ARE WE BECOMING A GODLESS COUNTRY?
Posted by Tim Bryce on September 12, 2014
BRYCE ON POLITICS & RELIGION
– What the “separation of church and state” really means.
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For some reason, Americans believe there is a legal requirement to separate church and state in the US Constitution. It is now commonly believed organized religion has no business in the workings of the state. The reality is, there is no such stipulation whatsoever in the Constitution. There is only a couple of references to religion in our governing documents. The first is in Article 6 of the Constitution whereby “…no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.” The second reference is in Amendment One of the Bill of Rights whereby, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;…” I cannot speak for the governing documents of the various states and territories, but as far as the Constitution is concerned, that is all there is pertaining to religion.
So where does this presumption of separation come from? Two places: other countries who embrace such a concept, but more importantly in a letter written by Thomas Jefferson in 1802 to Baptists regarding the 1st amendment. Jefferson was president at the time and well known as author of the Declaration of Independence (but not the Constitution; that was Madison). In the letter, Jefferson wrote:
“Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof”, thus building a wall of separation between Church & State.”
By this letter to the Baptists, Jefferson meant that the United States would not establish a national church. This letter greatly influenced Supreme Court decisions. Keep in mind, Jefferson is speaking on another matter altogether and he is writing as president, not as a justice of the Supreme Court who should rightfully interpret the separation issue. However, for some strange reason, the letter was used to define the separation issue. In Everson vs. Board of Education in 1947, the Supreme Court used a portion of the letter (eight words only) and interpreted it to mean, “The First Amendment has erected ‘a wall of separation between church and state.’ That wall must be kept high and impregnable.” How they came to this conclusion mystifies Constitutional scholars to this day. It is interesting the Supreme Court based its conclusion on an interpretation of a letter, not the Constitution itself.
Based on this Supreme Court decision, atheists and attorneys have used this as a means to drive God out of our country. Today, we hear of football teams prohibited from saying a nondenominational prayer before or after a game, Christmas trees have been banned from schools, students are being suspended for saying “bless you” after hearing someone sneeze, there are movements to remove anything pertaining to God out of government buildings, and there is even an attack on our national motto, “In God we Trust.”
The latest attack on God is found in the US Navy where atheists started a movement to remove Gideon Bibles from Navy lodges. These Bibles were provided for the comfort of sailors staying at the lodges. The removal of the Bibles created a furor when it was reported in the press. So much so, the Navy ordered the Gideon Bibles returned back into the lodge rooms.
Make no mistake, Christianity is under attack here, not Judaism, Islam, or even witchcraft, and it appears to be a concerted effort. Some contend it is intended to undermine the country as Christianity played an important role in the founding of America. Whatever the reason, we must beware of such attacks and be prepared to repel them,
If by some chance, our opponents are successful in eradicating God in the federal government, I am one of those who believe all federal employees should work on Christmas Day, particularly postal workers.
Is there really a separation of church and state in the Constitution? No, but it will be necessary to bring a lawsuit to the Supreme Court to overturn their 1947 misinterpretation.
I pray we do not become a Godless country. Without God, the country will fall.
Keep the Faith!
P.S. – Even Sky Masterson read the Gideon Bible, as did Rocky Raccoon.
Note: All trademarks both marked and unmarked belong to their respective companies.
Tim Bryce is a writer and the Managing Director of M&JB Investment Company (M&JB) of Palm Harbor, Florida and has over 30 years of experience in the management consulting field. He can be reached at timb001@phmainstreet.com
For Tim’s columns, see:
timbryce.com
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Copyright © 2014 by Tim Bryce. All rights reserved.
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THE BRYCE IS RIGHT! 
Albert McClelland said
So Mote it Be…
Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE smartphone Albert H McClelland O.S.M.,PM
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Tim Bryce said
A W.A. of the Dominican Republic wrote…
“AMEN!!!!!! PREACH IT BROTHER!!!”
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P. Kathy Kleiman said
I beg to differ, Tim. I just received a video from Rabbi Eickstein at The Fellowship Between Christians and Jews and if that were true, then why is Israel being investigated for war crimes and NOT Hamas? Ted Cruz was booed offstage when he said no greater friend was Israel. He said, “If you do not stand with Israel, I will not stand with you” and walked off stage. Rabbi believes Europe, which antisemitism is racing through yet again, will succumb to Radical Islam and yet a third time we will have to form a coalition between Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the US and for the 3rd time, go back to Europe. I have know Rabbi and support his group. He is helping Jewish Ukrainians come to Israel and he gives boxes of food for 25$ to the poor older Jews which are so humongous that I am ashamed when I go into an ice house and buy $25 of nothingness. So to say there is no attack on Jews would be a serious mistake. Also, I had some information that at a military base here in San Antonio,(I do a lot of papers for the Iranians who were training there in the ’80’s, then it was the Iraqis in the ’90’s-14 now it is the Saudis,) where in the first class there is always a Chaplain there. This instructor was so harsh, saying that “he does not want to here anything about praying, or especially Jesus in his troops.” At that point, the Chaplain told him to calm down and the Chaplain was thrown from the classroom. A Saudi Major I happened to be working for stood next to that “trembling” Chaplain at the canteen coffee pot and he told him the entire story before realizing that he should not be talking about this. So, I had my source, but never heard back from Eugene Degauglio, the Public Defender’s Organization. It would have made a big story, I just would not be able to reveal my source. But I am happy that I finally did get my meeting with my Representative, Lamar Smith, as the other Heritage Action Sentinels and NumbersUSA members have all already had theirs. Live Love from the great Republic of Texas!
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Dustin Tarditi said
I have met several self-proclaimed atheists and some agnostics. None of them took any insult from the simple “Goodbye” at the end of a meeting or engagement… if fact, it’s defined as “used to express good wishes when parting or at the end of a conversation.”
This now quaint parting address, however, has a powerful origin etymologically speaking:
English: late 16th century: contraction of God be with you!
(do be sure to capitalize it, giving due reverence to the origin of the word…)
So, to all the atheists and agnostics out there that attempt to strip respect to Deity from the fabric of our lives: Goodbye!
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P. Kathy Kleiman said
You are so right. We are having a relentless war on religion when we should be having a Great Revival of the Teachings of God and a RETEACHING OF AMERICA from the Institutions of higher learning who are teaching their students about Lady Gaga and her influence when these college kids cannot even tell you what country who was the greatest global power on Earth at that time that we won our Independence from.Many answer, “France?” Any alien who is trying to get citizenship the right way have to know 149 questions about the founding and government in the US. My research shows that not 2 out of 20 students can tell me what are the three separation of powers! My 22 yr. old is taking Government and US History and I have already warned her of the “watch words” to watch for that will show what the political leanings are of her professors. And to question and when he answers incorrectly about the Constitution, she should correct him in front of the entire class. They should be damned angry and not being taught the basic founding, who the writer of the Declaration of Independence was and who wrote the Constitution. The answer I get over and over was that it was the founders! Nope, it was one man. Jefferson wrote the Declaration and Madison wrote the Constitution. Partisan politics should have no place in our kid’s classrooms and the truth should always be taught, no matter how bad it was, like what we stole from the Indians, it should be taught. There was a Drama teacher who was showing how Blacks were portrayed in the movies because they couldn’t be actors themselves. She showed a picture of Al Jolson without his makeup, then with his black face and white bulging eyes. She was fired! For explaining things that is exactly the same as women were not able to be actors in England so the men dressed as women, as in the Greek plays. Why is this different? Shame on them from keeping the truth of our history, good or bad from our students who will go out into this world as a supposed educated voters and will be in essence an uninformed, uneducated voters, it they vote at all! Live Love from the Great Republic of Texas!
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Tim Bryce said
Kathy – Thanks for your comments. I also think you’ll enjoy my article from last week, “Evil within out Midst” – https://timbryce.com/2014/08/27/evil-within-our-midst/
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Don Frankel said
i think the next time and every time that anyone evokes “separation of Church and State” we need to ask just what does “prohibiting the free exercise thereof” mean. Nice simple direct statement in clear concise English that means you make express your religious beliefs in anyway and wherever you wish.
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Tim Bryce said
A J.P. of New York City wrote…
“Tim from your link: “For some reason, Americans believe there is a legal requirement to separate church and state in the US Constitution.”
i submit: the reason is that powers that be wanted the Religion of Secular Humanism to be our USA’s national religion.
The 1963 Warren Court, Supreme Court ruled that there would be no prayer or Bible reading in school . The court’s “majority ruling” reasoned that being neutral or not favoring one religion over another was the same as not allowing religious practices in school.
Justice Potter Stewart
Justice Potter Stewart, the one dissenting vote blasted the ruling saying, “It led not to true neutrality with respect to religion, but to the establishment of a religion of secularism.”
Again from your link: “Is there really a separation of church and state in the Constitution? No, but it will be necessary to bring a lawsuit to the Supreme Court to overturn their 1947 misinterpretation.”
Tim, am in 100% agreement. My only question is: where are all those AWOL Law Graduates from Catholic and Christian Universities these last 69 years? “
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Tim Bryce said
An S.R. of Phoenix, Arizona wrote…
“The United States is in Bible prophecy when Jacob blessed Joseph ‘ s sons. One would be a company of nations & one would be a great nation that is England and the U.S. God has been with us from the beginning & has moved the 10 tribes from the middle east through Europe (who beat the Romans, that was us the 10 tribes, who are not lost but alive and well) & on into America!! If you look though our history we have been a blessed country.
It would surely be a Tragedy if a small group of people who do not believe in The Almighty were able to influence the larger group who does “That God has to go”. Let’s not let that happen & we will continue to be blessed!! “
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Tim Bryce said
A D.B. of Jacksonville Beach, Florida wrote…
” Well said Tim. It is curious that the SCOTUS ruling cited the 1 paragraph and ignored more than 10,000 pages of Jefferson’s writings and speeches that clearly show the opposite of the interpretation of that paragraph. One need only look at 1 act as president to see where Jefferson stood; he insured every federal building in DC was used for church services on Sundays.
The belief of the founders can be found in the first book printed by Congress “to be used as a text in every school” the Congressional Bible.
The 1st Amendment clearly specifies Congress shall pass no law to prevent establishment of a national religion and to insure states rights. At the time several state constitutions specified not only the state religion some (Mass.) specified the state would insure that sermons were delivered in the public square.
Sadly, we have now devolved to the national religion of human secularism.
That said, we have not become a Godless nation. While more people are leaving denominations growth in non-denominational churches continues. People aren’t leaving religion they are leaving denominations.
More sadly, secularists have successfully made the Judeo-Christian ethic synonymous with religion and made great strides in stopping at the first comma- prohibiting the free exercise thereof.
The founders were of many denominations, they had no intention of inserting religion into the country, they also knew that the freedoms created in this country were greater than, and could not result in posterity if people were left to their own devices, if self pursuit and self enlightenment were the basis for the national ethic so they wrote the Constitution based in Judeo-Christian ethic, not religion.
We need only look at the change in society over the past few decades to see the decline as America has evolved from we to me. The founders took great effort to create a democratic republic and not establish a democracy because they wanted to eliminate ‘mob rule’ where current morals and ethic are established by polls.
America is the greatest country in history undergoing one of its biggest challenges as human secularists push to indoctrinate children and the public in a belief system that has historically failed and is contrary to our founding documents.
It is founded on the principle that all rights are endowed by our Creator”
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POLITICAL STREET SIGNS « THE BRYCE IS RIGHT! said
[…] ARE WE BECOMING A GODLESS COUNTRY? […]
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Tim Bryce said
An A.M. of Winona Lake, Indiana wrote…
“It is ironic to me, that the separation of church and state has become almost the opposite—the state dictates what the church can and can’t do. Christians can’t pray in public. They can’t have crosses on their football helmets. They can’t make a stance on gay marriage—even in their own private businesses—without backlash. They can’t say Christianity is the only way without being condemned as nothing but a judgemental fanatic. Christian scientists can’t question evolution without being black-listed in the science community. Instead of separation of church and state, the state has slowly but surely turned and aimed its arrows at the church. Freedom of religion has become freedom from religion.”
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theeditingchair said
The God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob is the same God both Christians and Jews worship. Both Revelations and Isaiah both say exactly what Political Correctness is in it’s exactiveness..not a word, I know it, but it should be! There is not one righteous man, no not one. So, we are in bigger trouble than Obama could ever bring us. Not standing and supporting Israel, as when a “Christian group” booed Ted Cruz off stage for saying that Israel is the best friend we have. Said before he walked offstage: “If you will not stand with Israel, I will not stand with you.” And so should it be. We both worship the same God, for Heaven’s sake. The battle will be in Meggido and Jerusalem. Why is that city so important? why does God say,” I will curse those who curse Israel and I will bless those who bless Israel?” People better search out their consciences because the time to stand and choose is now. I WILL NOT wait until the last moment. As for me and mine, we stand firm with Israel!
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Tim Bryce said
Amen!
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Tim Bryce said
A J.Z. of Montgomery, Illinois wrote…
Jefferson actually wrote a piece of legislation called the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom that clearly shows his concept of separation of church and state is being misrepresented by today’s liberals. His legislation begins with
“Whereas, Almighty God hath created the mind free;
That all attempts to influence it by temporal punishments or burthens, or by civil incapacitations tend only to beget habits of hypocrisy and meanness, and therefore are a departure from the plan of the holy author of our religion, who being Lord, both of body and mind yet chose not to propagate it by coercions on either, as was in his Almighty power to do”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Statute_for_Religious_Freedom
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Tim Bryce said
An S.M. of Huntington, West Virginia wrote…
“Given the enormous amount of welfare programs and recipients of those programs, I don’t know how anyone could imagine there is a separation of church and state. According to our Bible—-a man who does not work does not eat; a man who does not support his family is worse than an infidel, etc. I always understood that it was the family’s obligation to take care of their sick or lazy. After the familial obligations, wasn’t it supposed to be the church? I have never objected to helping those who cannot help themselves; however, I do not appreciate being forced to take care of those who are too lazy to get off their back pockets. Since when are the taxpayers everyone’s family or the church? Religion in this country is dying because people are shown every day that they can do so many things they choose to do and few are punished. Why would people continue to turn to God when the government is their god?”
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Tim Bryce said
A P.K. of San Antonio, Texas wrote…
“Homosexuality, fornication, and even infanticide (abortion) all are inspired by the spirit of harlotry. Hosea 5:4 says that “The spirit of harlotry have caused them all to stray, and they have played the Harlot against their God. Maybe that is why a barbaric, fiercely cruel religion is becoming more attractive than the loving God of our Lord? Nahum says that Nations and Families, because of the multitude of harlotries of the seductive harlot, the mistress of sorceries, who sell nations through her harlotries, and families through her sorceries. Nations and families are sold into spiritual bondage by the witchcraft of the spirit of harlotry. When we play around with sexual sin, we open ourselves to this demonic spirit. We must battle this principality that dominates our nation or we will never win against ISIL. The entire history of the Bible shows that a Nation gone astray will always succumb to the Nation more bloody because we have been forced to lose our way.”
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