Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) recently issued a proclamation closing state offices on Friday, December 26, in celebration of Christmas.
The grinches at the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), which focuses on the separation of church and state, however, are demanding she reverse the move and claiming it is unconstitutional.
Gov. Sanders, however, made it clear she “will do no such thing.”
The proclamation reads:
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS COME – GREETINGS:
WHEREAS: More than two millennia ago in the little town of Bethlehem, far from the centers of power in first-century Rome, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born in a humble manger;
WHEREAS: Jesus was the Messiah and became a teacher and leader, and He would be crucified, suffer for the sins of all mankind, die and be buried, and rise again on the third day to sit at the right hand of the Father;
WHEREAS: But on that first Christmas, Christ’s arrival was unassuming, witnessed only by Mary and Joseph, humble shepherds guided by angels, and three wise men from the East. It presaged his ministry, which was not focused on the wealthy or powerful but rather on the poor, powerless, and meek; and
WHEREAS: We give thanks for the arrival of Christ the Savior, who will come again in glory and whose kingdom will have no end, by celebrating His birth each year on Christmas Day.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS, Governor of the State of Arkansas, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the laws of the State of Arkansas, do hereby proclaim December 25, 2025, as
“CHRISTMAS DAY”
in the State of Arkansas, and in order that state employees may spend this holiday with their families giving thanks for Christ’s birth, I further declare the State Capitol and state offices will be closed on Friday, December 26, 2025, as well.
IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Arkansas to be affixed this 16th day of December, in the year of our Lord 2025.
FFRF claims in their letter that the proclamation is “promoting Christianity.”:
From FFRF:
It delivers an explicitly theological account of the Christian story of Jesus’ birth, divinity, crucifixion, resurrection and anticipated return “in glory” while instructing state employees to spend the holiday “giving thanks for Christ’s birth.”
“State offices are not churches, and gubernatorial proclamations are not sermons,” writes FFRF Legal Counsel Chris Line. “The governor is free to practice her religion privately, but she may not use the authority of the state to promote Christian doctrine as official government speech.”
While states may constitutionally recognize Christmas, a federal holiday, in a secular and inclusive manner, FFRF emphasizes that Sanders’ proclamation crosses a clear constitutional line. Rather than focusing on scheduling or the widely observed secular cultural aspects of the holiday season, the proclamation presents core Christian beliefs as government-endorsed truths.
By issuing the proclamation in her official capacity and distributing it to state employees, Sanders used the power and resources of the state to advance a specific religious viewpoint, in violation of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. The Constitution requires government neutrality toward religion, neither favoring religion over nonreligion nor preferring one faith over others.
Governor Sanders responded in a letter obtained by Fox News.
You say that my communications as Governor must be neutral on matters of religion,” Sanders wrote. “I say that, even if I wanted to do that, it would be impossible. Christmas is not simply an ‘end-of-the-year holiday’ with ‘broadly observed secular cultural aspects,’ as your letter states. It’s not gifts, trees, and stockings that make this holiday special. Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, and if we are to honor Him properly, we should tell His miraculous, world-changing story properly, too.”
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“Though you may enter this season with bitterness, know that Christ is with you, that He loves you, and that He died for your sins just the same as He did for mine and everyone else’s,” the letter concluded.
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