AUSTIN, Texas — A federal appeals court has affirmed the state's position that the placement of the Ten Commandments monument on the Capitol grounds is not an unconstitutional attempt to establish state-sponsored religion.

Thomas Van Orden, a homeless man living in Austin, had sued to have the monument removed, calling it an endorsement of Judeo-Christian beliefs by the state government.

The state countered that the 6-foot tall red granite monument is more historical than religious, with key segments of law founded on the moral and cultural ethics provided by the commandments. The Fraternal Order of Eagles donated the monument to the state in 1961.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott applauded the Nov. 12 ruling in Van Orden v. Perry by a unanimous three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

"The Ten Commandments are undoubtedly a sacred religious text, but they are also a foundational document in the development of Western legal codes and culture," Abbott said yesterday. "The Texas monument has stood for over 40 years, and the court's decision affirms that the monument is entirely consistent with the requirements of the U.S. Constitution."