By
Attorney Michael Peroutka
April 2, 2014
NewsWithViews.com
Carroll County (Maryland) Commissioner Robin Frazier opened up last Thursday morning’s Board of Commissioners budget meeting with a prayer containing references to Jesus Christ. This is, of course, a perfectly normal and appropriate and legal thing to do.
When Commissioner Frazier offered the prayer she was telling the truth and following the law.
Now you’ve probably heard George Orwell’s famous phrase that “…in a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
Orwell’s statement seems to fit here.
You see, Fourth Circuit Federal District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr. has ordered Commissioner Frazier to stop the practice of praying in the name of Jesus. He has issued a preliminary injunction to that effect.
But, despite the threat of arrest and punishment, Commissioner Frazier bravely and faithfully prayed a prayer which had been prayed by George Washington. That prayer made reference to Jesus Christ.
“If we cease to believe that our rights come from God, we cease to be America,” the Commissioner said. “We’ve been told to be careful. But we’re going to be careful all the way to Communism if we don’t start standing up and saying ‘no.’”
The judge, of course, has acted foolishly and Commissioner Robin Frazier has acted faithfully and courageously.
She is a blessing to the community and is to be commended.
But, what she did was not only faithful and courageous.
It was
legal.
Let me repeat. It was legal.
Let me briefly explain.
The United States Code, Volume One, Section 101-5949 refers to the Declaration of Independence as the “organic law” of the United States. And the Declaration clearly claims that there is an Almighty Creator God, that our rights come from Him and that the purpose of civil government is to protect and defend the God-given rights of the people. The Declaration makes reference to the Bible, God’s Word, as the source of earthly legal authority. The Bible, of course, includes the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
But, what about “Separation of Church and State,” you might ask. Is the judge relying on the First Amendment to try to stop prayer?
Let’s look at it.
In the American View of law and government, when God created the world, He created our rights at the very same time. It was somewhat later, after the flood, that he instituted civil government (what we now call the State) for the purpose of defending those rights that He had previously given.
Later still, as part of His redemptive plan for a fallen and sinful mankind, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and fully God Himself, instituted the Church, of which He is the Head.
Now the church and the state are separate entities and they have separate functions, and separate jurisdictions. (For example, neither Nancy Pelosi nor Hillary Clinton have authority to administer the Sacraments.) But since both of these institutions are instituted by God, neither is separate from Him.
So, you see, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a State or a County official acknowledging the authority and the Word of God as authoritative and controlling in the civil affairs of men.
Actually, quite the opposite is true. No State action or law is valid unless it conforms to God’s law and His Will. This is precisely why the primary document of the American political view begins with the acknowledgment of God’s authority as expressed in the phrase “The Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.”
God is the authority over both the jurisdiction of the Church and the jurisdiction of the State. They are therefore separate from each other in terms of their function, but they are NOT separated from Him, for He is their Source of Authority.
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So, prayer and Bible reading and Bible influence in civil government is totally, perfectly, American and totally legal.
So, we thank Commissioner Frazier for doing her civil duty in acknowledging the True God Whose only begotten Son is Christ – the Lord of All.
One further question for Judge Quarles:
If the First Amendment says “Congress shall make no law…,” then how can you, Judge Quarles, enforce a law that Congress can’t make”?
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Michael Anthony Peroutka Esq. is a former Presidential candidate and co-founder of Institute on the Constitution (IOTC) an educational outreach of his law firm that presents the founders “American View” of law and government. IOTC has produced thousands of graduates in all 50 states with a full understanding of the Biblical principles on which those founding documents are based.
Michael is a graduate of Loyola College and the University of Baltimore School of Law.
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Email: Michael@theAmericanView.com
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