The U.S faces a unique dilemma when you factor religious and political debates in one sitting. Though not explicit in our Constitution, that there needs to be a separation of church and state, the majority of people act on the assumption that this is in fact stated. Our founding founders were aware that there are multiple religions (even at our nation’s start, in country) but it wasn’t about separation it was the First Amendment. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof” (Madison, 1791, Page 198). Today a growing numbers of Americans view the separation of church and state as wrong and oppressive, as they reflect on the nation’s indisputably Christian origins. Faith …show more content…
We’ve had many great presidents/fore-fathers that did not hold the same beliefs we do, whether Christian, Deist or something other, it does not change the fact that they did what they could for the nation. In a letter wrote my none other than Thomas Jefferson we can see what values he held. Jefferson stated, “Religion is a matter, between Man & His God – that he owes no account to none for his faith or worship” (Jefferson, 1802, Page 36). Jefferson seemingly points out that the government should only acts on what is there not what is, a matter of religions opinion or lack thereof. To be clear this excerpt was to a church that had concerns of what Jefferson would bring upon America not being the tradition Christian that was accepted as the norm. In essence what an individual wants to believe is his, own right/opinion but when it comes to matters of the nation, things will not be left to opinion based on religious beliefs. It can be argued that this is what Benjamin Franklin posed about the mob mentality in his, ‘A Witch Trial At Mount Holly’. The mob in this article, being of course the combination of the church and state operating as …show more content…
It seems many blame the government for going against the church but there are many points already presented as to why that should be as is. You don’t see the government dictating when and where Christmas can be celebrated but you do see legalization of same-sex marriage. Arguably the bible might say a union between man and woman. Does that give us or the institution to rule out same-sex couples as no longer being human? Constitutionally everyone has rights and because they chose to marry the same-sex why should they be legally less entitled than anyone else. Will there be moral damnation on them? Possibly but it is not the churches place to determine whether they have their legal rights met. Any argument against that point would certainly open the doors to a very slippery slope amongst other fallacies. We don’t take away the rights of a criminal in their entirety even to coldest of criminals bear their rights, so in know instance should one with a different lifestyle choice be afforded
Church and State seem to be two words which are entirely inseparable from each other. Religion in politics and the government has been present since the federal government was first put into place. The issue of
In Chapter 10 of Religion and Popular Culture in America, Joseph L. Price attempts to show sports as an example of popular culture as religion, because of its ability to shape the engagement of their fans and the fan’s environments. Although the majority of fans do not see sports as coming close to being a religion, Price gives several compelling reasons as to why sports are religion.
When discussing the intertwining of church and state; soul liberty and freedom from religious belief, we must recognize that freedom and faith were at one point complementary ideas. Faith was once the foundation for freedom and vice versa. The Declaration of Independence clearly states, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal and endowed with certain inalienable rights." With these words from the Declaration of Independence, our founding fathers set up their vision of what this country would come to be. Among those rights, which are deemed “inalienable”, is the right of religious liberty. (Neumann, 1990: p. 241)
History shows a pattern of change in relation to religious involvement of governmental affairs. As religion becomes less a part of American life, the court develops new laws to accommodate our new society. Look to the communities we live in presently and ask yourself if the American people are facing oppression of religious freedom, a freedom listed in our Constitution under the First Amendment. This spirals into an abyss of politics. Is same-sex marriage a personal matter or a public one? Is the Republican Party fair in opting to end abortion? Should a woman have contraceptive included in her health insurance plan despite the religious views of her employer? This is one of the areas in which
The First Amendment ensures that there is separation between Church and State. However, this disjunction is not absolute. As the United States has become a more multi-cultural society, certain rituals have become problematic. Some issues were traditions that put one religion at the forefront, violating of the Establishment Clause; other issues affected peoples’ right to free expression of their religion. Many times people do not realize the Judeo-Christian bias in our culture because it is so integrated into our way of life. This country needs to recognize these biases and address them as the United States become a more diverse population.
In recent discussions of religion and politics, a controversial issue has been whether or not religion has a place in our political decision-making. On the one hand, some argue that religion and politics should coexist for the greater good. From this perspective, the United States government should implement religious beliefs into all of their decision-making, because it is the right thing to do. On the other hand, however, others argue that religion has no place in politics, it clouds judgment, creates unfair separation against opposing beliefs, and does more harm than good. Religion has had its effect on politics since Jesus Christ was created. Laws have passed that are heavily influenced by the good book. In the words
The functionality of America would not be as novel or ingenious without religion, a monumental influence in the building of the United States. If we trace back hundreds of years to colonial times, religion acted as the absolute driving force that convinced colonists that America was the new haven they had been looking for. It also contributed long lasting moral, social, and political impacts seen in countless movements reflecting the christian ideals of truth, life without sin, and altruism, or good works. Lastly, religious liberty is a major campaign so trite that one will find religious tolerance laws in every state as well as various religious tolerance groups with ease. Patently, the rudiments of religion are responsible for shaping
I was apart of the debate arguing that American separation of church and state and tolerance for religious expressions in politics, is the best way to manage religious differences in politics. As societies modernize, new religious groups emerge, thus giving people greater religious choice. Within the United States, one can choose from a wide variety of world religions and feel free to express their religion openly within social culture, unlike in privatized countries such as France. The main example of a fully denominational system is the United States. The U.S. accepts the concept of religious pluralism. This pluralism is important in the U.S.’s strive to maintain the separation of church and state. Over the longer term, societies like the
The United States of America has the most diverse religious population in the world. In places like Iraq, Syria, Israel, Afghanistan, Yemen, and other countries too numerous to mention, countless lives are lost over religious differences. In America, a Protestant can live happily next door to a Jew, who might live across the street from a Muslim, or a Catholic, or a Sikh, or even a Humanist! This is in no small way attributed to the fact that the US Constitution’s First Amendment includes what is known as the establishment clause, which states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” effectively separating affairs of religious institutions from secular,
The world is composed of a variety and number of religious beliefs and organizations. Religion is not necessary an explanation of creation, nor is it a set of rules or morals that one follows; instead, it is simply just a way to believe in something or someone. Ever since the beginning of time, religion has had an impact on government, literature, history, and much more. Many say that America originated as an enlightened or spiritually aware country. Despite the assumption of America being an “enlightened” nation founded on the separation of church and state, religion is so blatantly intertwined with American literature and history because it simply made up a huge part of its backstory.
The religions around the world are practiced in America such as Christianity,Islam,Jewish,etc and this country still remains one of the most religious nations in the world today.Population also usually can be participates in organized religious practice while others can choose to engage in a private spirituality.Besides that,religion can be describes as spiritual belief in, worship of, or obedience to a God and considered to be divine or to have control of human destiny.I believe the percentages in American people that believe in God still be higher in 50 years ahead,but the religious practicing probably will decreasing.It has many factors such as age, race, gender, economic class, and other demographic factors that can affect American
Religion has played a large role throughout History. Entire nations have been founded on the ideals of one religion or another, and many wars have been fought purely for religious reasons. In fact there are wars still going on that are almost completely religiously motivated. New Religions may form, old religions may die or change, but they will always be a part of our culture and society. Religion always seems to play a large role in the formation of societies and cultures, and the history of the United States is no different from that of the rest of the world. Religion played a major role in the formation of the United States of America. More specifically between 1607 when
Gay marriage is one of the most controversial topics being discussed in America today. Today in America, Christians feel like that because the bible states that homosexuality is a sin and then it should be illegal. A few states have taken the first step and started to accept the marriage of same sex marriage. I Believe that the government has no right to tell people if they can or cannot get married. Their choices doesn’t have any thing to with security or credibility of the nation , and it does nothing to affect
We are not speaking here of the secularist idea that the state should marginalize religion and discourage people from voting their consciences as Christians. We are talking about the idea that church and state are not the same thing and that they have different spheres of activity.
America wastes a lot of time trying to create a democracy completely absent of the moral expectations that our ancestors have put into place. Our founding fathers’ dream of establishing a country in which all people would be accepted has begun to fall. In our attempt to rid our country of a democracy contaminated with any belief in a supreme power, we have rid ourselves of many of our values and morals. Perhaps it is impossible for religion to dominate our political country, but we have misinterpreted the original intent of “separation of church and state” and taken this concept too far.