Is the word “Eternity” on a church roof commercial? Is it so problematic that it must be removed under the threat of legal action? It appears that Cathedral City (ironic), CA feels it is. California. That explains some of it but not the whole story.

[NY TImes: Pic and content] CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. — Upon reflection, Jim Nimmons could think of no particular event that led him to crawl atop the roof of the First Southern Baptist Church with a can of red paint and splash the world “eternity” across its shingles.

“I guess there was just a concern for the values of our society, being too caught up in what doesn’t last,” said Mr. Nimmons, who took the reins of pastor of the church just south of Palm Springs from his father in 2001. “Even in the church we get caught up in temporal things.”…..

It is not clear who or how many people have complained to the city, but Mr. Nimmons said anonymous phone calls started rolling in even as he descended the ladder from his roof.

“They said, ‘How dare you put that up,’ ” Mr. Nimmons recalled. “I said, ‘Can I ask who’s calling,’ but they just said no, they were going to the city.”

In early November, city officials began inquiring about the sign, and last month they put a nuisance notice on the doorknob of the church. “That scared me pretty bad,” said Mr. Nimmons, who has asked for an administrative hearing with outside lawyers.

The battle between the city and the church appears to come down to two essential issues: is the message of eternity a commercial one, and is the roof sign a nuisance so grand that the government must intervene?

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 2nd, 2008 at 11:05 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.