Post Thought on Ground Zero

Anyone can say they have a religious belief. They can worship animate and inanimate things. I think most people in the United States would allow anyone their beliefs, as long as it didn't break the law. For instance, a man could say he worships the God of Lust and must have sex with girls under the age of 12. That just doesn't fly and no one would condone it. So there are limits to worship and freedom of religion. As I see it, the First Amendment is simple, the government will not institute a religion that is the state religion and everyone is required to believe in. That's how I see it. Government doesn't need to support religion, though I do agree with tax exempt status for Churches and their property.

No one has infringed upon members of Islam to worship, particularly in a secular sense,though most would agree that we do not support Fantatical Islam. In point of fact, it appears to me that we are backing away, bowing as we go, trying not to offend Islam. It would be easy for me to claim to be offended by things that have been said about my Church and done to some of its members. We were persecuted in Missouri. It took months to seat a senator from the state of Utah who was a member of the Church. I am a member of one of the smallest minority groups in this country. I am a white, male, Mormon. It doesn't get much smaller than that. My Church has tried to build sacred houses of worship in different parts of the country and, indeed, the world and many times has had to deal with complaints, protests and down right meanness.

At times there has been a need to reconsider and move the location of a Mormon Temple. I don't see how this is really terribly different than the Ground Zero Mosque. Go ahead and build it, but you do not need to build it there. You could build it 5 miles, or 10 miles from there and you could still do the same things you would be doing if it was built at Ground Zero. The only difference in using a different site is the Muslims would not be able to use the mosque as monument of Triumph over the evils of the United States. I don't for a minute think that the reason they want to build it where they want to build it is anything other than a monument of Triumph of the United States and the Western Civilizations.

The funny part is I know President Obama gets that and that is why he supports it. Every day I watch this man it solidifies and confirms in my mind even more that he is not culturally an American. Real Americans need to and will come alive from their sleep. Last night I watched on YouTube some old videos of Ezra Taft Benson. He was taken to the wood shed many times by some of his Brethren over his remarks about the United States, the Constitution and Communism. I think he would see Islam for what it is. It is a political ideology and if that ideology pushes for Sharia law, then it is incompatible with our Constitution and with a democratic republic.

UPDATE: I found this post by the fascinating Victor Davis Hanson to be an example of the disparate opinions on this issue. A Jew is defending the Mosque and a Gentile is against it.