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Daley Center Plaza--Site of Life-Sized Nativity Scene For Another Christmas Season

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS -- RFFM NEWS

Thanksgiving traditionally marks the beginning of the Christmas season.  However, with the assault on religious liberty gaining momentum in America, it is hard to find symbols in the public square which signify the true meaning of Christmas.

But there are those who are not ashamed to acknowledge their faith and what the season truly represents to many Americans.  On November 24th, a group of Chicagoland residents erected a Nativity Scene in the Richard J. Daley Plaza at Dearborn and Washington Streets in downtown Chicago.  A group of tradesmen who call themselves the "God Squad" volunteered their time, skills and effort to construct a life-sized manger display to celebrate the birth of Christ.

The "God Squad" volunteers consist of Chicago area trade union members and represent the gamut of Christian denominations.  After construction of the display was completed, a procession was held, culminating in the placing of a figure in the crèche representing baby Jesus.

The manger scene had stood inside Chicago's City Hall since the early years of the Richard J. Daley administration.  However, after Daley's death, the Nativity Scene was moved to its current location because critics asserted the manger display crossed the Constitutional boundaries of church and state. 

Although the Nativity scene was moved to the Daley Center Plaza and is supported solely by private donations, it took a court ruling to allow the annual display to remain at its current location.  In 1989, Judge James B. Parsons ruled the manger scene did not violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment, thereby dismissing a lawsuit filed by the American Jewish Congress, the ACLU and Atheists of America.

"Unfortunately, in the past, the Nativity Scene received little attention from the press," said Jim Finnegan who along with Terry Hodges are co-chairmen of the Nativity Scene Committee.  "Previously, the only time we received media publicity was when our baby Jesus statue was stolen.  I think it's important that people can come and see something which represents what Christmas is really all about.  And with the effort of so many wonderful volunteers, this beautiful Nativity Scene is made possible."

After its theft, the baby Jesus statue was eventually recovered from a locker in Chicago's Union Station.

Following the construction of the manger scene last Saturday morning, a brief re-dedication ceremony took place.  A Bell Choir from Mundelein's Santa Maria del Popolo Church performed at the event, which featured a procession of children from throughout Chicagoland.

The Nativity display will stand until December 29th.

To read a complete history of the Nativity Scene in Chicago go to: http://rffm.typepad.com/republicans_for_fair_medi/2007/11/a-christmas-tra.html

Captions for photographs:

Top: Daley Center Nativity Scene;  Middle: God Squad Volunteers;  Bottom: Maeve O'Malley carries Christ Child figurine

Note: Click on photos to enlarge.

Why I No Longer See Dead People At Wrigley Field by Dan Gura

Within hours of the Cubs annual autumn meltdown, something unique and unprecedented occurred at Wrigley Field.  The mocking silence of the billy goat's ghost was replaced by the roar and rumble of cats--bulldozers that is--tearing asunder the sacred turf to install a new drainage system.

An estimated 7,500 tons of dirt will be removed and shipped to "two dumps in DuPage County."  Dump...as in garbage dump?  Intrigued, I spent several hours trying to find out exactly where the dirt is being dumped without success.  Russ Carlton in the Cubs Public Relations office handed me off to Katelyn Thrall, Media Services Coordinator, who wouldn't answer specific questions, such as "Will the dirt be used to cover a sanitary landfill?"  Instead she e-mailed me a "Wrigley Field Renovation Fact Sheet" with a note, "Here is all the information I have at the time."  In my years as a columnist I've learned that anytime an organization big enough to have a Media Services Coordinator won't answer simple, direct questions you should always suspect the worst.  So, I'm betting on garbage dump, where a three to six inch layer of dirt must be applied at the end of each day to keep the smell (methane) down and vermin (rats) from eating organic (rotting food) waste.

That sure doesn't sound like a very glamorous ending for the hallowed mud that Gayle Sayers slugged through to score six touchdowns against the San Francisco 49ers on December 12, 1965.  That game consecrated Wrigley Field's dirt in the heart and soul of every Bears fan.

But it gets worse.  The Chicago Tribune reported that bulldozers savaging the former gridiron unearthed the concrete goal post supports from the south end zone--the very same ones which da Bears used when they beat the New York Giants 14-10 in the 1963 NFL Championship game.  And what was the final disposition of these sacred relics?  Will they be enshrined with reverence in Canton, Ohio at the Pro Football Hall of Fame?   Nope.  "They told me to toss them out," Roger Bossard, who is overseeing the project, said.       

Could the Cubs possibly do anything else to guarantee extending their 100 year curse?

Well, I think they actually found a way to damn the team for all eternity.  What most baseball fans don't realize is there were more than just the lovable losers on the field.  There were the ashes of hundreds, maybe even thousands, of their most loyal fans grinding their way into the fabric of the Cubs uniforms every time a player kicked up a cloud of dust.  Yep, every time Alfonsio Soraino got up and dusted himself off after making a diving catch on the warning track, he was knocking more than mere top soil off his uniform--he was scattering the earthly remains of someone's Uncle Louie and Aunt Mabel to the wind and, if it was blowing just right, into some unfortunate fan's beer.

I'm serious.  For years, the Cubs have permitted families and friends to scatter the ashes of cremated loved ones on the field.  How do I know this for a fact?  When my in-laws were called home to the Lord, their bodies were cremated and their ashes returned to us in simple metal containers. After a suitable mourning period, we were left with the question of what should we do with these last vestiges of their bodies?

Acting on a hunch, I contacted the Cubs and learned that they permitted the scattering of ashes on the outfield warning track.  I was told it was so popular they had to lay down rules.  The ceremony had to be dignified and respectful to both the deceased and the Friendly Confines.  Absolutely no musical accompaniments, other than taps for servicemen, no videotaping, and no alcohol.  And the scattering could only take place on days when the Cubs were on the road.  This seemed like the perfect solution to our dilemma.  Fred and Dot bled Cubby blue.  They watched every game with a fervor unmatched this side of a revival tent.

Thankfully, we opted not to go with the Wrigley Field option, lest they now be residing in a DuPage County dump.

Incredibly, I have not heard a single peep of protest over this desecration of a bona-fide graveyard.  Whilst the media focuses their attention on the Federal Aviation Association's plans to move with respect and dignity the remains of 1,300 now interned at St. Johannes Cemetery--so they can expand O'Hare Field--the final essence of an unknown number of Cubs fans have been callously and capriciously thrown out like mere dirt.  I did some checking and found the weight of cremated remains ranges between 4 to 8 pounds.  Using six pounds as an average and one hundred scatterings a year for two decades that would mean 1,200 pounds of Cub fans remains have been defiled.  Among this truckload of earthly remains are the ashes of legendary first baseman Charlie Grimm (photo) and singer/composer Steve Goodman who wrote the anthem "Go Cubs Go" and, rather appropriately it seems, "A Dying Cubs Fan's Last Request" (poem below).

And what of the Catholics whose ashes were scattered there to await Christ's triumphant return?  The revised funeral rites, Order of Christian Funerals, in use since 1989, specify the cremated remains "should be treated with the same respect we give to the body of the deceased." Somehow being dumped in a DuPage County dump just doesn't seem very dignified.

Next season marks 100 years since the Cubs have won the World Series.  That's a record of failure unmatched by any team, in any sport, anywhere in the world.  Ever.  So whether the Cubs wait until September to collapse, or take back their rightful place as the doormat of the National League on opening day, remember it's neither Bartman nor a billy goat that has cursed them for all eternity, only a lack of respect for their fans--living and dead. 

A Dying Cubs Fan's Last Request

Build a big fire on home plate out of your Louisville Sluggers baseball bats,
And toss my coffin in
Let my ashes blow in a beautiful snow
From the prevailing 30 mile an hour southwest wind
When my last remains go flying over the left-field wall
Will bid the bleacher bums adieu
And I will come to my final resting place, out on Waveland Avenue

Steve Goodman 1983 (awaiting the Rapture in a DuPage County dump)

Correction to: Did O'Reilly force IL Gov's hand in signing Jessica's Law?

RFFM.org Correction: 

In a news article titled "Did O'Reilly force Illinois Governor's hand in signing of Jessica's Law?" (http://rffm.typepad.com/republicans_for_fair_medi/2007/10/rffmorg-news-ex.html) RFFM.org inaccurately reported Jessica's Law would not have become law if Governor Rod Blagojevich had failed to sign the bill before 60 days.  In reality, the Illinois Constitution provides that a bill failed to be signed by a Governor within 60 days after it comes to his desk automatically becomes law if he does not act on said legislation.

The Illinois Constitution states:

ARTICLE IV (THE LEGISLATURE)
 
SECTION 9. VETO PROCEDURE

    (a)  Every bill passed by the General Assembly shall be presented to the Governor within 30 calendar days after its passage. The foregoing requirement shall be judicially enforceable. If the Governor approves the bill, he shall sign it and it shall become law.

    (b)  If the Governor does not approve the bill, he shall veto it by returning it with his objections to the house in which it originated. Any bill not so returned by the Governor within 60 calendar days after it is presented to him shall become law. If recess or adjournment of the General Assembly prevents the return of a bill, the bill and the Governor's objections shall be filed with the Secretary of State within such 60 calendar days. The Secretary of State shall return the bill and objections to the originating house promptly upon the next meeting of the same General Assembly at which the bill can be considered.

    (c)  The house to which a bill is returned shall immediately enter the Governor's objections upon its journal.  If within 15 calendar days after such entry that house by a record vote of three-fifths of the members elected passes the bill, it shall be delivered immediately to the second house.  If within 15 calendar days after such delivery the second house by a record vote of three-fifths of the members elected passes the bill, it shall become law.

    (d)  The Governor may reduce or veto any item of appropriations in a bill presented to him. Portions of a bill not reduced or vetoed shall become law. An item vetoed shall be returned to the house in which it originated and may become law in the same manner as a vetoed bill. An item reduced in amount shall be returned to the house in which it originated and may be restored to its original amount in the same manner as a vetoed bill except that the required record vote shall be a majority of the members elected to each house. If a reduced item is not so restored, it shall become law in the reduced amount.

    (e)  The Governor may return a bill together with specific recommendations for change to the house in which it originated. The bill shall be considered in the same manner as a vetoed bill but the specific recommendations may be accepted by a record vote of a majority of the members elected to each house. Such bill shall be presented again to the Governor and if he certifies that such acceptance conforms to his specific recommendations, the bill shall become law. If he does not so certify, he shall return it as a vetoed bill to the house in which it originated.

RFFM.org stands by the original premise of the story which questions why Governor Blagojevich nearly ran out the clock on Jessica's law and signed the bill just days after inquiries from producers for Bill O'Reilly (The O'Reilly Factor--FOX News).  RFFM.org apologizes for the technical error regarding the edicts within the Illinois State Constitution. -- DTZ

RFFM.org News EXCLUSIVE: Did O'Reilly force IL Gov's hand in signing of Jessica's Law?

The following story has been corrected because of technical inaccuracies in the original version regarding the Illinois Constitution and its application to bills passed by both Houses of the state General Assembly.

Springfield, Illinois -- RFFM.org has learned producers for Bill O'Reilly [The O'Reilly Factor, FOX News] recently contacted the office of state senator Bill Brady (R-Bloomington) regarding the status of Jessica's Law in Illinois.  Producers of the highly rated cable news program were inquiring as to why Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich had not yet signed the legislation into law.  The deadline for the Governor's signature on the bill was fast approaching and some critics were beginning to speculate whether Blagojevich was going to let the highly popular bill, designed to identify and monitor sexual predators of children, expire.  [Photo Bill O'Reilly]

Once it reaches his desk, after a bill is passed by both Houses of the Illinois General Assembly, the Governor has 60 days to either sign the legislation into law, veto the bill, simply allow the bill to expire or the law would go into effect automatically after the 60 day period.  The legislation, SB1397, puts additional restrictions on child sex offenders and producers of methamphetamine.  In addition, the bill will further restrict child sex offenders and methamphetamine producers.  It also increases punishments for sex offenders and establishes a meth ingredient sales tracking pilot program in a selected county. [Photo Gov. Blagojevich]

Concern was raised when the date for the signing of Jessica's Law was quickly approaching the deadline for the Governor's signature.  The Illinois General Assembly voted passage of the law on July 11, 2007.  The legislation was on Governor Rod Blagojevich's desk on August 9th, awaiting his signature.  But the bill was not signed by Blagojevich until October 5th.

Senator Brady, who was one of the major sponsors of Jessica's Law in Illinois, was contacted by producers for The O'Reilly Factor only days before Blagojevich finally signed the bill.  The law is named after Jessica Lunsford, a nine year old Florida girl who was kidnapped, raped and buried alive.  Jessica's killer, John Evander Couey, now sits on Florida's death row.  O'Reilly says a version of Jessica's Law has been enacted in over 40 states.  The FOX News commentator has made the passage of this bill across America a personal mission and many believe pressure from O'Reilly has led to the successful passage of Jessica's Law in more than a few states. [Photo Jessica Lunsford]

RFFM.org learned producers for Bill O'Reilly also contacted Blagojevich's office shortly before he signed the legislation into law.  The bill will go into effect in January of 2008, according to a press release issued by Senator Brady.

"I don't know whether inquiries from Bill O'Reilly had any effect on the Governor's signing of Jessica's Law," said an Illinois law maker.  "I know there were special interests group who did not care for the bill and those same special interests groups have a substantial influence on the Democratic Party.  But the law has been signed and no matter how we reached the goal or what it took to get there doesn't matter to me, although some voters might see it a different way."

According to O'Reilly, only seven states are now lacking legislation modeled after Jessica's Law.  After his daughter's death, Jessica's father, Mark Lunsford, has dedicated his life to the protection of children from child predators.  He is seen by many as a catalyst for numerous pieces of legislation designed to identify and track individuals who prey on children.

Copyright 2007 RFFM.org