Our Founding Fathers declared that America was founded on Christian ideals. Though, providing for the free exercise of religion, we were never meant to become a secularist nation. That is my take.
Is America Still A Christian Nation?
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hernyaccent
single black female addicted to retail
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If I am not mistaken our found fathers came here to escape a religious nation.
If I am not mistaken our found fathers came here to escape a religious nation.
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Abbadon
Self Bias Resistor - goin' commando in a cassock!
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I've noticed that people that complain about secular nations usually can't tell the difference between "secular", "Atheist", "Agnostic", and "anti-Christian"
Secular: "You have your beliefs about what you think about whether or not there may or may not be a God/Goddess/Gods. Other people will have thier beliefs about that subject. Everyone should be happy this way."
Atheist: "There is no God." (no statement as to what to do with Christianity)
Agnostic: "I don't know whether or not there is a God."
Anti-Christian: "Get rid of Christianity!"
This nation is secular, not Christian, anti-Christian, or Atheistic.
Secular: "You have your beliefs about what you think about whether or not there may or may not be a God/Goddess/Gods. Other people will have thier beliefs about that subject. Everyone should be happy this way."
Atheist: "There is no God." (no statement as to what to do with Christianity)
Agnostic: "I don't know whether or not there is a God."
Anti-Christian: "Get rid of Christianity!"
This nation is secular, not Christian, anti-Christian, or Atheistic.
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Nitpick:
Atheist would be: I don't believe in God/gods
Agnostic would be: I can't know whether or not God/gods exist.
Practically speaking, I don't think there'd be much of a difference between a secular and an atheist nation.
Mic
Atheist would be: I don't believe in God/gods
Agnostic would be: I can't know whether or not God/gods exist.
Practically speaking, I don't think there'd be much of a difference between a secular and an atheist nation.
Mic
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though the founding fathers were trying to escape religious persecution, and were also mainly deists, Christian values still pervade American doctrine. On the cite of every monument in Washington (or the vast majority) and even in the supreme courts, there are Bible verses, etc. Most people don't know this but every time both the senate and house meet, they have a prayer lead by an appointed chaplain
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Practically speaking, I don't think there'd be much of a difference between a secular and an atheist nation.
Of that you are wrong. A secularist nation allows for christianity to flourish albeit ideally not favored above anything else. An atheist nation is surely secular. But a secular nation may or may not be atheist.
Of that you are wrong. A secularist nation allows for christianity to flourish albeit ideally not favored above anything else. An atheist nation is surely secular. But a secular nation may or may not be atheist.
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artybloke
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Russia? Not even under Communism was it an entirely atheist country. Russia is, and has been for at least a thousand years, an Orthodox Christian country. The Orthodox church was sometimes restricted by the Communist Government but it was never outright banned. It certainly isn't banned now.
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Doctrine1st
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In addition I think China has state sponsored religions, including Christianity. So that country also although controling, is not by any means "atheist."
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Chrysalis Kat
Gettin' Riggy With It
So
can we agree that there arent any nations that can be deemed Atheist nations?
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searchingforanswers1
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christianity is declining in all educated nations. the only place its growing is in uneducated nations like africa. i attribute that to the fundamentalist trying to push hell and damnation as fact. you cant scare educated people with fairy tales.
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M
Matt Never Existed
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Christian Ideals are just normal human ideals in religious form. Life, Freedom, Happiness, and Love.
Just because our founding fathers were mainly christian doesn't mean the nation was set up to be the same. If they had, we wouldn't have been any better than the people we were trying to get away from! (And I think the founding fathers knew that, thus why we're a 'all beliefs and/or none' type of nation'.
Besides, does it matter? Even if we fall away from our roots, thats not always a bad thing. ~shrug~ Thats just what I think though..
-Matt Never Existed (a Tulc wanna-be)
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Matt Never Existed said:
I think MNE makes an important distinction between a Christian nation and a nation with a lot of Christians in it. They are not the same thing.
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George Washington was definitely a Christian. He said, "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bibe."
Patrick Henry said, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too oftern that this great nation was founded, not by religionists but by Christians, not on religions, but the gospel of Jesus Christ."
Andrew Jackson said, "That Book (the Bible), Sir, is the Rock on which our republic stands."
Patrick Henry said, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too oftern that this great nation was founded, not by religionists but by Christians, not on religions, but the gospel of Jesus Christ."
Andrew Jackson said, "That Book (the Bible), Sir, is the Rock on which our republic stands."
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The first charge is that our founders were Deists. A deist is one who believes that God created the universe, but has since left it to its own and has no involvement in it in a personal way. A deist does not believe that God has personally given us His law, nor does a deist believe that God governs over man in any way, since He is aloof and unknowable personally.
Yet Benjamin Franklin said on June 28, 1787, at the Constitutional Convention, "God governs in the affairs of man." George Washington said, "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and Bible." And Thomas Jefferson said, "And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure if we have lost the only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? I tremble for my country when I realize that God is just; and that His justice will not sleep forever." Notes on the State of Virginia, 1781.
At this point, many will say that they believed in God, but weren't Christians.
In 1776, 99.85 percent of Americans professed Christianity as their faith [98.3 percent Protestant, 1.55 percent Catholic] while 0.14 percent were Jewish and 0.01 percent claimed neither Christianity nor Judaism. Is it likely that a nation like this would have as its founders men and women who were not Christians? And what about Alexander Hamilton's Christian Constitutional Society which sought to establish Christian Constitutions for nations around the globe? Benjamin Rush, the youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence wrote in his letter to his wife during his final illness: "Blessed Jesus, wash away all my impurities, and receive me into thy everlasting Kingdom." Thomas Jefferson had to defend his faith before the world, as he wrote in a letter to his friend Benjamin Rush, "I am a Christian in the only sense in which He [Jesus] wished any one to be." [April 21, 1803].
Many other such quotes and proofs can be found.
Now some will say, "OK, so a few were Christians, but most were not."
To this Patrick Henry states in his May 1765 speech to the House of Burgesses: "It cannot be emphasized too clearly and too often that this nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here."
In regards to separation of church and state during James Madison's "the Father of the Constitution" administration, Congress provided financial relief for three Bible societies. The Continental Congress allocated money and approved the production of the Holy Bible for all Americans. It was known as the "Aitken Bible" or "the Bible of the Revolutionary War." Even the National Library of Congress today acknowledges this when they say, "the legislators and the public considered it appropriate for the national government to promote a nondenominational, nonpolemical Christianity."
Yet Benjamin Franklin said on June 28, 1787, at the Constitutional Convention, "God governs in the affairs of man." George Washington said, "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and Bible." And Thomas Jefferson said, "And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure if we have lost the only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? I tremble for my country when I realize that God is just; and that His justice will not sleep forever." Notes on the State of Virginia, 1781.
At this point, many will say that they believed in God, but weren't Christians.
In 1776, 99.85 percent of Americans professed Christianity as their faith [98.3 percent Protestant, 1.55 percent Catholic] while 0.14 percent were Jewish and 0.01 percent claimed neither Christianity nor Judaism. Is it likely that a nation like this would have as its founders men and women who were not Christians? And what about Alexander Hamilton's Christian Constitutional Society which sought to establish Christian Constitutions for nations around the globe? Benjamin Rush, the youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence wrote in his letter to his wife during his final illness: "Blessed Jesus, wash away all my impurities, and receive me into thy everlasting Kingdom." Thomas Jefferson had to defend his faith before the world, as he wrote in a letter to his friend Benjamin Rush, "I am a Christian in the only sense in which He [Jesus] wished any one to be." [April 21, 1803].
Many other such quotes and proofs can be found.
Now some will say, "OK, so a few were Christians, but most were not."
To this Patrick Henry states in his May 1765 speech to the House of Burgesses: "It cannot be emphasized too clearly and too often that this nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here."
In regards to separation of church and state during James Madison's "the Father of the Constitution" administration, Congress provided financial relief for three Bible societies. The Continental Congress allocated money and approved the production of the Holy Bible for all Americans. It was known as the "Aitken Bible" or "the Bible of the Revolutionary War." Even the National Library of Congress today acknowledges this when they say, "the legislators and the public considered it appropriate for the national government to promote a nondenominational, nonpolemical Christianity."
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