[thegreenflute334]

I enjoy the " the Christ of the Ozarks" but I think it should stay there. I think it's over-kill really and don't get it. Making the Bible, a state book, is a limitation and Arkansas is broader than that. I think religion is personal and it's very private. ( any religion)

This action will attract extremists and it will also push people away. Is that what Arkansas wants?

[kttam186290]

Arkansas state gemstone is the diamond !

[bawac34618]

Originally Posted by David A Stone

I took your post to read............" any religion that does not endorse the homosexual lifestyle and condone gay marriage is a religion of hate "


Correct?

No...just stop trying to use the government to force impose that message and discriminate against people you disapprove of. That's all. You can hate LGBT people all you want, that is your right, but that right ends when it infringes on others' rights.

I also don't think the government should tell me I can't buy a beer on Sunday. I am not a Baptist so my faith doesn't have any prohibitions against it.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Jon3154

Only a state like Arkansas could get away with doing something like this. Hence why they are doing it-- because they can. I can't imagine that happening where I live, but I know people who would love it if it did. And yet they see no constitutional violation because, like Ben Carson says, we were founded to be a Christian nation. Hell; these are the same people who want prayer back in public school. Certain types of Christians don't understand the simple fact that there is a separation between church and state. The idiocy of these people is astounding and perplexing.

and may I add the idiocy of someone from another state coming on here and discussing something they have no idea about is perplexing. You seem to be under the impression we want the Bible to be the state book; WRONG; it is not even really under consideration. A few elected officials suggested it, end of story, at least for now. As for prayer in school please tell us what is wrong with saying a prayer before a football game? Should it be mandatory? Of course not, but who is being hurt if some of the players and coaches want to say a prayer? I love those who fall back on the separation of church and state: Have you ever really thought about what this means? I interpret is as meaning "no forced religion". What is being discussed is not forced religion. We do not actually know what our forefathers were thinking. Next thing we know there will be a push to not say the pledge or sing the Anthem.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by okie1962

Speaking of books, when I was young our city library burnt to the ground, we lost both of our books, and one of them hadn't even been colored in yet...

you just made my morning.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by sheena12

Actually, I do. But then, my mind is a veritable catalog on random top 40 song lyrics from about the mid 60s though the 90s. I do not try to force "Hang On Sloopy" on out of staters, though.

The only time I hear it is when The Ohio State University marching band plays it.

Good song.

I guess I am too old to remember much music after the 50s and early 60s. I always thought the OK state song was OK, from the play or maybe an Okie from that town starting with an M and too hard for me to spell.

[David A Stone]

I thought the Oklahoma state song was " Okie from Muskogee "

[Jon3154]

Originally Posted by nmnita

and may I add the idiocy of someone from another state coming on here and discussing something they have no idea about is perplexing. You seem to be under the impression we want the Bible to be the state book; WRONG; it is not even really under consideration. A few elected officials suggested it, end of story, at least for now. As for prayer in school please tell us what is wrong with saying a prayer before a football game? Should it be mandatory? Of course not, but who is being hurt if some of the players and coaches want to say a prayer? I love those who fall back on the separation of church and state: Have you ever really thought about what this means? I interpret is as meaning "no forced religion". What is being discussed is not forced religion. We do not actually know what our forefathers were thinking. Next thing we know there will be a push to not say the pledge or sing the Anthem.

"and may I add the idiocy of someone from another state coming on here and discussing something they have no idea about is perplexing"

Sorry, I didn't know there was a rule that says you can only post in the state forum that you live in. Pretty sure people post in different forums all the time.

"You seem to be under the impression we want the Bible to be the state book"

Yes, because the article states it plainly: "An Arkansas House panel has endorsed the idea of naming the Bible as the state's official book."
Maybe it is not likely to happen, in which case I am glad. That changes nothing I said.

"As for prayer in school please tell us what is wrong with saying a prayer before a football game? Should it be mandatory? Of course not, but who is being hurt if some of the players and coaches want to say a prayer?"

When people talk about prayer in public school, it's referring to it in a mandatory, state-sanctioned nature, which used to be the reality in the U.S. I didn't say anything about a football game. I was referring to a time in our history when prayer was said in the classroom much like the pledge of allegiance is today. I am not concerned with the football issue. I will say that its not the same thing at all and it wouldn't be a constitutional violation if everyone was on board. In principle I think its not a great idea because most likely not all the players would be on board, but obviously its not a constitutional issue.

"Have you ever really thought about what this means?"

More than you apparently

"I interpret is as meaning "no forced religion".

It means no forced religion as well as a separation between institutionalized religion and the secular state (hence the name) which means no state sponsored religion, which is what Arkansas would be doing if it declared the bible to be the official book. Of course they aren't forcing people to convert by making the bible the state book, but its still not okay.

"We do not actually know what our forefathers were thinking."

Huh? We know that some of them were influential enlightenment thinkers who absolutely believed in a separation between church and state. What are you saying?

[Luvvarkansas]

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."

So, although I am a Christian and would certainly love to see more true Christianity being lived out in America, I do see how people could interpret this to mean that the government should not endorse any religion over another, as in a "state church" sort of thing (that has never worked well before). And of course, the government should not have its long arm in any religion to suppress it unless it advocates things that are against the law (murder, theft, destruction of property, violence against others, etc.).

Originally Posted by bawac34618

No...just stop trying to use the government to force impose that message and discriminate against people you disapprove of. That's all. You can hate LGBT people all you want, that is your right, but that right ends when it infringes on others' rights.

And so also do the LGBT community's rights end when, for example, what they want infringes on the rights of people to go to the bathroom in private without a member of the opposite sex in there....but when all the hullabaloo over the Target bathrooms was going on people who had a different mindset were called "haters" and "bigots" and were practically crucified for standing up for their rights. It's not hate or bigotry to disagree with LBGT.

Also when they insist on LGBT stuff being taught in schools as normal, thereby interfering with the way some people want to teach their children about a moral issue. So the LGBT community can think of how they would want it if the tables were turned and see that it works both ways. Don't force your morality on the rest of the 97-or-so percent of us and we'll be ok. LGBT can state what they believe and Christians can state what they believe, and God will judge all in the end.

I still think all this "state book", etc. stuff is silly and legislators could earn their salaries on things that are waaaay more important.

[tassity22]

Sounds like Arkansas is trying to force Christianity down everyone else's throat.

I lived in Arkansas for several years and got out as fast as I could.

While it may seem totally unfair, we cannot force others to follow our religious beliefs, read the Bible or attend church services on Sundays.