On Monday, the Freedom From Religion Foundation sent a letter to the sheriff, stating that preaching in uniform is a violation of the First Amendment. The complaint was prompted by a Judd’s April 19 sermon at Lakeland’s First Baptist Church at the Mall.
The sheriff’s reply: He’ll be speaking at another church this Sunday.
“I found it humorous and entertaining,” Judd told The Tampa Tribune on Wednesday. “They obviously mis-characterized the sermon I preached. I was shocked. It is most bizarre.”
The foundation said that by appearing in uniform Judd gives the impression the county endorses Christianity and “sends a message of exclusion” to non-Christians.
“You cannot preach in church as Sheriff Judd, you must do so as Mr. Judd, private citizen,” the foundation told the sheriff.
The Sheriff plans to keep preaching in churches despite the complaint.
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[ Fox News interview video here ]
20 comments:
If he was preaching at a Mosque I'm sure Christians would go nuts over it saying the gub'ment is endorsing Islam
If they are truly atheists then what are they doing going to a Christian religous service to begin with. Either they are Hippocrates or are just out to stir up trouble were no trouble or problem exists.We need to stop giving tese small groups the mass media coverage they crave!
There's nothing militant about it.
It was inappropriate, and sends a disturbing message. He wants to preach, fine, but I agree that it should not be under the auspices of government authority.
If a priest was also a sheriff's deputy, it would be equally as disturbing if he served someone a warrant for their arrest while wearing his vestments.
Dear all atheists,
If you don't like living in our Judeo Christian country, please leave.
Signed,
The United States of America
Go ahead and preach, brother!
The First Amendment doesn't contain a dress code.
This country was founded on God! All our forefathers and leaders went to church. The last 30 years folks!
And whks to say be isn't on lunch and taking his time to express his right to believe ?
I am definitely joining this group for the good of our country.
10:16 and 10:47 cite imaginary scenarios which would never happen. Typical.
The message only disturbs those trying to hide from it-- the MILITANT atheists who are trying to deprive honest, God-loving Americans of their clearly-defined First Amendment right to free exercise of religion.. a very small, organized group of God-denyers with four full-time lawyers who are paid to bully and harass those who express religious beliefs in public with which they do not agree.
Dear Atheist: Mind your business and stay out of others lives.
Dear Christians: Mind your business and stay out of others lives.
Dear Muslims: Mind your business and stay out of others lives.
Dear.... ETC ETC ETC ETC ETC
Get a grip people.
10:51. The U.S. Welcomes all faiths or lack of faith. It is called freedom. We are not a theocracy.
Can someone explain to me what exactly makes atheists "militant", because it seems like right out of the gates, right in the headline, this author is building a strawman.
Dear all theists,
We love living in our free country, that guarantees your right to your religious beliefs, and my right to believe you're utterly deluded.
As long as we are respectful of each other's point of view, there's plenty of room for both. And it is in both our interests, to ensure religious ideology does not supplant the law; lest another, more aggressive and malevolent religious ideology subject us all to destruction.
Signed,
The United States of America
But with those freedoms comes the responsibility to RESPECT those who disagree with you. Really, a group is actually called Freedom FROM Religion? Why? So they can harass believers who might be saying grace at a food court?
12:33 No. They are a watchdog group that calls out encroachments of the separation of church and state.
They don't care about people's personal, private religious beliefs and practices. Harassing someone for saying grace at a restaurant is just as unacceptable as being harassed for NOT saying it. Either one must never happen in a free society.
11:19 Never happen? Try telling that to the Christians in Iran, Syria, and Aghanistan. Oh wait, you can't...they're dead.
"Militant"? I do not think this means, what you think it means.
Nobody is trying to deprive anyone of their First Amendment rights, in fact, if you carefully read it, the separation of church and state is clear. So they are actually supporting it.
Any time you have a government representative preaching religious ideology to the public, that should send up a dire red flag to every one of us, regardless of religious affiliation. If he wanted to preach, then he should not wear his "government uniform" to do so.
Nobody was objecting to his right to express his religious beliefs, how hard is that to comprehend? The objection was merely that he did so in a manner that implied government sanction.
Look at what has happened to Great Britain, for a horrifying example of what can, and will happen, when religion infiltrates political boundaries. They are a couple decades away, at best, from falling to an Islamic majority. All because nobody spoke up against the erosion of secularism.
"Nobody is trying to deprive anyone of their First Amendment rights, in fact, if you carefully read it, the separation of church and state is clear. So they are actually supporting it."
This man is not a member of Congress, nor is he purporting to be that. He an employee of the People. He is just a free man preaching who happens to be popular.
Simply go to your own copy of the First Amendment and read it for yourself; I'm not going to type it out here.
Don't have that? Well, that's probably why you're commenting!
Historical documents show our forefathers believed in a Creator and our laws were derived from Judeo-Christian principles. We have the freedom to worship God or not. If the sheriff was on duty or just got off duty and had no time to change, then he should be able to carry on his personal life without intimidation. Otherwise, it's best not to wear a uniform of any kind in the pulpit.
I pray for you that one day you give your heart to the Lord and find true peace and joy. I have and it is truly awesome
Does this mean I can't preach while wearing a U.S. Flag pin in my lapel??
Yes
It simply means that our government cannot designate an "official" state religion. A cop preaching in his uniform gives the impression that the government sanctions it.
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