Bible Verses Removed from Grand Canyon     7/17/2003
By Kelley Shields

Arizona ACLU says a national park is no place for religion.

Three plaques bearing verses from the Old Testament book of Psalms hung on buildings at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon for the past 33 years. Last week, however, officials removed them after the Arizona ACLU sent the Park Service a letter about the plaques.

The verses on the plaques were Psalms 66:4, 68:4, and 104:24. The last verse declares, “O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your possessions."

Officials at the Grand Canyon claim they had no choice in removing the plaques. The U.S. Department of the Interior, in charge of the National Park Service, said the plaques violate separation of church and state.

“They are religious plaques on federal buildings and that’s not allowed based on the law,” said Maureen Oltrogge, spokesperson for the Grand Canyon National Park.

That is a confident declaration, but an incorrect one. For example, the Washington Monument’s peak declares “Praise be to God” in Latin, and four inscriptions on the Jefferson Memorial have explicit religious sentiments.

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution reads, in part, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” The government is not establishing a national religion or interfering with people’s practice of their religious beliefs by allowing a private group to hang three plaques in the Grand Canyon.

The plaques have been returned to their owners, the Evangelical Sisterhood of Mary in Phoenix. In a prepared statement, members of the sisterhood said they were shocked.

"We were stunned when we heard the news that our three

[S]cripture plaques at the Grand Canyon were suddenly removed. These plaques have inspired many of the awe-struck beholders to admire and acknowledge the creator of this majestic landscape spread before their eyes," they said in the statement.

We should all pray that the U.S. Park Service doesn’t transfer Ms. Oltrogge to Washington, D.C., where she would probably take a hammer and chisel to our national monuments. People who don’t even know what the First Amendment says shouldn’t be in a position to enforce an incorrect interpretation,” said Jan LaRue, CWA’s chief counsel. “The Park Service should put the plaques right back where they were and send a letter of apology to the good Sisters. Ms. Oltrogge should be assigned to a remedial course on the First Amendment or to squirrel patrol.”

Ms. Oltrogge herself may not take a chisel to the National Monuments, but the question does arise as to whether that is the ACLU’s ultimate goal.

Although the Biblical plaques are out, the Park Service decided that one of the main trails into the Arizona attraction may carry the name Bright Angel and a number of the Canyon's formations can share the names of Hindu gods.

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