JENISON, Mich. – Christians in Michigan are urging officials in Ottawa County to restore a sign citing Scripture to a public park after it was removed following a complaint from a local resident. The sign at issue quotes from Psalm 19:1, which reads, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.”It was erected at Hager Park in Jenison in the late 60’s or early 70’s by the county road commission. It has remained at the site for at least 40 years. However, recently an unidentified resident complained to officials about the sign, asserting that it was wrongful to promote Christianity with public resources. John Scholtz, Ottawa County Parks and Recreation director, told MLive that after consulting with the board about the matter, he had the sign removed. “We add and remove signs, buildings and structures from the parks on a routine basis,” Scholtz stated. “In this case, I consulted the parks commission and then decided to have the sign removed in order to reduce potential conflicts in the park.” He said that current park policy prohibits signs that do not serve informational purposes. But a number of Christians throughout the area are now calling upon the Ottowa County Board of Commissioners to the restore the sign to its place. Ryan Kooienga, senior pastor at Harvest Baptist Church in Hudsonville, spoke before the commission during a meeting on Tuesday. “If we don’t take a stand now, when will we?” he asked.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Dec 2014 16:32:40 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015