Are we a Christian nation?

I’ll address this question on three points: the Constitution, the words of Christ, and common sense. In the interest of full disclosure, I must tell you that I consider myself a follower of Christ (thanks, Anne Rice). I’m going to start by making a point about the 2nd Amendment, specifically: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed…” Most “conservatives” interpret that to mean that US citizens have the right to have guns and that right cannot be taken away. I’m a liberal, so I personally think those words can be interpreted to mean something different, something that would allow the government to restrict and limit gun ownership. But you know what? My opinion is irrelevant. We have someone whose job it is to interpret the Constitution – the Supreme Court. They have ruled over and over again that this part of the Constitution guarantees us the right to keep and bear arms. Period. Case closed. Ok, I get it. If you want guns, go out and buy them. I’m not fighting that battle anymore because it’s been fought over and over again. The results are always the same, so you win. Now you might ask, “What the heck does this have to do with our being a Christian nation?” Well, this brings me to the 1st Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” Pretty much the same people who tout the Constitution and the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the 2nd Amendment want us to ignore the 1st Amendment and the Supreme Court’s interpretation. They want to pray on school grounds; they want to display symbols of their religion on government property; they want to do away with the separation of church and state. They say it’s their opinion that this amendment could be interpreted differently. Well, just as my opinion about the 2nd Amendment is irrelevant, so is theirs about the first. The Supreme Court has ruled over and over again that this part of the Constitution strictly states that there is a separation. If government funds paid for it, you don’t get to express your faith there – not Christian, not Hindu, not Muslim, not Rastafarian. The Constitution bars us from being legally recognized as a Christian nation. Period. Case closed. Don’t fight this battle anymore because it’s been fought over and over again. The results are always the same, so you lose. I have one more comment about the Constitution. If we decided to rewrite the Constitution and got a fair distribution of Americans – all beliefs, all walks of life, all regions – I believe they’d finally agree that we should have the right to keep and bear arms. I also firmly believe they’d retain the separation of church and state. See, our forefathers did have these discussions. There were some among them who strongly wanted a formal recognition of Christianity enshrined in our government. Well, they lost that argument when the Constitution was written, and they would lose it again. My second point goes to Christ’s own words. When He said, “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s,” I believe he was telling us that He was not connected to the government and what it did or stood for. There were other times when He disassociated Himself from the state and I truly believe that is what He would do if He were here today. So if Christ Himself wouldn’t seek government sanction or approval, why do you seek it for Him? Let government do what it does, and let Christians do what Christians do. If they were separate functions for Christ, why not let that be good enough for you? By the way, I’m perfectly aware that modern revisionists are “reinterpreting” Christ’s words and deeds so that they don’t “really mean that.” Stop it. If you want to lay claim to the title of “conservative,” then don’t be radical on this point. Accept the traditional, conservative interpretation and get over this. We don’t need government locations or functions to profess our faith. I realize that nothing requires any of us to apply common sense, but I think most of you, if you’ll just think about it for a minute, will admit I’m right. Barack Obama does not have the legal or moral authority to declare that we are NOT a Christian nation. George W. Bush did not have the legal or moral authority to declare that we ARE a Christian nation. Presidential pronouncements simply have nothing to do with it. We either are a Christian nation or we aren’t. We can only own that label through our behavior, and I’m not so sure we earn it. In other words, friends, we have to BE a Christian nation. Good luck with that. Are we a Christian nation? I could cite evidentiary examples for both “yes” and “no” arguments, which tells me the jury’s still out.