[Johny Joe Hold]

I've always been proud of our sign as you enter Freehold:

JESUS WELCOMES YOU TO FREEHOLD

Now, a Mayor I know (and brought to Jesus if I may brag) in Hawkins, Texas, has cloned our sign and put it right where everyone can see it:


Dispute in Texas over Jesus Sign

15 Jun 2015 Posted by Alison Lesley




Will Rogers, Mayor of Hawkins, Texas defends “Jesus Welcomes You” sign against the Freedom From Religion Foundation.

The town of Hawkins in Texas welcomes visitors with a unique sign that reads “Jesus Welcomes You to Hawkins.” Because the sign is on government property, however, a legal dispute has erupted on the legality of what some consider an unlawful endorsement of religion. The Freedom From Religious Foundation (FFRF) views the sign as a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, because it conveys a preference for Christianity over other religions and for religion over non-religion.
Will Rogers, mayor of Hawkins, stressed that there was no specific religious intent when the town set up the sign welcoming visitors in Jesus’ name. He told CBS that the sign was approved by the City Council years ago and was a community effort. The Hawkins ISD shop built the sign, and donations were gathered to pay for the sign.
After a resident’s complaint, the Freedom From Religious Foundation has sent a letter to Hawkins town officials, stating that the Jesus sign welcoming visitors toWill Rogers, Mayor of Hawkins, Texasdefends “Jesus Welcomes You” sign against the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
The town of Hawkins in Texas welcomes visitors with a unique sign that reads “Jesus Welcomes You to Hawkins.” Because the sign is ongovernment property, however, a legal dispute has erupted on the legality of what some consider an unlawful endorsement of religion. The Freedom From Religious Foundation (FFRF) views the sign as a violationof the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, because it conveys a preference for Christianity over otherreligions and for religion over non-religion.
Will Rogers, mayor of Hawkins, stressed that there was no specific religious intent when the town set up the sign welcoming visitors in Jesus’
Hawkins is “an unconstitutional religious display on government property.” The organization stressed that their purpose is to protect the constitutional separation between state and church, and has asked the city council to remove the sign. Mayor Rogers told KLTV that Hawkins doesn’t have the money to battle the Freedom from Religious Foundation in a court of law, but he thinks the city would win.
Rogers underlined that the sign isn’t welcoming visitors to any particular church. He stated that Jesus is “the most googled and most popular man in the world.” Local residents told KLTV that the sign represents their community, and that they want it to stay put. Hawkins city council is to discuss the matter at an upcoming meeting.
Hawkins is located in Wood County, Texas. The city’s population was 1,278 at the 2010 census. The Freedom From Religious Foundation was founded in 1978. Based in Madison, Wisconsin, it is the largest national organization in the United Stated advocating for non-theists and educating the public on atheism, agnosticism, and nontheism.
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[Mary Etheldreda]

Mr. Mayor, your leadership and fortitude is an inspiration indeed!

Knowing that Jesus is the most googled and most famous man in the world is a comfort in these Dark Days, and I'm glad to see more mayors are following in your footsteps and proposing their towns put their money where their mouths are!

God Bless you, Mayor!

[Daisy Mae Johnson]

You know Brother Mayor, there are a lot of Messicant's in Texas. They probably stole it.


BTW, It would be super awesome if we could add giant arms reaching out for a hug on each side of the sign to our sign in Freehold.

[Mrs. Elizabeth Johnson]

How wonderful! Mr. Mayor, would you be ok if my community copy your sign?

[Joanna Lytton-Vasey]

Good news indeed, Mr Mayor, sir. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery (not that you, personally, are susceptible to flattery).

My husband had something similar erected just inside our main gates, but unfortunately the sign was mistaken for a UKIP poster by their supporters - something to do with the colors, maybe?




As a result, we had a lot of rather - er - unwashed and unwelcome visitors. You would think they could have read the message, but education in this country is not what it was. Anyway, we have taken it down, pending repainting.

YiC
Joanna

[Faith_Machine]

Mayor Will Rogers said it perfectly: The sign is not encouraging visitors to attend any particular church. Because it endorses no specific branch of Christianity, that sign is totally in keeping with the constitution's separation of church and state.

Boy, do those atheists like to complain.

[Ezekiel Bathfire]

My main objection is that there is nothing that I can see that indicates the presence of Jesus's Holy Welcome. As far as I can see Jesus did not welcome anyone except into the Kingdom of Heaven, and that was only after Judgement and even then the welcome was merely implicit.

For all we know, Hawkins (I hope that it is not named for that "scientific" gimp) is a hot-bed of sodomy and other assorted sins. Unless and until a spiritual survey (as was done in Landover) has been completed, this sign should be removed as it is misleading.

[Dr Laurence Niles]

Have you copyrighted this?

The early bird captures the worm.

YIC

[Johny Joe Hold]

Originally Posted by Daisy Mae Johnson

You know Brother Mayor, there are a lot of Messicant's in Texas. They probably stole it.


BTW, It would be super awesome if we could add giant arms reaching out for a hug on each side of the sign to our sign in Freehold.

That is a great idea, Sister Daisy. I've spoken to the contractor who put up the famous TOUCHDOWN JESUS piece and he is interested.

[Johny Joe Hold]

Originally Posted by Mrs. Elizabeth Johnson

How wonderful! Mr. Mayor, would you be ok if my community copy your sign?

Thank you for that nice request, Sister Johnson. I would hope your Mayor is a True Christian™. Jesus might not be pleased welcoming people to a city where the Mayor also welcomes homers.

[Johny Joe Hold]

Originally Posted by Joanna Lytton-Vasey

Good news indeed, Mr Mayor, sir. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery (not that you, personally, are susceptible to flattery).

My husband had something similar erected just inside our main gates, but unfortunately the sign was mistaken for a UKIP poster by their supporters - something to do with the colors, maybe?




As a result, we had a lot of rather - er - unwashed and unwelcome visitors. You would think they could have read the message, but education in this country is not what it was. Anyway, we have taken it down, pending repainting.
Joanna

What a mistake--homer colors on a conservative sign. Every summer I make the rounds in Freehold discouraging any home owner from using that color. Mostly people are cooperative, but teenagers often try to sneak by when painting their bedrooms.

[Mrs. Elizabeth Johnson]

Originally Posted by Johny Joe Hold

Thank you for that nice request, Sister Johnson. I would hope your Mayor is a True Christian™. Jesus might not be pleased welcoming people to a city where the Mayor also welcomes homers.

While not as godly as you or Pastor Zeke, we are a godly neighborhood that is vigilant about keeping out sinners and are ruled by the divine word of God in his KJV 1611 Bible!