Thursday, December 20, 2012
First it was a Nativity scene at the municipal building that was a problem...now it looks like a huge lighted menorah may be an issue as well.
The addition of secular holiday decorations and a 'Happy Kwanzaa' sign this holiday season might've made the constitutionality of the Woodbridge Nativity scene on Town Hall property a little more within the realm of law. There may still be a problem, though, around the other side of the building: the placement of a huge Menorah at the entrance to the Municipal Building. That may be a violation of the separation of church and state, said Patrick Elliott, an attorney with the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) who has taken issue before with the township's use of religious displays on public property. The menorah, a symbol of Hanukkah and Judaism's 'Holiday of Lights', may not be the issue, Elliott said, as much as the context in …
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Woodbridge Township Municipal Offices
1 Main St, Woodbridge, NJ
/articles/menorah-placement-at-town-hall-may-be-unconstitutional-says-atheist-group
750707
/locations/8425667
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Facebook users are, on the whole, overjoyed that the Nativity scene is up this year on township property.
The Nativity scene, a staple of holiday decorating in Woodbridge, was late arriving on town hall property this year. Letters written by the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) to Mayor John McCormac last year objected to the display. FFRF is an atheist activist group from Wisconsin that operates nationwide on situations they view as being unconstitutional - such as erecting Nativity scenes on public property. A nativity by itself on town hall property is "an unconstitutional endorsement of religion," said Patrick Elliott, an FFRF attorney. When the story that the Nativity was missing was posted on Woodbridge Patch's Facebook page early Monday morning, it drew a lot of comments. "One person complained and we cave..........very sad, …
40.555569
-74.275928
Woodbridge Township Municipal Offices
1 Main St, Woodbridge, NJ
/articles/woodbridge-residents-thrilled-nativity-scene-is-on-display
750707
/locations/8370768
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
But the legal wrangling over a religious display on public property might not be over yet.
Just when you might've thought all was lost, Woodbridge's traditional Nativity display made its way back onto Town Hall property late Monday afternoon. It was in its normal place on the busy corner of Main Street and Rahway Avenue. But this year, the creche display had some company. A lit up Santa Claus, a Christmas tree of lights, and several reindeer accompanied the display on one side, while a big green "Happy Kwanzaa" sign decorated the other. That was the township administration's nod to a protest lodged last year by the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF), a national atheist education and lobbying group in Wisconsin, about the display of a religious display on public property. The sudden addition of secular holiday decoration …
40.555569
-74.275928
Woodbridge Township Municipal Offices
1 Main St, Woodbridge, NJ
/articles/nativity-scene-is-back-this-year-at-town-hall
750707
/locations/8359115
Monday, December 10, 2012
The traditional Nativity scene is absent from Woodbridge Town Hall, a year after a complaint from an atheist legal organization was lodged.
There's a Christmas wreath over the main doors to the Woodbridge Municipal Building, and inside, a Christmas tree sparkles with holiday lights. It's Christmas around Woodbridge, but one display that has traditionally been part of the decoration seems to be missing. That's the Nativity Scene, a decades-old plywood set of cutouts constructed by employees of the township's Public Works Department, and usually placed in front of town hall as part of its seasonal decorating. Last year, the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FRFF) got wind of the religious display on township property and sent a letter to municipal officials, saying that the nativity was a violation of the separation of church and state. The display, usually set…
40.555569
-74.275928
Woodbridge Township Municipal Offices
1 Main St, Woodbridge, NJ
/articles/no-christmas-nativity-display-on-township-property-this-year
750707
/locations/8349178
Friday, December 30, 2011
The Freedom From Religion Foundation, which made headlines in Pitman, NJ over a Christian banner, wants a Nativity scene outside Woodbridge's Municipal Building removed because they say it violates separation of church and state.
A Wisconsin organization devoted to keeping church and state separate is demanding that Woodbridge remove a traditional Nativity scene from township property. The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) sent a letter to Mayor John McCormac and members of the town council, requesting that they "permanently remove a religious display from township property." The Nativity scene was constructed of plywood and painted by members of the township's Public Works Dept. years ago, and has been traditionally placed in front of the Municipal Building when other seasonal decorations are put up along Main Street. The display is located at the front of the building, across from the War Memorial Monument, on the corner of Main Street and Rahway Avenue. …
40.555569
-74.275928
Woodbridge Township Municipal Offices
1 Main St, Woodbridge, NJ
/articles/atheist-group-wants-nativity-scene-removed-from-town-hall-property
750707
/locations/6096727
John Porcellana
8:13 pm on Thursday, December 20, 2012
Oh, come on Chris, lighten up for Pete's sake. This is all about a bunch of Wisconsin momos sticking their Godless noses where they don't belong and are NOT WANTED! more ›