I was invited to a party this weekend. Although I couldn't go, it was nice to get the invitation. It helped me keep my 2002 New Year's resolution to have a year of invitations. Let's face it. Getting invited sure beats not getting invited to things.
Just ask God. Better yet, ask Satan.
How would you feel if you had, since the 1950s, been invited to dinner and then suddenly, someone says, "Sorry. You're not invited anymore."
Now you might understand God's issue.
Fox News reported late last week that the Virginia Military Institute, which had been praying before meals for approximately 40 years, is being ordered to discontinue the reading of a pre-meal non-denominational prayer.
The American Civil Liberties Union got involved when two cadets complained about the prayers.
God is having a tough time of it. Legal battles involving the separation of church and state abound.
The message seems fairly clear. You can pray all you want in churches and if no one complains, you can probably pray in non-church settings.
If someone complains about public prayer or if you want to pray in a non-church setting, you can still pray — but for God's sake, don't do it aloud.
The news report didn't explain what caused the students to complain.
Perhaps the cadets are not Christian and don't pray. Perhaps they don't want to conform to a prayer they don't feel is representative of how they would normally pray.
Regardless of the reason, other cadets don't seem to be too happy. The Fox News report stated that "several angry cadets had confronted him [one of the cadets who filed the complaint] on campus since he brought the lawsuit."
I don't know if I'd want to be those cadets who complained. Think about it: They're responsible for taking God off of a 40-year-long invitation list.
With all of the battles between church and state, I'm sure that God has grown somewhat accustomed to getting the shaft.
Interestingly, God now has something in common with Satan, thanks to a small town in Florida.
Fox News reported that the mayor of Inglis, Fla. is in some hot water with the American Civil Liberties Union for posting anti-Satan proclamations on four posts at the town's entrance.
Carolyn Risher, who has been mayor of the town for nine years, spent Halloween night penning the proclamation. Recorded on town stationary and signed by the mayor and the town clerk, the declaration bans Satan from the town of 1,400 people. The decree was even affixed with the town seal.
The town resident who began to petition to have the mayor removed from office over the declaration has since stopped. She told Fox News that "she and her family are suffering for it."
I don't know if I'd want to be the town resident who started the petition to remove the mayor. Think about it: The resident is against an official ban on Satan.
So, to recap: God is being asked to legally disappear from a Military Institute in Virginia, and Satan is officially banned from a small town in Florida.
I grew up believing that God and Satan were opposites.
God was the almighty and responsible for everything that was good. In fact, the God I grew up with was an all-loving, all-forgiving entity that only wanted the best for humans.
Satan, on the other hand, was evil. Satan was responsible for the forces in the world that caused people to want to turn away from goodness. I never looked for anything they had in common.
Thanks to cadets in Virginia and a mayor in Florida, I have now realized that even polar opposites have things to share.
Unfortunately, 2002 is not proving to be a year of invitations.
Rosie McSweeney is social work graduate
student. Reach her at rosie.m@asu.edu
