Waffle Fries and Separation of Church and State

A couple of weeks ago Chick Fil A’s President, Dan Cathy, went on the record with his support of ‘traditional marriage’, noting his frustration with the ‘prideful and arrogant attitude’ of those who ‘want to change what marriage is all about’, basically affirming his opposition to gay marriage and more significantly his support of organizations that use government action to oppose it. LGBT organizations called for boycotts, while several city politicians announced “plans” to ‘block’ or ‘do everything in their power to stop’ the opening of Chick Fil A’s: “plans” they later ‘clarified'(i.e. reversed). Chick Fil A supporters have also come forward ranging from Governor Mike Huckabee to internet phenom Antoine Dodson (the bedroom intruder song guy) defending Mr. Cathy’s right to free speech and the ‘goodness of [Chick Fil A’s] meals’. The chicken sandwich has taken on symbolic meaning that is only surprising to those unfamiliar with the absurdity…

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Gf4jN1xoSo] It is widely believed that the Religious Right traces its political origins to Roe v. Wade, suggesting that outrage over abortion led the often apolitical evangelical movement to become stalwart supporters of conservative causes and Republican candidates. In the attached video Dr. Randal Balmer of Emory University challenges this theory, tracing the evangelical movement’s shift to the political right, not to the landmark Roe v. Wade decision but to a lesser known case – Green v. Connaly. The 1972 Green v. Connaly case didn’t attack scripture or take a stance on a contentious social issue like gay marriage or evolution, but instead challenged the tax exempt status of religious institutions that practiced racial discrimination. Green v. Connaly produced a ruling that ‘any institution that practiced segregation was not, by definition, a charitable institution and, therefore, no longer qualified for tax-exempt standing’, which led to the revocation of Bob Jones…