An excellent letter in today's edition deserves preserving in this thread:
Church-state issue clarified By READERS WRITE April, 27, 2010 The April 16 editorial concerning separation of state and church was fully misconstrued. Though the establishment clause was fully given, you failed to note that only "the Congress" by passing a "law" to "establish" a state religion would be unconstitutional.
A teacher or student saying a prayer isn't equivalent to the Congress passing a law! Having a cross at a veteran's memorial isn't the Congress passing a law. Early Supreme Court cases declared this to be a Christian nation - not legally, as was England - but predominantly.
The last part, that no law can "prohibit the free exercise thereof," is clear. Jefferson's letter to the Danbury Baptist Association told that the "wall" protected religion from government interference, not the other way around. If your interpretation were true, then the Founding Fathers were the first to break it.
The "musselmen" were muslims. The wording of the treaty were intended to appease the muslims, not to declare that we are not a Christian nation. Many people have taken that one sentence out of context of the times and have the same mistake 'bobie' made.
If there is a God, atheism must seem to Him as less of an insult than religion.
---Edmond de Goncourt
But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods or no God. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg -Thomas Jefferson, Notes on Virginia, 1782
-- Edited by schlager7 on Wednesday 2nd of September 2009 05:54:34 PM
Republican and Democrat are not religions. Anyone can find a politician that has gone to jail and gone to church.
Political sexual antics are not a good basis for an argument about religion.
There is something about power that breeds corruption....
The founding documents were written by men of Christian faith that wanted to insure that the tyrany that had racked Europe in the name of the Church, we know which ones...could not happen here.
Had the founding documents been based in Islam, there would be no choice.
Look at the history of Greece and see what 400 years of rule by the Turks did to the people before they revolted and threw them all out.
Western thought, and governments, undoubtly have been shaped by Judeo-Christian philosophy which includes rule of law and equality of all men. What an insult to the Jews to try and re-write ancient history -- AGAIN -- and call for America to be defined by one, Jesus-based religion, when in fact it is well known that pilgrims and immigrants have long been attracted to our melting pot society where people enjoy freedom to worship as they please. Calling the US a Christian nation sounds like we're ignoring the diversity, tolerance, and freedoms on which this country was really founded. Just my thoughts in this.
This fellow should go back and read everything on the first post of this thread. That theory about the founding fathers being deists is just one of the lies going around. The facts are there. America was founded by Christians on Christian principles. But also, everyone has the freedom to not worship God and not be a member of any church. Let us hope the naysayers will find peace someday.
The phony right wing nutjob christians associated with the KKKonservanazi republiKKKans represent the height of hypocrisy.
They ignore US history and are usually trying to revise it. It has been stated ON THIS FORUM the founding fathers were DEISTS. All one has to do is read their biographies and their writings, something truebeliever KKKonservanazi tools can't possibly do. It's not in their version of the Bible, they can't read it. That's why they belong to the NO party. NO truth.
The more historical revision and lies put out by these 'christians' only makes them look like the fringe group of the disgraced racist and mysoginistic group that they are.
Great 'christians' like the Rev. Ted Haggard, Sen. John Ensign, Gov. Mark Sanford and the ever more popular like Newt Getrich. Great KKKonservanazi christians. Mormons, America's home grown religion.
-- Edited by Texasvietvet on Sunday 26th of July 2009 06:54:18 AM
__________________
"When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag carrying a cross." Sinclair Lewis
Narrow minded people like AntiHippocrit are the reason our country is in the shape it is. He totally missed the point of the debate about whether or country is in fact a Christian country. I won't try to convince him since, hopefully, Charles Ray has provided enough proof for anyone if they will be open-minded enough to read what the founding fathers wrote.
As for AntiHippocrit's contention that Christians are "mainly hippocrits" and Mother Theresa was the only true Christian, I beg to differ. Sure there are "Christians" who go to church on Sunday and live an ungodly life the rest of the week. Does that mean Billy Graham or David Wilkerson don't measure up? He probably doesn't even know who Wilkerson is, but he should get acquainted with him.
You see AntiHippocrit, we Christians don't claim to be perfect, just forgiven. We pray for people like you every day, and we are not all Republicans. We prefer the term Christian Conservatives. When a candidate comes along who measures up to our criteria, we work for and vote for them--regardless of their party affiliation. At least we have criteria for supporting a candidate, rather than blindly following a party like so many in Orange and Jefferson counties do the Democrat Party--soon to be the Socialist Party if Obama and his friends have their way.
For Obama to say we are not a Christian country is just one of his many gaffes since his inauguration. Be it his gifts to the British PM and Queen, his failure to render proper respect to the Queen, his bowing to the Saudi King, they just go on and on. The Yellow Dog Democrat Liberal Press corps continues to make excuses for his gaffes or they just don't cover them.
AntiHippocrit, if you want to live in a non-Christian Socialist country, there are plenty of them to choose from. Maybe you could try Russia or Libya. But before you move you may want to learn to spell.
I personally only know of one christian and she is gone, that is mother teresa. The rest of the so called christians left here mainly are hippocrits. The book wrote by man that everyone takes for granted as words of god. Are just that words wrote by man. I personnally believe there is something watching over me, but not what that little book says. And even if there wasn't nothing there, just being human should make you be more caring than those 2 faced christians which mainly are republicans which are truely two faced. Heres advice for fake christians quit shoveing your crap down our throats. And start truly caring about others.
Yes, lets completely ignore the fact that this country was founded for fredom of reliegion, and that most of the founding fathers were in fact deists, oh and also that the christian majority is rapidly falling.
After all, who doesnt want to live in a country that is run solely on the beliefs of one religion. I for one cant wait to start burning people at the stake, and oh boy what fun the reemergence of the inquisition will be!
A letter to the editor a couple of weeks ago erroneously stated that America is not a Christian nation. That letter writer could not be more wrong.
Our laws and institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody the teachings of The Redeemer of mankind. It is impossible that it should be otherwise, and in this sense and to this extent our civilization and our institutions are emphatically Christian This is a religious people. This is historically true. -The Supreme Court Decision 1892 -Church of the Holy Trinity vs. The United States.
It is no coincidence that Thomas Jefferson penned the founding document, the Declaration of Independence, with an emphasis on God throughout:
" the laws of nature and of Nature's God all men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the Protection of Divine Providence. "
The Declaration of Independence from Great Britain was truly a declaration of dependence upon God.