On May 16, over 100 people rallied in Hanover, Pennsylvania’s Wirt Park to save a park monument of the Ten Commandments. The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP) participated in the rally, providing two speakers and its Holy Choirs of Angels Corps band which enlivened the event with patriotic music.
Controversy over the monument began when Americans United for the Separation of Church and State sent a letter threatening to sue the borough of Hanover if the monument were not removed. The overwhelming majority of Hanover citizens want the monument to stay put. They have collected funds to defend the monument and raised their voices at city hearings. The local Sons and Daughters of Liberty organized the rally as one more sign of support.
Master of Ceremonies, A.J. Nolte, did a splendid job explaining how each of the Ten Commandments is a pillar upon which the laws of America are built. Thus, he established that even if America were a thoroughly secular state, it should promote the Ten Commandments.
TFP Speaker Michael Drake also addressed the crowd, demonstrating the frequency with which religious belief is manifested on public property and asking the subsequent question: “A handful of radical atheists are trying to eliminate every manifestation of religious belief on public property, but how far will it go?”
He continued: “Think about how many cases we have of religious belief being manifested on public property. Right now I am giving you my religious beliefs and I am on public property. The pro-life bumper sticker that I have on my car is a religious conviction and I drive on public property. In court I swear on a Bible, containing the words on this monument, and that is a public manifestation of belief…so if we do not resist this now, we are looking at an atheistic tyranny.”
TFP America Needs Fatima Campaign director Robert Ritchie also spoke. He made a link between the Ten Commandments and Hanover, whose city motto is “Tradition on the move.”
“Tradition on the move is intimately linked to the Ten Commandments,” Mr. Ritchie said. “When we talk about Tradition, we mean all the best things from our past that are being transmitted to the next generation. And the Ten Commandments are the moral foundation of that tradition.”
Many local Hanover residents stood up to voice their opinions as well. Towards the end of the event, recording artist Kent Courtney played a guitar and sang patriotic hymns. He ended his performance by holding his rosary aloft and urging its recital.
At the end of the rally, everyone joined in singing America the Beautiful and the National Anthem, with musical accompaniment of the Holy Choirs of Angels Corps band.
Participation in such events is very important. Edmund Burke once said, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” In Hanover, Penn., more than one hundred local activists joined together to make sure that does not happen.