The Freedom From Religion Foundation is strongly opposing an unconstitutional Wisconsin resolution that would formally recognize Dec. 25 as “the celebration of the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ,” a move that would elevate Christian doctrine as the official position of the state.
The proposed resolution (LRB-5522/2 and LRB-5630/1) goes far beyond acknowledging a federal holiday. It retells the biblical nativity narrative and refers to Jesus as “our Lord,” “our Savior” and the “Son of God.” It refers to “His gift of salvation and love,” and states that “it is incumbent upon the legislature” to honor Dec. 25 as a religious observance. It concludes by directing the Wisconsin state Legislature to officially recognize Dec. 25 as a day to honor the birth of Jesus Christ.
“The government must remain neutral on religious belief,” says Annie Laurie Gaylor, FFRF co-president. “These resolutions ask the Legislature to adopt Christian theology as its own. Public officials are free to hold personal beliefs, but they cannot use state authority to promote religious doctrine. That protects everyone, including more than one-third of Wisconsinites who are religiously unaffiliated and four percent who belong to other faiths. The Wisconsin state Legislature has no authority to declare Jesus the ‘Lord’ over Wisconsin.”
The U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly held that the First Amendment mandates government neutrality between religions, and between religion and nonreligion. By adopting a resolution that declares Jesus as “our Lord,” the legislature very obviously would be violating this core constitutional principle and marginalizing residents whose beliefs differ. It would also violate the Wisconsin state Constitution, which states that there should be no preference by law to any religious establishment or mode of worship.
December is a month of rich cultural and spiritual traditions, including Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, the Winter Solstice, HumanLight, and other celebrations that honor family, community, reflection, generosity and the changing of the seasons. Many Wisconsinites celebrate in secular ways, and others choose not to observe any holiday at all. A state resolution promoting a single theological viewpoint ignores this diversity and sends a message that only some residents belong.
FFRF points out that the Winter Solstice — the natural turning point of the year known as “the first day of winter” — is the real reason for the season. It signals the rebirth of the sun and the natural new year. For millennia, our ancestors in the Northern Hemisphere have greeted this seasonal event with festivals of light, gift exchanges and feasts.
FFRF is urging Wisconsin lawmakers to reject the resolution and uphold Wisconsin’s longstanding commitment to the constitutional separation of state and church.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with over 42,000 members nationwide, including 1,800 members in Wisconsin. FFRF’s purposes are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between church and state, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism.
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