Former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore has signaled his support for a new law in Louisiana that requires the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom in the state.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, signed the legislation into law on Wednesday.
“It’s a wonderful thing what the governor is doing,” Moore said in an interview with AL.com, adding that that he is all but certain the new rule will survive legal challenges.
“I think it will be differently perceived in this (U.S. Supreme) Court. I’m confident it will go through, and I willfully support the governor and will help him in any way I can.”
The former candidate for the U.S. Senate then stressed the need to place faith over the desire for power, especially in modern society.
“It’s historical and something our country is founded upon, and we sorely need that morality back. There is a lot of talk in politics right now that we’re so divided in our country. But until we go back to some standard of right and wrong, it’s all going to be about power in the country. It shouldn’t be. Power will not solve our problems. God will.”
He also is of the opinion that the U.S. Supreme Court has previously ruled incorrectly on the matter, specifically in a case from over forty years ago in 1980.
“The courts have confused that over religion,” Moore said. “God was not religion. The difference between religion and morality are the duties we owe to God.”
“If you plug that into the First Amendment, it’s about how you worship God and not that you couldn’t recognize God.”
In 2001, Moore installed a 5,280-pound monument in the Alabama Supreme Court building bearing the Ten Commandments. The move was met with lawsuits and federal court orders demanding its removal. Moore refused and was removed from the bench in 2003.
Similar legislation requiring the Commandments be displayed in classrooms has been proposed in Texas, Oklahoma, and Utah. Multiple civil liberties groups have announced legal challenges to the law.
Austen Shipley is staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @ShipleyAusten
