church and state

Cross-posted at dKos

Back on Thursday, I mentioned the saga of Asheville City Councilman Cecil Bothwell. Some fundies over there want to bounce him from office because he's an atheist--and cite a provision in the state constitution that requires you to profess belief in God in order to hold office. Never mind that this provision is unenforceable due to numerous provisions of the federal Constitution (Article VI, the Supremacy Clause and the 1st and 14th Amendments). The Asheville City Council didn't back down, and Bothwell was duly sworn in.

But yesterday, the fundies vowed to press on.

One foe, H.K. Edgerton, is threatening to file a lawsuit in state court against the city to challenge Bothwell's appointment.

(cross-posted at dKos, Talk2Action and The Christian Dem Home Journal)

When I found out that an Arkansas state rep is trying to repeal a provision in his state constitution that bars atheists from holding office, I remembered that, sadly, North Carolina's constitution has a similar provision.

Article 6, Section 8 says that anyone who "shall deny the being of Almighty God" can't hold office in the state. And here's another kicker--this provision was carried over verbatim from the 1868 Constitution even though SCOTUS threw out a similar provision in Maryland just 10 years before the current constitution was adopted.

Currently, in North Carolina, court witnesses and jurors have two choices: they may be sworn in on the Christian Bible, or they may affirm, using no religious text. When a Greensboro woman, Syidah Mateen, decided that she would like to swear her oath on the Qur'an, trouble brewed. More after the break.

Two days ago, Rev. Mike Babb led two prayers in Oconee County, S.C. So far, so good.