Update: All that Christians profess regarding this country...
... Is wrong.
Juan Cole had this to say:
I am a student of history, but this one has, until now, escaped me. I will forever more, pull this quote out any time I hear some Christian nut claim that our country is a Christian Nation.The US Senate, full of founding fathers, and the Adams government, approved the Treaty with Tripoli (now Libya) of 1797, which included this language:
"As the Government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Musselmen; and as the said States never have entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mehomitan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries."The treaty is important for showing the mindset of the fashioners of the American system.
Interesting
posted by jeffperado @ 4:14 PM
2 Comments:
So if someone calls this country a Christian nation they are a nut?
I'd like to call you a name or two. Why is this an obsession for you? I thnk YOU have psychological problems that you have to keep reassuring yourself chrstians are in error.
Did a nun beat you with a stick in school when you were little??
"Did a nun beat you with a stick in school when you were little??"
They used to beat us with rulers; in my father's generation, they used fan belts. We truly are a lesser breed of man.
Jeff, great blog. I just stumbled upon it today. I agree wholeheartedly that the Founders intended that the federal government remain dissociated from any particular church (and thus secular), but I don't know that there's any evidence to suggest that they demanded the same of the states (much to my dismay), which makes issues like school prayer, the pledge of allegiance, etc., more difficult than people of my political leanings will usually allow. In other words, I think secularism in government should be argued for on its merits, rather than relying on a constitutional defense that may not be as sound as we think. There's an interesting book on the subject entitled "Thomas Jefferson and the Wall of Separation Between Church and State," by Daniel Dreisbach.
BTW, I'm in a right-left book club, in which we read policy/political books and get together once a month to fight about them. We have a blog: www.thereadersbrigade.blogspot.com. The wingers have kept a low profile lately (due, I guess, to their general sense of demoralization after the elections) but stop by and join the discussion sometime.
GO NUKES!
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