I submitted a 250 word version of the article below as a Letter to the Editor of the Winston Salem Journal on Friday. Whether or not it prints, here is the full article for you.
I feel like my rights as an American are under attack. So I went back to the Constitution and specifically the Bill of Rights, and I include here the words of the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” I have a reason as a pastor and as a Christian to be upset. A couple of years ago, I was invited to give the prayer before the Forsyth County Commissioners meeting. So I accepted the invitation and I gave the prayer. I don’t remember the exact words, but I prayed like I usually pray. No one told me what I had to say or what I could not say. Then in just a couple of weeks, one of the pastors in our community came under fire for using the name of Jesus Christ in his prayer. Our commissioners have been fighting over this issue since that time. The Christians in our community are not going to stop praying in the name of Jesus Christ no matter what the high court rules. We may not be invited to pray at the commissioners meetings anymore, but we are not going to budge on the issue of praying in the way we believe. That freedom is protected by the First Amendment and we do have a legal right to keep on exercising that freedom. If you tell someone how to pray that is directly violating the first amendment by prohibiting the free exercise of their religion. If someone believes differently than we do as Christians, as an American they have the right to have a different opinion. As a United Methodist pastor of Faith United Methodist Church in Rural Hall NC, I am willing to take a strong stand to support the First Amendment. When I pray, I am going to keep on using the name of Jesus Christ. If you find that offensive, then don’t ask me to pray, but I am not going to back down in being bold for my Savior. I urge the citizens of this county to let your county commissioners hear from you on this issue. I go with Christ, or I’m not going at all. I know I am not alone and our commissioners need to hear your voice too.
I urge the Forsyth County commissioners to appeal the recent high court decision regarding prayer before their meetings. I am not supporting the government to push one particular way of expressing religion on the people, but I am asking for the freedom to practice my faith as a pastor and as a Christian in the way I choose. I urge the commissioners to appeal. We the people, of this county, and of all of the United States, believe that our fundamental right to exercise religion and free speech are rights protected by the constitution and that these are rights that we are willing to fight to keep. Our country was founded on belief that you should be free to exercise your religious beliefs, and that freedom has been something that our nation has shed blood and sacrifice to establish, and our men and women in the armed forces continue to fight daily to protect that freedom. Please don’t let a vocal minority speak for all the people. We the people, still means all the people. Protect our First Amendment rights. It is worth the fight.
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