemmed from a sermon he delivered for a class based on Proverbs 21:13. That passage talks about hearing ‘the cry of the poor.’ Before his seminary studies, McEachin said he wouldn’t have introduced such a bill. ‘I feel like I have a standard by which to judge legislation that I didn’t have before,’ McEachin said.”

Lucky for him he’s not a Republican.

When Republicans speak in such explicitly theological terms, they frequently are accused of intolerance, of wanting to “impose their values” on others, of belonging to “the Taliban wing of the GOP,” and so on. Groups such as Americans United for Separation of Church and State stand poised to pounce on any perceived transgression of the wall between faith and public policy.

Even when Republicans have other virtues, the dangers presumably presented by their religiosity remain foremost in everyone’s mind. Speaking of Del. Robert Marshall — a Republican and a man of religious conviction — three years ago, Arlington Del. Robert Brink said Marshall was “very, very bright and very dedicated. He has a sense of humor, which is something that all ideologues don’t always have.” An abortion-rights activist concurred, saying Marshall was “incredibly bright. Too bad it’s directed toward such a wacko cause.”

“He’s just a very, very sincere person who genuinely wants to integrate his faith with every aspect of his practice and his service.” So says Dean John Kinney of Union — about McEachin. The words apply equally to Marshall, who would agree with McEachin’s assertion: “There is no place that God is not.”

Question: Is it proper or not for public servants to incorporate their faith into their official duties?