Today was a local election day. We have a new polling place in our ward. Instead of the school to which we walked for years, it is now in a nearby church basement. It seems a good use of the space on an off day.
But as I deposited my ballot, I had a creepy feeling. Suddenly Jesus was in my personal space, uninvited. How well does this mesh with the separation of church and state?
Our local polling place was also in a church and not the local elementary school where it has been for years. Is this not a clear violation in the principles defining the separation of church and state?
My official polling station is a church. Separation. Right.
I'm not offended in the least voting in a church (or a laundry mat or a igloo) as long as the people who own the premises aren't controlling how I vote.
Consider this: I traveled to Guatemala about 10 years ago and was allowed to see a court proceeding. There were three judges sitting at the front hearing a criminal case against a man. On the big table where the judges sat, facing the Defendant, was a two-foot tall silver crucifix.
This isn't just a matter of principle. We had an anti-marriage amendment on the ballot in Virginia a few years ago, and at least one of the churches serving as a polling place was able to display pro-amendment propaganda on its marquee and inside the building because doing so is a First Amendment protected activity. I know that having my volunteers at polling places made a difference in how people voted, so we know that the message about the amendment they were exposed to just before voting had an effect.
The signage pictured could just as easily be a message pertaining to some piece of legislation – say for example "God ordained marriage between one man and one woman." This is not harmless.
I'm somewhat sensitized by the current news that I related in: In Whom I Don’t Trust