| With
all due respect to the memory of the great George Burns (move, "Oh,
God!"), it's not about believing in God. It's
about believing in each other. We can cherish and nurture each
other, or kill each other. It's up to us. We have to figure
it out for ourselves, through the choices we make in life as
individuals. |
| It
has become a popular trend among atheists, agnostics, and various
secular-progressive or radical religious groups to believe that there
should never be any reference to God in "the public square", meaning
anything at all which is under the control or influence of government.
This debate is a ridiculous waste of time and resources. We should
no more purge all references to God from anything associated with the
government than we should purge any other word which might somehow,
someday, offend somebody somewhere. Get over it. This is our
tradition. It's not hurting anybody. Believe what you want,
or not. |
| This
debate is completely at odds with the religious tolerance of the
Judeo-Christian tradition of the founders of this country, who advanced
the idea of separation of church and state because of the tyranny and
abuses of power which they had observed throughout recorded history even
by leaders who claimed to be deeply religious.
A lot or really horrific wars had been fought largely
with some religious fanatic rationalization that theirs was a "just
cause". They wanted no part of that tradition of intolerance among
us. They believed in God, but they didn't care what anybody else
believed, or whether they believed in a God at all, or even if they
believed in some obscure and seemingly weird cult. As long as the
group wasn't infringing on the basic rights of others, they were free to
go about believing whatever they wanted, whether in the public square or
not. Government wasn't going to favor any one group over any
other. |
| The
point of "In God We Trust" could be stated simply as believing in
our sacred honor to support and respect each other, as in the closing
words of the Declaration of
Independence.
The idea that "with a firm
reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to
each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor" didn't
mean that they expected the justness of their cause would somehow remind
an almighty God to smite this tyrant King for them. They were
going to have to trust and rely on each other to get rid of that tyranny
for themselves.
They were stating their case "to assume among
the powers of the earth the separate and equal station to which the laws
of nature and of nature's God entitle them". They were arguing
that every individual had certain unalienable rights as a matter of
natural law, and were not created to be the servants of any king,
whether a tyrant or not. They were arguing the case that
individuals form their own governments by choice, and remain free to
change them. |
| The
Judeo-Christian tradition of the founders of this country (not just the
ones writing the Declaration or the Constitution, or other laws over the
centuries) reflected the basic premise of a responsible personal
relationship with a single God, regardless of sectarian differences or
other details. The basic idea was that we were expected to hold
ourselves to a higher standard of personal conduct in life, not because
some government or other person was compelling us to do so, but because
we had accepted that it was our responsibility to do so. We were
expected to treat others as we would want to be treated by them.
It didn't really matter what their religious beliefs were.
Religious faith, or lack thereof, was an individual decision for free
people to make, and to not impose on others through the power of
government. If one group tried to impose such views on others, the
result would be divisive and potentially have no rational solution.
Neither side of the argument could ever prove their case, for or against
their beliefs. It was pointless to risk fighting each other over
matters of faith. Faith was an individual choice to make. |
| We
certainly don't believe believe that the words "In God We Trust"
on the currency means that everyone can trust God to protect the value
of our dollar, or to assure that wise choices will always be made by our
political leaders and bureaucrats. The point is that we trust each
other to make better choices as individuals who share many common values
in this society. Those citizens who don't share
those values are equally free to live here in peace among us, as long as
they don't violate our laws, but if they advocate intolerance, anarchy,
and tyranny, then they really should practice it somewhere else in the
world. That is not our tradition, and we're sticking to it.
In this country, we trust each other to do good, and expect it of
ourselves rather than mandating it from others through the power of
government. |
|
|
