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I was greatly disappointed at the quick solution to the controversy regarding the display of the religious symbol on property in the village of Holmen. The First Amendment was written to protect both the church and the state.

In that most cherished Amendment, we Americans have religious freedom — a right to worship as we choose, or not to worship at all, and we certainly have the right not to have the religious views of others forced upon us by the government.

To make sure these rights are protected, it takes vigilance — mine and yours — and it takes action. If the best solution is to just be quiet in the midst of louder voices, then our rights would quickly be diminished. A quick fix in order to end the dispute lacks backbone or imagination and certainly excludes the ideas of reasoning and negotiation.

The village of Holmen is in the process of selling the property where the cross is located to the Lions Club because they are in violation of the Constitution by keeping the cross on village property. If the idea is just to have the cross displayed, why not locate it on one of the 10 church properties in Holmen if one of them would accept it?

The ones who want a display of the cross would then be giving testimony to their beliefs on church property.

At the same time, they would not offend the rest of the community who hold other views than theirs — a win-win situation. Furthermore, the village would not be put in the awkward position it presently finds itself.

If the village of Holmen proceeds as planned, parts of the Christian community can claim a great “victory” but at the cost of saying to everyone else who lives in that lovely village, that even though they, too, are American citizens, their beliefs do not count. Is that a message that brings about good will?