Ten Commandments project. (Making A Difference).

Retired Nashville, Tennessee, flower shop owner George Kelley and his wife, Marion, had long been concerned about our nation's increasing cultural, religious, and moral decline. In early 1997, after serial killer Paul Dennis Reid murdered seven employees of three Tennessee restaurants, the Kelleys viewed it as yet another sign that many of America's young people were not learning to differentiate right from wrong. They decided to do something about it.

In the spring of that year, with help from some friends, they launched The Ten Commandments Project, which seeks to "renew America one child at a time" by paying children (ages 16 and under) $10 each to memorize and recite the Ten Commandments. To qualify for the reward, a youngster is required to recite the commandments to a non-parental adult witness (such as a pastor, rabbi, priest, or teacher), who then submits an affidavit affirming that he or she has indeed heard the memorized recitation.

Mr. Kelley believes that "it is the will of God that leads me to do all I can to change the direction in which the culture is headed.... And I believe it is His Will that children learn The Ten Commandments." A posting on the project's website asserts: "In our western civilization, our idea of what is right and what is wrong comes from The Ten Commandments. Success and failure are determined by character. Character is developed by thoughts and actions. Even though we may not think about it, The Ten Commandments are the standard by which character is judged. The hard cold facts of life are that the secret of being successful and getting ahead is hard work, responsibility, the rule of law and private property rights.... The character of a child is important to the future of the American economy and the moral wellbeing of our nation!"

The project's stated goal was to have 10 million children ...