Wednesday, September 07, 2011

9/11 Cross Proposed as National Monument

While atheists sue to not even allow cross-shaped ruins of steel girders to stand at Ground Zero for any purpose, a congressman plans to introduce legislation to enshrine the symbol as an official national monument.
“This is a country that was founded on a belief in God, period. We are a country that was based on Judeo-Christian beliefs.”
-- Congressman Michael Grimm, Bay Ridge, NY
For background, read Atheists Sue to Remove Christ from 9/11 Memorial and also read Clergy & Prayer Banned From 9/11 Tenth Anniversary Memorial



-- From "S.I. Congressman Wants WTC Steel Cross To Be National Monument" by The Associated Press 9/6/11

A Staten Island congressman . . . Rep. Michael Grimm said he was pushing for protective status for the 20-foot steel cross that was found amid the ruins of the World Trade Center site.

“The focus and goal of my legislation will be to make the cross a national monument. Therefore, once and for all, putting an end to whether the cross should be part of 9/11, whether it shouldn’t,” Grimm told 1010 WINS.

The congressman from New York’s 13th congressional district, said that the iron beams need to be memorialized because they “were a symbol of hope and comfort for so many enduring such a horrific time in our history.”

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "Grimm: Make ‘9-11 cross’ a national monument" by Dan MacLeod, The Brooklyn Paper 9/7/11

The freshman congressman says that only federal protection [will] thwart a lawsuit from an atheist group that claims that displaying the Christian icon in a federally funded museum violates the First Amendment’s block on government-sponsored religion.

Grimm countered that in the context of the 9-11 attacks, the cross is not a religious icon, but rather a symbol of “hope and freedom at a time when New Yorkers were coping with loss and destruction in the aftermath of the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil.”

Grimm pointed out that a Star of David cut from steel from one of the buildings, and a Bible fused to a piece of Trade Center steel would also be included in the museum’s display . . .

There are no overtly religious symbols currently protected, though the Washington Monument has religious inscriptions in the stairway and a plaque bearing the words “Praise be to God” on its cap. And some nationally recognized monument sites have religious histories for American Indians or for Spanish missionaries.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "NY Lawmaker Proposes for 9/11 Ground Zero Cross to Become National Monument" by Nicola Menzie, Christian Post Contributor 9/6/11

With the legislation titled the "9/11 Memorial Cross National Monument Establishment Act of 2011," Rep. Michael G. Grimm hopes to convince his fellow legislators to approve the bill.

“I find it reprehensible that this [atheist] group would disgrace the beliefs of millions of people in an effort to garner a little media attention for their cause," the Republican lawmaker said.

[Jane Everhart, director of communications for New York City Atheists, laughed saying] "We think of this [steel remnant] as a big piece of junk."

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

From "SI GOPer pans Bam's Sept. 11 script" by S.A. Miller, New York Post Correspondent 9/2/11

"How we choose to remember and reflect on that day is a deeply personal decision and not one that should be dictated by the White House," fumed Rep. Mike Grimm (R-SI). "For New Yorkers, 9/11 was a devastating and life-changing event."

The White House circulated the guidelines
to government officials in the United States and at American embassies and consulates in foreign countries, trying to stage 9/11 observances so they have the appropriate tone for both American and foreign audiences.

The one-page document, which was produced after weeks of debate inside the White House, directs officials to honor both the American lives lost on 9/11 and the victims of subsequent terrorist attacks around the world.

To read the entire article above, CLICK HERE.

Also read Obama Honors 9/11 Muslim Heroes at White House