Is this a Christian nation or have we fallen away?

YOU NEED TO KNOW…
July 14, 2015
What would YOU do to win?
July 14, 2015
YOU NEED TO KNOW…
July 14, 2015
What would YOU do to win?
July 14, 2015

I saw a bumper sticker that read, “The United States is a Christian Nation.” While that is a noble thought, it is not a true statement. A truer statement would be, “The United States was founded on Judeo-Christian principles. While most citizens are Christians, everyone is free to practice the religion of their choice without government interference.”

Many of our founding mothers and fathers came to this country to obtain religious freedom. In Europe, the rule of law was, “The religion of the king was the religion of the people.” The writers of the Bill of Right guaranteed that everyone was free to practice the religion of their choice and that the government could not establish a national religion.


The first Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Most of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were committed Christians. They all believed in God. However, they never established Christianity or any other religion as the official religion of the country.

Congress even formed the American Bible Society and voted to purchase 20,000 copies of the Bible for the people to read. However, they never forced anyone to read the Bible or worship God in Christian liturgies, or they never used the name, “Jesus Christ” in any official documents.

A fine line exists between the government establishing a religion and the recognition that religion is part of our heritage and culture. While we do want freedom of religion for everyone – Christians, Jews, Moslems, Buddhists, etc. – we also recognize that we are a society that believes in God. The documents that established the principles of our country use the terms “The Creator,” “Divine Providence,” “The Lord” and other references to God. These terms apply to all religions.


What is more disturbing to me is that we do not follow the principles of Jesus. For example, Jesus said that God would judge us by the way we treat each other. Do we take the time to be sensitive to people’s needs? Do we gossip about other people? Do we treat all people with equality? Do we have a loving attitude toward people of other nationalities and races?

Jesus taught us the power of forgiveness. Do we forgive others? Or when someone hurts us, do we want to get even? Jesus taught us to do the right thing. Do we cheat on our taxes? When we vote, do we weigh the moral values of the candidates or the proposition? Are we aware of the needs of the poor?

Jesus preached about the evils of pride, injustice, hypocrisy, blindness, the abuse of power, having too many possessions. He warned us about being greedy. We ignore this 95 percent of Jesus’ teaching to concentrate on a morality that usually deals with human sexuality.


The great commandment is, “Love God above all things and love our neighbor as ourselves.” Do we love ourselves? Do we eat properly? Do we exercise enough? Do we take quiet time for ourselves? Do we get enough sleep? Do we use by talents and gift in the service of our families and community? Is God really first in our lives?

In the Genesis stories, God tells us to be the stewards of creation. We are to take care of animals, the air we breathe, the water in our lakes, rivers and oceans. Do we pollute our environment?

We do not have two lives: a religious one and a secular one. If we are serious about being Christian, we have to be like Christ. He is “the way.” That means being fully alive, being sensitive, letting go of past hurts, getting our priorities straight in life, and spending time alone.


[Our founding fathers] all believed in God. However, they never established Christianity or any other religion as the official religion of the country.

Is this a Christian nation or have we fallen away?