Or how many of us can quote the small phrase from the Bill of Rights in our constitution: “the separation of church and state”? Sorry to disappoint many of you, but it is not there. It has actually been taken out of context from a letter by Thomas Jefferson.
In fact our founding fathers (including George Washington) mentioned many times that we are to keep religious principles in our government unless we desire failure. But we have been told so many times that ‘separation of church and state’ is in the constitution that we have believed it (check out the First Amendment of our Constitution).
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"Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man & his god, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, 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." - Thomas Jefferson, letter to Danbury Baptists, 1802
Google. Use it.
"In fact our founding fathers (including George Washington) mentioned many times that we are to keep religious principles in our government unless we desire failure."
Oh, I get it. So extraneous material that disagrees with you is irrelevant, but extraneous material that agrees with you, we need to pay attention to.
"Our founding fathers...mentioned many times that we are to keep religious principles in our government unless we desire failure."
Then explain the 1st Amendment and the fact that there should be no religious tests for attaining a government office. Why would people who thought that we should be a Christian demo-theocracy put such things in our Constitution?
But...Jefferson's a founding father, right?
Last I checked, the answer to all of the above is "yes" so you fail.
Yah, there are a number of phrases that aren't in the constitution. Yet they somehow still have some validity. Examples:
Freedom of religion
Isn't it odd how we tend to take complicated language and summarize it with just a few words?
The principle of separation of church and state, besides being taken from one of Jefferson's letters, is implied in this statement:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...
You asked for me to quote , so here ya go!
"Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, 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 & State."
Separation of Church and State. There it is. For a purported Professor you FAIL!
The Treaty of Tripoli disagrees with you. And I say you should learn that the Constitution isn't the only historical document. Since you clearly haven't read the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Treaty of Tripoli or any historical document I'm wasting my time.
Indeed, fundie, check out the First Amendment. Specifically, the text:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" (snip).
Someone fetch me a cluebat.....I think I'm about to wear the one I've got out.
The bill for establishing religious freedom, the principles of which had, to a certain degree, been enacted before, I had drawn in all the latitude of reason and right. It still met with opposition; but, with some mutilations in the preamble, it was finally passed; and a singular proposition proved that its protection of opinion was meant to be universal. Where the preamble declares, that coercion is a departure from the plan of the holy author of our religion, an amendment was proposed, by inserting the word "Jesus Christ," so that it should read, "a departure from the plan of Jesus Christ, the holy author of our religion;" the insertion was rejected by a great majority, in proof that they meant to comprehend, within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and Mahometan, the Hindoo, and Infidel of every denomination.
Thomas Jefferson's Autobiography
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...
I'm a Sun worshipper. You [or anyone] may not prohibit my free exercise of religion. I'll return the favor. I restrict my Sun worship to a nudist resort. Kindly restrict your worship to your Sabbath barn.
The 1st Amendment protects us from theocracy. The "no religious tests" is a sham in reality anyway, as everyone running for national office must pay lipservice to some form of imaginary sky daddy/mommy or you're branded a degenerate and run out on a rail. First "debate" in the presidential election cycle? With a megachurch preacher. Makes my skin crawl.
"It has actually been taken out of context from a letter by Thomas Jefferson."
Out of context? The context of the letter this comes from was: "This is what I meant when I wrote the first amendment."
Are you completely misreading it, or are you lying for Jesus?
"But we have been told so many times that ‘separation of church and state’ is in the constitution that we have believed it”
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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