Sheriff to Atheist Group: "We Won't be Bullied. I Only Bow to One Man—But You Don't Believe in Him Anyway"

Julie Brown Patton : Feb 2, 2016
Gospel Herald

"I am not sure I would be bragging about 700 members [in the Freedom From Religion Foundation] in a state that has almost 13 million residents. We have almost 10 times as many people on our Facebook page. The thing is, in Jefferson County, we don't really like bullies, and we are not very good at bowing down to organizations. I actually only bow to one Man, but you don't believe in Him anyway." -Letter from Sheriff Travis Allen to the Freedom From Religion Foundation

(Illinois)—An Illinois sheriff called freethinking Freedom From Religion Foundation representatives oppressors, and is vowing not to back down from their legal threats after they said the two nativity scenes erected at the local courthouse last month were unconstitutional. The sheriff just penned an excoriating letter to the activists proclaiming he will not bow to "bullies." (Photo via Gospel Herald)

The battle surfaced after one of the foundation's attorneys sent a letter to the Jefferson County Board to complain about Sheriff Travis Allen's decision to put the Christian scenes on display along with other holiday elements at the courthouse. The foundation is a national non-profit whose staff and members believe in non-theism, and are dedicated to the Constitutional principle of separation of church and state.

Allen rejects the charge that the nativities are unconstitutional. "We're not putting crosses at the courthouse. We're not putting Bible verses up. This is a Christmas display," Allen told WPSD-TV.

"What has our country become when we can't put a nativity scene out in celebration of Christmas because we're worried about offending somebody? That's embarrassing!"

Allen said he added the nativities to help celebrate the Christmas spirit, noting there used to be a "big Christmas celebration" in the past and that many citizens...

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