Why do Americans often consider that being a good citizen and a patriot requires a belief in God?

Question

"Sherman: Surely you recognize the equal citizenship and patriotism of Americans who are atheists?

Bush (Sr.): No, I don't know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God."
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I'm an American and a good citizen. I abide by the rules (I've not broken a single law--except for speeding in my car.), I do my service to the community, I'm nice to my neighbors, etc. How many of you would actually consider me or other atheists actually unworthy of being citizens or being considered patriots just because of our beliefs?

Sorry, SOME Americans.*

"Bush sticks his foot in his mouth often. That is a fact but I do not feel a person can truly be good without God. You can be kind and all and abide by the rules but what keeps you good besides just wanting to be. Maybe tomorrow you may want to be bad. There are no consequences for your actions. All will end at death so nothing really matters in this world. "

Just because I believe there are no after-life consequences doesn't mean I can't be a good person. The difference between me and you is I don't need someone to threaten me with hell in order to do good deeds--you do. Apparently, without God, everyone would just forget about personal morals and family and DURING-life consequences (like jail or rehab), and do bad things just because there's no hell.

Terrible logic.

"Read the Bible, where do you think our "laws" came from in the first place? "

Gee, I don't know. Logic, maybe? If you know what causes people suffering, (thievery, murder, etc.), then you know what should be against the law. Common sense.

Also, there are many laws that prohibit a lot of the things the Bible seems to be FOR. Like, separation of church and state. Duh.

Answer 1

I'm an American, as well as a Christian, and would never think of disrespecting my atheist friends who have served in the U.S. military, particularly during wartime. An atheist can be as patriotic as any believer.

Answer 2

If you are a citizen of another country and wish to become a legal citizen, you must take an oath by saying the pledge of allegiance. In doing so you are affirming the following:
*Promise your loyalty to the Flag itself.
*Promise your loyalty to your own and the other 49 States.
*Promise your loyalty to the Government that unites us all,
Recognizing that we are ONE Nation under God,
That we can not or should not be divided or alone,
And understanding the right to Liberty and Justice belongs to ALL of us.

You cannot simply pick and choose which one of these you want to swear to. If you do not recognize that we are one nation under God, you might also choose to ignore the part about how liberty belongs to ALL. What's the difference?

This is a legal question about citizenship and you have misunderstood the point and context of what Bush said. The legal definition of a citizen is someone who swears to uphold the oath.

Answer 3

I agree with you completely. You are a good citizen. And, you are indeed an American. In the very heart of that defintion, lies the idea that a true America is a country that is diverse in every way. There is no one that "looks American". We are from all over the world -- we have herritages from Japan, India, Ireland, England, Spain, France, Mexico, Brazil, China, Korea, and on and on and on. We are this diverse group of people. We have Christians, Jews, Muslims, Pagans, Agnostics, Atheists, Hindus, Buddhists, Wiccans, Satanits, and so on. We are not all the same, and I, for one, find that beautiful. You are not the same as I am. We probably will differ on political veiws, and we are not the same religious belief either. However, you are as good of a citizen as I am -- no religion should determine that.

Answer 4

Bush sticks his foot in his mouth often. That is a fact but I do not feel a person can truly be good without God. You can be kind and all and abide by the rules but what keeps you good besides just wanting to be. Maybe tomorrow you may want to be bad. There are no consequences for your actions. All will end at death so nothing really matters in this world. But I do agree that patriotism and God have little to do with one another. Countries are of a secular domain and the best patriot may be an atheist because your allegiance may not be to anything greater than your country. I love God more than my country.

Answer 5

America was founded on the basis of freedom of religion ... as long as it was Christian! LOL I do however believe that if the founding fathers knew that the use of certain words and phrases would restrict that freedom in the future, they may have re-thought the wording of things like the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights.

As I recall, Bush wasn't in office for more than a week before he inferred a hidden agenda to rid the US of pagans!

Separation of church and state has never really happened. Its been replaced by political correctness. ... and that doesn't seem to work either. Whats wrong with respect and manners?

Answer 6

Read a book called Bushisms. President Bush says one think but his thoughts are usually on a different level, what (I think) he means to say is that America's North Star or guiding light or moral compass or whatever you want to call the direction our Nation is going REQUIRES a belief in God and thus all "good" Americans believe in a RELIGION whatever that may be. Therefore, Atheists do not have that moral compass to know what is good or bad for the Nation and thus are not in a position to help choose (vote?) what is best for America. That's just my interpretation.

Answer 7

Read the Bible, where do you think our "laws" came from in the first place? You are not a bad person or citizen if you do not believe in God, but considering that this country was founded on the belief of Our Lord, then how can you truly understand what it is to be an American.....

Answer 8

The same reason so many worshipers think that being a good christian(or muslim, or jew or whatever) means waving the flag of their respective nation and unquestioningly praising whatever its government does.

There's waay too much conflating of religion & politics.

Of course my faith informs what i think about how my country(state, county, town) ought to be run, but i don't question the patriotism, much less the citizenship of fellow americans who choose not to believe in God.

I Imagine you must resent that assumption as deeply as I resent having my faith called into question because I don't automatically vote republican.

Answer 9

Religions AND nations divide us. They have good intentions of taking care of their own, but neglect or reject others. I hope you have higher aspirations than being a patriot. Peace to the world.

Answer 10

Really good question. I guess since they figure we won't believe in a god, therefore that makes us have no allegiances whatsoever. That is a rather poor assumption. Even though the US was founded because folks wanted to escape religious persecution, I guess it's better to believe in any god, than no god.