Ten Commandments Come to Florida
by AFA Journal
July 5, 2005
(AgapePress) - Despite the split ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court handed down in late June concerning the public display of the Ten Commandments, it is comforting to know that churches can continue to promote the foundational laws of the Christian faith.First Presbyterian Church (Associate Reformed Presbyterian) in Lake Placid, Florida, is seizing such an opportunity as evident from the seven-foot, three-and-one-half-ton granite monument that was recently erected in its front courtyard at the top of a cross-shaped walkway. The monument was designed by Dick Schild, a church elder, and sculpted by Michael Baston of Baston Granite Interiors in Elberton, Georgia. The monument took 10 months to complete and required Schild to make 10 trips to Georgia where he would advise the sculptor and make changes.
"I still believe everyone should be able to read them [the Ten Commandments], whether they are believers or not," Schild told the Highlands Today. "So I started to design a Commandment monument that could be placed in public places, where it could be seen by pedestrians."
The monument depicts two large tablets extending from a large rock split by lightning to indicate the Ten Commandments had been attacked but survived -- a personal allusion to the removal of the Ten Commandments from the Montgomery, Alabama, courthouse in 2004.
"Chances are that more kids will get to see the Commandments now, anyway," Schild added.
"Every day, people stop to look at the monument and often take pictures," wrote Ray Cameron, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, in a letter to the American Family Association. "We anticipate it becoming a stop on the mural tours of our town as well."
Work is being done to create a simplified version that is more affordable and easier to ship to the public. Requests for more information or design inquiries can be directed to Dick Schild, 620 Lake June Road, Lake Placid, FL 33852.
