<p>My point is this: Why is it that the 10 commandments were first displayed in the court room? No doubt because at that time they were generally agreed-upon as being importnat, as constituting a summary of our laws, and thus relevant to the activities in the court room. The rules came from the Bible and not from the writings of Mohammed or Buddha, etc. because of the European social and religious composition of our country at the time. In the context of wall decorations in an old courtroom building, the words are not religious. They are historical. Separation of church and state would be an issue if the judge were to preach to the defendant about his sin before God in breaking the commandments and demand that he repent and follow Jesus. I wouldn’t, however, be in favor of hanging a plaque with the 10 commandments in a brand new courtroom we build in 2007.</p>