The laws of our country were established by courageous men; men who used Christian principles as the basis of the creation of our laws and government.

They were also very wise in establishing a clear separation between church and state.

Over the years, the public schools allowed - and in some cases wrongly, we would suggest - mandated that children learn Christian principles in schools.

The mandating of this type of education, particularly in parts of the South, allowed a minority of people to rise up and push the old pendulum from one side to the other extreme side without allowing it to stop in the middle.

As a result, any mention of Christ or God in our school systems today brings a loud outcry of protest from a vocal minority that has forced this exclusion to happen.

Last week, a group came before the Newton County Board of Education to present a program that has worked for years in nearby Walton County. This program would allow students in the public school system the ability to choose to participate in an off-campus, privately funded, parental consent program that would teach Christian values.

This program would cost the local school system nothing and all classes taught would be worth credits and fully sanctioned by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

This group appeared in front of the board to ask for permission to put together a plan that will allow them to move forward with the concept, begin fundraising and raise community awareness.

A no-brainer request right? Wrong.

Board Chairman Eddie Johnson went absolutely and rudely ballistic during his opposition to this proposal, in spite of the fact that every issue he made was proven to be baseless in advance.

We believe the board did the right thing in voting 4-1 to allow the group pushing to create a Christian Learning Center to continue to put this project together for later board scrutiny.

Chairman Johnson for sure had a right to object, but his leadership style in doing so, left much to be desired.