Judge mulls wisdom of monument

Some of the Ten Commandments may be of enough interest to non-churchgoers to warrant their display in common areas, a federal judge said Tuesday.

"I've always been a fan of the concept of separation (of church and state) over the years," U.S. District Judge Bruce Jenkins said, "but I've also been interested in the fact that there are unchurched people in the world . . . that perhaps ought to have the opportunity to observe words of wisdom . . . in places of public prominence."

Jenkins' remark came during an afternoon hearing in the Society of Separationists' lawsuit challenging the display of a Ten Commandments monument in Pleasant Grove City Park.

The Maryland-based organization has asked Jenkins to order the city to find that the nearly 5-foot-tall marble monument's presence violates the establishment clause of the U.S. Constitution and order that it be removed from public land.

Jenkins did not rule on the request Tuesday. He did, however, appear intrigued with the origin and characterization of the Ten Commandments as religious and/or secular beliefs.

While apparently thinking aloud from the bench, the judge questioned civil-rights attorney Brian Barnard, representing the Society of Separationists, on his assertion in the lawsuit that the commandments were personally delivered by God to Moses.

Jenkins questioned Barnard's authority to make such a statement, saying evidence indicates that the commandments existed in one form or another long before the establishment of modern Judeo-Christian religions.

The senior judge noted there are "historical indications that such rules were propounded by sources other than God through Moses."

Regardless of their origin, Barnard argued the Ten Commandments now form the basis for several modern religions and their presence on public property violates the constitutionally mandated separation of church and state.

While commandments five through 10 may qualify as "words of wisdom" as Jenkins suggested, Barnard said the first four — which prohibit the taking of additional gods, worshipping of idols, taking the Lord's name in vain, and keeping the sabbath holy — are clearly religious in nature.

Meanwhile, a national organization that specializes in the defense of religious and civil liberties has joined forces with Pleasant Grove and Duchesne City, another Utah city facing a legal challenge to its Ten Commandments display.