Thousands ask Postal Service for 10 Commandments stamp

Thousands ask Postal Service for 10 Commandments stamp


Washington DC, May 30, 2007 / 11:48 am (CNA).- At a news conference today at the National Press Club, a coalition of groups headed by the Washington, DC based Faith and Action will publicly ask Postmaster General John Potter to issue an official Ten Commandments U.S. Postage Stamp.

Representatives of Faith and Action, the Christian Defense Coalition and others will unveil tens of thousands of petitions signed by citizens in all 50 states and several territories asking for the stamp, said the Christian Newswire.

U.S. Postal Service regulations do not require petitions or any number of requests before issuing a stamp. One citizen may request a particular stamp theme, but it must meet certain guidelines in its design and content.

Faith and Action was previously denied its request for a Ten Commandments stamp after the advisory commission responsible for evaluating stamp proposals deemed its content "religious." Yet, shortly after the denial, the Postal Service issued two stamps honoring Islamic religious feasts.

Rev. Rob Schenck, president of Faith and Action and chairman of the committee on church and society for the Evangelical Church Alliance said:

"A Ten Commandments postage stamp is long over due. We have Elvis, Marilyn Monroe and even Star Wars stamps. The Ten Commandments are the most universal and enduring of all ancient law codes. Jews, Christians and Muslims all revere the Ten Commandments and virtually all religions acknowledge them as good for people to follow. The Ten Commandments also factor large in the history of our country and its culture."

Large posters of an artist's rendering of a possible Ten Commandments stamp will be displayed at today's news conference along with 30 boxes of petitions.