Freedom from religion needed here

Freedom from religion needed here

I disagree with Laurel Anderson when, in her Dec. 22 letter, she said that we have freedom of religion, not freedom from religion, and we need to exercise our freedom of religion by bringing God back into our public schools so school bands and choruses can play and sing traditional Christmas music.

I, myself, believe we have both freedom of religion and freedom from religion, depending on the circumstances. Certainly we have freedom to exercise our religion in our homes and our churches and other private gatherings. But we also must have freedom from religion in public places like our public schools so that the majority cannot impose their religion upon us if we are members of a minority religion.

I remember attending a Wheaton City Council meeting some years ago, and the minister who gave an invocation at the beginning of the meeting gave a Christian prayer which he ended by saying, "Let us remember that we are all born sinners, and we must accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior so we are not banished to perdition." A Muslim couple were sitting next to me, and I saw their discomfort as they listened to that prayer. It would have been better if we had had freedom from religion at that public meeting so that no one would have had to feel discomforted.

Yes, you may have freedom to exercise your religion, but privately. But in public places we must have freedom from religion, and then we will have a much more fair and equal society.

Theodore M. Utchen

Wheaton