In the wake of the tragic shootings in Florida two weeks ago, and in an attempt to bring the “light” of God back into schools, Florida's House of Representatives passed a bill that would require every public school in the state to post the state’s – and the country’s – motto of “In God We Trust” in a conspicuous place.According to the Tampa Bay Times, a bill requiring the posting of the motto was introduced by Jacksonville Democrat Kim Daniels and passed the House last week by a landslide vote of 97-10.
Daniels, who runs her own ministry, said God “is not a Republican or a Democrat. He is not black or white. He is the light, and our schools need light in them like never before."
In addressing the recent school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida that left 17 dead and more than a dozen injured, she admitted that the state definitely has “gun issues,” but “the real thing that needs to be addressed are issues of the heart.”
With things getting so bad in the country, she hopes it will make people realize that the problems we face are much bigger than politics.
"We cannot put God in a closet when the issues we face are bigger than us," she said.
When the bill passed, it was greeted with a standing ovation.
But not everyone is clapping. The bill is being opposed by the usual parties, such as the Freedom from Religion Foundation who is actively lobbying lawmakers to defeat the bill.
“Even though the phrase is, disgracefully, both the national motto and the Florida state motto, there is no question of this bill’s religious intent,” the group said in a statement. “The bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Kimberly Daniels, is a preacher with a history of using her public office to promote her personal religion.”
They go on to complain that the bill “reflects the views of many lawmakers that their god will solve problems.”
They cited comments made by another Florida lawmaker, Rep. Larry Lee, who said placing the plagues in schools was important because young people no longer “value or respect life” and “we look at what’s happening with a lot of our young people today, we’re taking God out of everything.”
Their objections are definitely out of the mainstream, however, with recent polls showing a solid majority of Americans in favor not only of putting God back in schools, but in bringing prayer back into schools.
In an interview with LifeSiteNews, Father Michael Orsi, a Naples, Florida-based Catholic priest and host of Action for Life TV, applauded the passage of the bill.
“It’s quite obvious [that] ever since God has been thrown out of schools, there has been a deterioration in society,” he said.
Because the public school system is largely run by a “secularized liberal cabal,” bringing God back into schools is “the beginning of a solution to cast evil out,” he continued.
If the bill makes it through the Florida Senate, Governor Rick Scott is expected to sign it.
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