Virginia House passes Ten Commandments measure

By The Associated Press

02.11.02

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RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia's House of Delegates approved a bill late last week that would allow public schools to post the Ten Commandments.

The measure, which now goes to the Senate, would require the state Board of Education to write guidelines for displaying the Ten Commandments in classrooms, along with the text from three secular documents: the First Amendment, the Declaration of Independence and the Virginia Constitution.

It would be up to local school officials to decide whether to display the texts.

The House voted 52-46 on Feb. 8 to send the measure to the Senate. Gov. Mark Warner has not taken a position on the bill.

The bill's Republican sponsor, Delegate L. Scott Lingamfelter, said he went to great lengths to ensure the measure passes constitutional muster.

The bill originally applied only to the Ten Commandments, but was amended to include the nonreligious documents. The state attorney general's office has said the measure did not appear to violate the constitutionally required separation of church and state.

"Some people have spoken about the intent of this bill, but as the author of this bill, let me say to you from the bottom of my heart it is not about religion," Lingamfelter said. "It is about values. It's about the values that were at the root of the founding of this nation."

Opponents said the bill is about religion and argued it would be inappropriate to post the Ten Commandments next to the other documents.

"The basic idea is that we as a government will not promote any particular religion," said Delegate William K. Barlow, a Democrat. "This bill promotes a specific belief."

Kent Willis, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union in Virginia, said after the House vote that the inclusion of the nonreligious texts did not change the bill's religious purpose.

"This may be an attempt to sort of dilute the religious message by putting secular messages alongside it, but it won't work in this instance," he said.

He said that if the bill becomes law, the ACLU probably will wait to see the Board of Education's guidelines before deciding on a legal challenge.

Update

Virginia Senate panel kills Ten Commandments bill
Committee questions sponsor's intent in submitting legislation similar to Kentucky law ruled unconstitutional by U.S. Supreme Court.  02.15.02

Related

ACLU sues Tennessee county over commandments displays
State director says group filed lawsuit 'to ensure that individuals have the right to decide for themselves whether to practice a particular religious faith.'  02.02.02

Alabama House panel backs Ten Commandments amendment
Proposal would allow religious codes to be displayed on state property, including in schools.  01.27.02