Mark Daniels provides an alternative and refreshingly vitriol-free Christian view on the Supreme Court's ruling on the public display of the 10 Commandments.

As a purely spiritual matter, I believe that the display of the Ten Commandments on public property may be:

(1) Contrary to God's will;

(2) Destructive of a positive witness for Christ.

The cause to which every Christian is called to be committed--sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ's death and resurrection and their power to give new life to all who follow Him--is not something that we are to "farm out" to the government. Each follower of Christ is to embrace this as part of their personal mission.

For we Christians to insist that tax dollars be used in what often is an act of proselytization not only violates constitutional principles, but Biblical ones as well. It smacks of coercion, of using one's status in a community to force our views on others. Scour the Bible from cover to cover and you won't find God ever sanctioning the coercive imposition of our faith on others. In fact, we're called upon to share our faith with compassion, with humility, and with respect for those with whom we differ.

I'm with Mr. Daniels on this issue - the less I see of any religion marking out territory in the halls of civil justice, the better I feel about the security of the knot in Justice's blindfold. And let's be honest - if you feel that you have to shove your religion into everyone's face at every opportunity, then it's hardly a resounding testament to said religion's intrinsic appeal, now is it?

Additionally, as Daniels points out, the current cultural concept of America as a Christian nation is in fact a highly a changable reality. Given immigration, minority birthrates, fashionable philosophical drift, public availiablity of other religious teachings, paediphiliac priests and so on, there's no reason to think that in 50 years it'll still be that way - and I don't think those currently pissed at losing this power to freely proselytize would be particularly happy to see Muslims, Buddhists or Jews (or even worse, Scientologists) hauling the old Commandment plaques out to make room for their own versions, should they gain the majority.

Maybe this is the birth of a new golden rule: Never ask for legislated favor that you wouldn't want to see in the hands of others.