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Debate will examine church, state in law

By Matthew Shepherd
The Daily Cougar

The classic American discussion over the separation of church and state will once again make its way into the limelight Wednesday for the fourth annual Andrews Kurth Debate, "Considering God in Government."

UH law professor Johnny Buckles will serve as moderator between Kevin J. Hasson, president of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, and the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Lynn, a minister in the United Church of Christ, has a law degree from Georgetown University and a degree from the Boston University School of Theology. 

Hasson, who holds law and theology degrees from the University of Notre Dame, was attorney-adviser for the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel. There, he advised the Reagan administration on issues of church and state.

The debate will include predetermined and impromptu questions on a range of topics, from the distinction between private expression and public endorsement of religion to the pending Supreme Court case dealing with references to God in the Pledge of Allegiance.

"In general, the focus will be on where the law draws the line between what is permissible and what is not," Buckles said.

The debate, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 1 p.m. Wednesday in the Law Center's Krost Hall auditorium.
 

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