We’ve heard of separation of church and state and after finding about some of these crazy church-related laws that are still on the books in some states we might have to agree that it may be best that states stay out of the church with their laws. Check out some of the head-scratching church laws in different states that could still land you in hot water if the judge wanted to throw the archaic book at you.
SOURCE: dumblaws.com
1. WEST VIRGINIA
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– No member of the clergy is allowed to tell jokes or humorous stories from the pulpit during a church service. (Nicholas County)
Sorry, Kevin Hart.
2. VERMONT
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– It is illegal to deny the existence of God.
3. TEXAS
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– One must acknowledge a supreme being before being able to hold public office.
4. TENNESSEE
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– No Christian parent may require their children to pick up trash from the highway on Easter day.
– Ministers are to be dedicated to God and therefore are not eligible to hold a seat in either House of the Legislature.
5. SOUTH CAROLINA
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– It is perfectly legal to beat your wife on the court house steps on Sundays.
– By law, if a man promises to marry an unmarried woman, the marriage must take place.
6. PENNSYLVANIA
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– Ministers are forbidden from performing marriages when either the bride or groom is drunk.
7. NORTH CAROLINA
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– It is illegal to have sex in a churchyard.
8. NEW HAMPSHIRE
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– On Sundays, citizens may not relieve themselves while looking up.
9. NEBRASKA
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– If a child burps during church, his parent may be arrested.
– Sneezing or burping is illegal during a church service. (Omaha)
10. MISSISSIPPI
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– Private citizens may personally arrest any person that disturbs a church service.
11. MINNESOTA
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– Hamburgers may not be eaten on Sundays. (St. Cloud)
12. MASSACHUSETTS
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– It is illegal for a man to scowl at his wife on Sunday
– All men must carry a rifle to church on Sunday.
13. MAINE
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– Shotguns are required to be taken to church in the event of a Native American attack.
14. IOWA
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– Ministers must obtain a permit to carry their liquor across state lines.
15. INDIANA
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– You can get out of paying for a dependent’s medical care by praying for him/her.
– Anyone 14 or older who profanely curses, damns or swears by the name of God, Jesus Christ or the Holy Ghost, shall be fined one to three dollars for each offense, with a maximum fine of ten dollars per day.
16. GEORGIA
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– It is illegal to use profanity in front of a dead body which lies in a funeral home or in a coroners office.
17. FLORIDA
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– No one may carry an ice cream cone in their back pocket if it is Sunday.
– A special law prohibits unmarried women from parachuting on Sunday or she shall risk arrest, fine, and/or jailing.
18. DELAWARE
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– One may not whisper in church. (Rehoboth Beach)
19. CALIFORNIA
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– Animals are banned from mating publicly within 1,500 feet of a tavern, school, or place of worship.
20. ALABAMA
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– It is illegal to wear a fake moustache that causes laughter in church.
– Dominoes may not be played on Sunday.
– No person may spit on the floor of a church. (Auburn)
– Men who deflower virgins, regardless of age or marital status, may face up to five years in jail. (Auburn)
– It is illegal to impersonate a person of the clergy.
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