In 1934, a cross was erected in the Mojave Desert of California to honor our nation’s fallen soldiers. It was erected by the Veterans of Foreign Wars. For years there has been a fight to remove this cross. For years it has been covered over with a plywood box.
By a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court has stated that this cross shall be allowed to remain, despite the objections of people who feel it is wrong to have a religious symbol of any sort in a public park.
I am not a religious person, but I do take comfort in seeing religious symbols, whether it is in a cemetery, or a park, or driving by a church. I guess I take comfort that we have the ability to believe what it is we would like, and do not take offense to those who believe differently than myself, as long as people are not TELLING me I must believe one way or another. If anything, I take offense to anyone feeling they have the right to tell anyone that a cross must be removed, or a tree cannot be place in a park at Christmas, as I see these instances as an infringement on our freedoms.
I applaud the Supreme Court for their decision to allow this cross to remain, and wish I was the one out in the desert with the privilege of being able to remove this ugly plywood box from the cross. I will take pride in seeing it my next time in the Mojave Desert, and I will feel a little freer. I also hope that this paves the way for the Mt Soledad cross in San Diego, and the many other crosses throughout the country. After all, I don’t think about religion when I see one of these crosses. I think about those lost.
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