My Opinion on Government-Religious Controversy

[BlueKota]

This might be controversial, but I feel myself compelled by my beliefs and my education to say it. If the government wants religious leaders to stay silent on politics, then politicians must leave religion out of politics. I was taught in church that Jesus said render unto Ceaser what is Ceaser's, and render unto God, what is God's. Not to mention the founders of the U.S. plainly wrote in the very 1st ammendment that the government was forbidden to establish a state religion. Through out history there is many examples of why mixing church and state is a horrendous and dangerous idea.

I love my faith and my country, but 💯 believe in the separation of church and state.

[get the red out]

1. Without separation of Church and State

There will only be one ruling Church, I have always been amazed at how many people of faith (unlike yourself) don't realize that their right to worship as they believe is protected by it.

[BlueKota]

7. I remember a Rochester Bishop warning people

about a very similar thing. He was against allowing the government to fund religious organizations because he said inevitably the government would want to take control over how those organizations were run.

[odins folly]

2. Not religious myself

But why is it that the pope should stay out of politics and yet right wing televangelist hustlers get to inject themselves into politics and we should believe them.??

Of for that matter, political hustlers spouting nonsensical religious themed rhetoric should be believed????

[BlueKota]

3. They are very hypocritical

[surfered]

4. So did the majority of the Founding Fathers.

They lived closer to the time of the Reformation when Catholics and Protestants took turns persecuting and killing each other depending on the religion favored by the King or Queen at the time of their reign.

[BlueKota]

8. Unfortunately too many people don't know enough

about the lessons of history, and even some of those that do deliberately ignore them.

[lindysalsagal]

5. The founders knew that people disagree about religion and that our new nation had no chance if we

brought religion into the framework. They were right, of course. How many small towns have 4 Baptist churches? 3 Synagogues? Evangelicals, LDS, JW's? Even catholics find ways to splinter. Buddhists, as well.

[BlueKota]

9. Excellent points.

Also look what chaos religious differences cause in the Middle East and caused in Ireland.

[Blue Full Moon]

6. Decades of preaching GOP at the pulpit.

After the christofascists sent political advocates to churches in the 70s? To preach Republican hypocrisy. Because you know Reagan was a man of God and Jimmy Carter was Satan. Republicans are the Mouth piece of the Antichrist.

[BlueKota]

11. They're anti U.S. too!

Their patriotism is as phony as their "christianity."

[Soul_of_Wit]

10. A significant fraction of the founders suffered religious persecution in their home countries

That is precisely why they wanted that to be impossible in the US. The founders were a mix of hardcore religious types and the areligious (the Deists.) The body of the Constitution bans religious tests for office. The First Amendment both prevents a state religion and guarantees the right to practice any (or no) religion. Too many see the "right to practice" as the right to discriminate against those who do not share the same religion. The Constitution is crystal clear that the US should never be a theocracy.

[BlueKota]

14. The English Catholics fled to Maryland

so they could practice their religion freely but also welcomed Protestants. Letting everyone choose to practice whatever religion they choose, as well as not trying to force people who don't believe, to believe, is a major part of the beauty of the U.S., or it was until we let a bunch of ideologues take over our media and our government.

[Norrrm]

12. Religion and politics use each other to gain power and wealth.

[yardwork]

13. The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…

That is the "separation of church and state." It means that Congress can't establish a state religion, and Congress can't prevent anyone in the U.S. from worshiping as they choose.

In other words it is a constitutionally protected right in the U.S. to be Christian, Muslim, Hindi, Jewish, pagan, Wiccan or whatever you choose, and nobody can make that illegal.

At the same time, the government can't say that any religion is the official state religion.

[BlueKota]

16. I think many leaders of the right wing christian

cult, are just in it for money or power, but even if they actually belive in what they preach, they aren't even smart enough to figure out you cannot force people into a true faith.

Rabbi Harold Kushner(no relation) wrote a book, " Why Bad Things Happen to Good People. He puts forth the theory that God gave humans free will because he wants us to do good and love and believe in him willingly.

As you point out the Constitution doesn't allow the establishment of singular faith as the country's religion. So the Christian Right is violating the Constitution they claim to have loyalty to, and if Kushner's theory is on point, they are violating the will of the very God, they claim to follow. They are hypocritical to the core.

[BlueKota]

15. Excellent cartoon.