Ten Commandments Must Go The Oklahoma State Capitol Building

When American politicians use exceptionalism and the exhausted phrase “city upon a hill” to justify their decisions, policies, and actions, it violates the establishment clause and is not a sufficient justification of governmental conduct. Spreading this type of religious nationalism is not proactive in building trust in the government either. The percentage of Americans who reported trusting the government has dropped from seventy five per cent to nineteen per cent in half a century (We The People Textbook). While it does gain support, it has no correlation with an increase in political efficacy to which it appeals.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Thomas Jefferson wrote those words to express the emotions of a nation that desired freedom, and to shake the foundation of the British Empire. However, this simple, but eloquent phrase has sparked one of the greatest debates in American history. Is America a Christian nation? One question has divided the nation and its politicians since the founding and forming of America. This fiery debate has sparked more controversy than any other debate in modern politics.

“While the authors of the United States Constitution are frequently portrayed as noble and idealistic statesmen who drafted a document based upon their conception of good government, reality is that the constitution reflects the politics of the drafting and ratification process. Unfortunately, the result is a document that is designed to produce an ineffective government, rather than a government that can respond to issues in a timely fashion.” In support of this conclusion, the issues of slavery, The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, and the civil rights struggle keenly demonstrate the ways in which our constitution hinders the expediency and effectiveness of America’s government. The constitution’s provisions towards voting eligibility and

The American Constitution was influenced partly by Judeo-Christian ideas, mainly that the natural rights of individual should be protected and unalienable. Followers of Judaism surmised that humans were created in God’s image, and as such each individual “has a divine spark that gives him or her a dignity that cannot be taken away” (M.W.H. 12). In the American democracy, the Bill of Rights gives all of the country’s citizens certain rights that are unalienable, and cannot be taken away. As opposed to other forms of government, where the social status of a citizen determined his or her rights, the American Constitution gave all citizens the same rights

For the value of the constitutional liberties to each citizen of America, it is a must that the government stresses the freedom to teach, practice or worship based on religion. Throughout the history of America, religion has gradually decreased in importance although it is needed more now than ever. Pursuant to the first amendment to the constitution, the country must honor the values of its people. In the article “Religious Exemptions, Formal Neutrality, and Laicite” Frederick Mark Gedricks asserts that, “The Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that neither the national government nor the states may enact a law prohibiting the free exercise of religion” (Gedicks). If chosen to live in a country where the government has stated the protection of religion, it is a must that they stand by that ruling. Providing the protection of religious freedom is vital to maintaining the integrity of constitutional liberties as citizens defend their own beliefs. Also, with the many disagreements of religious acts, Judge Roy Moore and his allies’ belief of the religious commitment of the country was undermined once Moore chose to place a 5, 280 pound granite monument in the state’s judicial building in Montgomery in July of 2001. His act placed disregards to his religion in which he was denied of his own beliefs. In the article, “Religion and Civil Rights”,

​The United States Constitution was carefully crafted by a group of deliberate and thoughtful individuals; each having their own unique and particular ideas about government, and the people it may govern. As this supreme foundation for government was molded, each founding father put forth their learned beliefs and philosophies to be integrated into this modern document. All of the crafting members were both well-read and thoroughly educated, allowing for deep and extended discussions on past governments, their efficiencies, and their deficiencies. Through their readings and philosophical discussions, it became apparent that two previously governing bodies stood, in their opinions, above the rest: The Greek and Roman empires. Their governmental practices and virtues were key in the development of the Constitution, as they were dissected, and eventually, emulated by this country’s founding members.

Confederate Monuments began to erect across the nation well after the civil war between the 1890’s and 1950’s. There seems to be a correlation of when these monuments began to pop up and the era of the Jim Crow Segregation. The highest spike of monuments being built were between the 1900’s and 1920’s. These monuments were meant to be a teaching point of values to people rather than being a symbol of hate as many people took them to be. According to Mark Elliot, professor at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro; “The values to which these monuments stood for included a glorification of the cause of the civil war.”

The United states of America has successfully staked its claim as a leader among the nations of the world in the fields of government and justice. When America gained its independence, there was a system of governing put into place that included well thought out rules which were deemed best for all involved. The textbook American Government and Politics Today, lets the reader know of the dire necessity for the men, women, and children who had gained their freedom from Great Britain, to have a guideline they could follow and base their decisions on (Schmidt, 2017). Throughout

Since before the United States was founded, the ideals of Christianity have been integrated into the government in some way, shape, or form. In the early days of the Colonies, Christianity was the centerfold for all government affairs; however, after the constitution was ratified and deemed effective in the United States, the First Amendment was born. The first amendment states that, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances” (source). In the early life of the United States, the

Our society lacks a moral compass today and we need to find a way to return to our country 's founding values. Is religion the answer? some may think so others may say keep church and state separate. The original statement was in a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptists Association. In his letter he says “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 & State” (Jefferson 1802). After this letter was written it went unnoticed or used until the mid 1800’s when a group petitioned Congress to remove Christian principles and values from government. They claimed that there needed to be a “separation of church and state”. Again it was unused officially until 1947 when in the case of Everson verses the board of education the court wanted to build the wall high and impregnable. That wall was never supposed to be as it is now referred to. We need to have the religious freedoms free from government control. How can a private petition be taken out of text and used as a guide for our federal court? Our forefathers were influenced by important values when establishing this country. Also, there were a lot of other influences in our founders thought processes; own life experiences, education, and even self gratification. Just reading The Declaration of Independence you can see where their

The United States Constitution is the very foundation that the nation has been built upon, but its birth was not easy. The framers of the Constitution divided over many key issues relating to it and often argued at length over the creation, ratification, and implementation of this imperative document. Since the Constitution came into being it has been the epicenter of Civil Rights reforms, questions of state sovereignty versus national supremacy, and recently it has been looked to for questions about universal healthcare and what may or may not constitute a marriage. Currently the oldest “living” Constitution in the world; interpreting the United States

Our founding fathers imagined a country full of freedom and opportunity. This divine objective, however, did not promise such to everyone. As our government today views the original documents made by our fathers, we come to realize that they did not specify all our questionable rights presently.

America today is permeated with natural law. Our founders were subscribers to natural law and believed that man’s inner morality can lead to sustaining a civil society. The forefathers of America were from different denominations that ranged from Presbyterian to Catholism. Some were even Deists. Even though their denominations varied, they all united under the idea that their Creator was the source of their reason (Levin 2009, 26). The result of these beliefs produced a religious liberty throughout the country. That liberty still stands today. Natural law, contrary to the thoughts of its non-supporters, does not make a country into a theocracy. Since God’s laws are universal, the creed of a person does not change the fact that they entitled to their God-given rights. The founders were extremely foresighted because they acknowledged that liberty is inseparable from religious liberty (Levin 2009, 29). Another example of how natural law is in America’s founding is the right for citizens to disobey man-made laws that tyrannical in nature. All laws that are not given by the consent of the governed have the potential to be overthrown. America’s Declaration of Independence even says that the people should go as far as overthrowing the government if it becomes too powerful (Levin

In our everyday lives, we come across myths, from fairy tales to facts that people assumed were true. Yet these myths that usually originate from truth are used as a base for how we live our everyday lives. Although we can differentiate between fairy tales and flat out lies, there are some myths in our country’s literature that just cannot be lived up to when our founding fathers were writing these documents. From our basic rights granted to us, to the falseness about what our fathers stood for, there are un-blatant myths in our literature. In result of these myths, Americans have not lived up to the expectations of our documents due to their radical expectations, as well as how our founding fathers shaped America today.

“…one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” And so finishes the Pledge of Allegiance for the United States of America. Whether or not a person would wish to identify our nation as a Christian one, there is certainly no doubt that the very oath that binds a person into serving it includes serving God. As it follows, many of our laws are centered around our understanding of the Bible, and the morality that can be gleaned from it. Even in our modern time, where the lines are becoming more and more blurred, eighty-three percent of Americans still identify themselves as Christian. A common national ideology is that our country has a favored nation status with God; thus it is our responsibility to ‘sow the