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Though atheists had previously called on Jesus to come down from a Montana mountain<\/a> ski slope, a Federal district court has said he can stay.<\/p>\n As previously discussed, the Freedom From Religion Foundation had sued because the US Forest Service renewed a special use permit that has allowed the statue to stand for more than 50 years.\u00a0 The Knights of Columbus put it up in 1954 in honor of Soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division who saw similar monuments in Italy during the second World War.<\/p>\n As noted at the Religion Clause<\/a>, the court did say<\/a> the monument has become “more of a historical landmark and a curiosity” than a religious item.\u00a0 As such,\u00a0it did not offend the US Constitution.<\/p>\n Don Byrd of the secularist Baptist Joint Committee said this was a bad outcome<\/a> because it was actually offensive to religion, but Byrd accurately conveys the wholly incorrect reasoning of those who oppose such memorials and displays when he says:<\/p>\n The idea is disturbing that a monument to Christ can lose its religious significance…<\/p><\/blockquote>\n First, Byrd’s assertion is asinine, as Judge Dana Christensen explicitly said the monument was “unquestionably” religious<\/a>.\u00a0 Second, it wasn’t<\/em> “a monument to Christ.”\u00a0 It was a monument to the 10th Mountain Division.\u00a0 It was a reflection of their experiences, as they<\/em> indicated.<\/p>\n Just as a cross isn’t always a Christian crucifix, sometimes a memorial can just be a memorial.\u00a0 Critics like the FFRF and others are blinded by their obsession to have religious symbols removed from the public square — even when they are there for non-religious reasons.<\/p>\n