What ever happened to seperation of church and state here in America?

Question

Remember the old foundation that America was built on using a seperation between the church and state? With abortion laws, death sentences, war, marijuana legalization, etc, most of these controversies seem to have the church at one side and peoples' own choices at another. Why can't we base these decisions on state and the choice's of the citizen rather than a religion?

In case anyone is seeing this differently than what i'm actually asking, I'm wondering why, for example, the government would completely illegalize abortion because the Catholic Church etc says its immoral. Shouldn't it be legal, but be in the citizen's choice as to do it or not?

Answer 1

This country was not founded on the foundation of a seperation of church and state.

No where is that phrase used in the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation or the Constitution.

The phrase "seperation of church and state" was brought forth in the 1950's in a federal case where activists sued a school district for using school public buses to transport kids to a church based after school program.

It went to the Supreme Court, and it was won, and the buses were no longer allowed to be used. In the written statement of the Justices, the presiding judge that wrote the ruling took the phrase from a United Nations document, I believe from a founding document of the UN, where it declared that only be a clear and distinguished "seperation of church and state" can humanity find the freedom to fulfill its social potential.

It essentially became the call to arms for communists and socialists seeking to strip God from our schools, businesses, local, state, and national government.

Our founding fathers were God fearing men, and understood our true freedoms and individual rights were ordained by Him, and that no nation or man can account for those rights, only help uphold and protect them.

The bill of rights states only that the federal government cannot force any one religion or create a state religion, upon the citizens of this country. There is nothing there where God fearing Christians and other religions can't be involved or participate in government.

In fact - it was ministers and preachers that stood up and stepped down from their pulpits to serve in the revolutionary War that gave us these freedoms. The were called the Black Coat Brigade - because in that day - ministry leaders wore black coats.

Answer 2

Today we are less religious based than we were 50 years ago. The separation of church & state today is sectarian/atheism is the new religion the state has adopted.

Personally I'm agnostic. I don't understand why the Left thinks a murderer shouldn't be put to death but an unborn should at the will of the mother. It also doesn't make sense to me if a doctor does a partical birth abortion that is legal while if the mother does it by throwing the infant in the trash it isn't.

My biggest problem though is the will of the mother is everything & the biological father has no say, but has to foot the bill. & women say it is a man's world?

Answer 3

Because all religious idiots have convinced themselves that without religion, our society would be a disaster and that religion some how keeps people in line. Excuse me, THEIR religion keeps people in line.

The truth is, people are using religion to justify their hatred for others and pushing laws to reflect their hatred in the name of religion.

One huge flaw is that EVERY country/society in history that has been controlled by a religion has been extremely violent and led to citizens revolting against their govt.. Modern example: the Middle East.

I say, have your religion, but don't make the rest of us follow your beliefs.


EDIT - The biggest problem with having people in office that make decisions based on religion and the people is that issues like Stem Cell research receive very limited funding because Bush's religion is against it. That means all the suffering people in the country are being limited in treatment because they are now subject to someones elses religious belief. Just imagine if red meat were outlawed here in the US because a Muslim president took over and thought that the country needed the moral guidance from his/her religion. Think about it, it's just as ridiculous as what the Bush/right wing elected officials are trying to do in the US right now.

The reason gay people can't get married is because certain persons in power will not allow because of their religious beliefs. It's convenient that the one person on the right that's in favor of gay marriage is Cheney, his daughter is a lesbian.

Laws should be made this way: If something makes sense scientifically and ethically, then it should be legal. Now if the religious nuts want to reject stem cell therapy when they're dying from a disease - that's their choice. If a bible thumper doesn't want to have an abortion, they won't. If somebody else wants to have an abortion, that is their right. If the religious idiots don't like it, TOO BAD.

If laws are made based on religion then the next logical step is to make laws requiring ALL Americans to be Christians and to pray to Jesus.

Answer 4

OK, heres the thing. Separation of church and state doesn't mean separation of morals and the like. It only was made to keep there from being "The church of the United states" as there was in Great Britain at the time, that is why the united states' pledge has "Under God" it also has "In god we trust" on the currency, because it is only separation of an actual church, not of the principals of Christianity.

Answer 5

You dd not understand what you said. Church and State.

It does not say people can not be religious.

People vote according to the way they believe.

The Church does not run nor is part of running the government.

Many nations are controlled fully or partially by the church.

Church is the organized religious groups. Definitely they do have influence through their members.

Learn to think about and understand.

Answer 6

It's in the First Amendment to the US Constitution. If you had a computer, you could search on the Internet for the phrase "wall of separation between church and state" which is how your Founding Fathers originally described it.

Answer 7

You are completely wrong. There is no separation of church and state. It was invented by activist courts. It is not and has never been in the Constitution.

Churches are one the same side because they believe in moral standards.

A person's religion is their basis for their morals and values. You cannot separate the two

Answer 8

The answer to your question is that there is a constant tension between the normal people, who live their lives and want to think they are free of government interference and the small, overly vocal, well-organized minority of uber-right-wing-christians who think that the only way to salvage American values is to instill that good ole fashion religion in the rest of the population.

The corner stone of Christianity is evangelism. That is converting non-believers into believers and making them live up to some amorphous religious code of morality.

So these suprer-right-wing-nuts seem to grab ahold of the reigns of power through their hand-picked politicians and try and jam political policies that have religious overtones down our unsuspecting and unwilling throats.

The church, city hall and the courthouse can all be on the same street and in the same town. But what goes on in the church should never have any effect on the powers that be.

Unfortunately if you want to beat out these extremists you have to insist upon your own right to be free from religious impositions.

That implies being vocal, organizing and outvoting these zealots.

If not, its just gonna be the one thing Barry Goldwater hated, the imposition of religious policies upon people who just want to be left alone.

Answer 9

Separation of church and state is alive and well. There is no Church of the USA like there is the Church of England. The US gov't backs no specific religions and pretty much respects them all.

But gov't is made of people, and people have their own moral and religious views. It is impossible to completely screen out religious influence from gov't.

Besides, if you read the constitution, you will not find any reference to "separation of church and state." What you will find is "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof......" I can find no substantial abuse of that by today's government.

Answer 10

Religion was a cornerstone and remains one...although a bit pulled out of the support structure unfortunately.

Liberal judges are making up law as they go along instead of enforcing law as they should.

This is why when SOMEBODY leaned on the judge in the Waco Trials...he changed his own verdict to throw the book at the people who had received a fair trial.
Somebody made him an offer he could not refuse despite his previous FAIR ruling.