In our continuing occasional series of presenting talking points, we note that the new leaders of Libya have declared Shari'a to be the law of the new Libya (which we predict will be scarcely better – and very possibly far worse than – the old Libya). It brings to mind the ongoing debate over religion and politics in the United States.
Some people, liberals mostly, keep proclaiming (very loudly and often obnoxiously) "separation of Church and state" as if that phrase was the sum total of Constitutional law on the subject, a total which cannot be argued or refuted and ought not even be discussed. In fact, as most of you well know, this phrase – frequently repeated and, with equal frequency, misunderstood – is not found in the US Constitution. It was a private opinion put forth by Thomas Jefferson, expressed to certain members of the Danbury Baptist Association in Connecticut, written shortly after becoming president:
I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between church and state.
In sharp contrast, the 1st Article of Amendment states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof . . ." That means Congress is prohibited from: (1) Passing a law declaring any specific church or sect or belief system to be the official state church or sect or belief system of the United States. (2) Congress cannot pass laws prohibiting religious belief or practice – with the obvious exception of those acts which are declared to be dangerous to the public safety.
So, when confronted with those who adamantly declare that the Founders were atheists or enemies of churches or some other nonsense, here are a few thoughts, from the Founders and other worthies, to puncture their overinflated self-images. One should start, of course, with Jefferson's own words, as expressed in a letter to Benjamin Rush, written a few months after the Danbury letter:
My views . . . are the result of a life of inquiry and reflection, an very different from the anti-Christian system imputed to me by those who know nothing of my opinions. To the corruptions of Christianity I am, indeed, opposed; but not to the genuine precepts of Jesus Himself. I am a Christian in the only sense in which he wished any one to be; sincerely attached to his doctrines in preference to all others . . .
Whoever shall introduce into public affairs the principles of primitive Christianity will change the face of the world.
Franklin, by the way, is known to have contributed to the construction of almost every church in Philadelphia during his later lifetime.
George Washington (1732-99):
In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own; nor those of my fellow citizens at large, less than either. [1st Inaugural Address, 1789.]
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of Men and Citizens. [Farewell Address, 1796, emphasis added.]
Our Constitution was made for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other.
It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here. [Emphasis added.]
We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions . . . upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.
Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers.
In my view, the Christian religion is the most important and one of the first things in which all children, under a free government ought to be instructed . . . No truth is more evident to my mind than that the Christian religion must be the basis of any government intended to secure the rights and privileges of a free people. [American Dictionary of the English Language, 1832]
The moral principles and precepts contained in the Scriptures ought to form the basis of all of our civil constitutions and laws . . . All the miseries and evils which men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery and war, proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts contained in the Bible. [History of the United States, 1832]
For the Christian man to reason that God does not want him involved in politics because there are too many evil men in government is as insensitive as for a Christian doctor to turn his back on an epidemic because there are too many germs there.
And, if you really want to screw with their little minds, you should reference two opinions of the United States Supreme Court:
If we pass beyond these matters to a view of American life, as expressed by its laws, its business, its customs, and its society, we find everywhere a clear recognition of the same truth. Among other matters note the following: The form of oath universally prevailing, concluding with an appeal to the Almighty; the custom of opening sessions of all deliberative bodies and most conventions with prayer; the prefatory words of all wills, "In the name of God, amen;" the laws respecting the observance of the Sabbath, with the general cessation of all secular business, and the closing of courts, legislatures, and other similar public assemblies on that day; the churches and church organizations which abound in every city, town, and hamlet; the multitude of charitable organizations existing everywhere under Christian auspices; the gigantic missionary associations, with general support, and aiming to establish Christian missions in every quarter of the globe. These and many other matters which might be noticed, add a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic utterances that this is a Christian nation. [Writing for the Court in Church of the Holy Trinity v. United States, 143 US 457 (1892), emphasis added.]
The concept of a "wall" of separation between church and state is a useful metaphor but is not an accurate description of the practical aspects of the relationship that in fact exists. The Constitution does not require complete separation of church and state; it affirmatively mandates accommodation, not merely tolerance, of all religions, and forbids hostility toward any. Anything less would require the "callous indifference," (Zorach v. Clauson, 343 US 306,314 [1952]), that was never intended by the Establishment Clause. . . . Our history is pervaded by official acknowledgment of the role of religion in American life, and equally pervasive is evidence of accommodation of all faiths and all forms of religious expression and hostility toward none. [Writing for the Court in Lynch v. Donnelly, 465 US 668 (1984) , emphasis added.]
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