A Return to Founding Values

Recently, my older sister posted this on social media:

“So I just got an email from the RNC. Some chick in Florida wants me to donate so she can help return this country to the conservative values it was founded on. I don’t think she knows our history at all or she’d realize that we were founded on extremely radical values. You know, all that about all men created equal, no monarchy, no religious litmus test to hold office, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, a government of the people, for the people, and about the people. Frankly, these are the values I’d like us to go back to but the republicans are determined to make us unequal, institute a state religion, only white people (men, not women) are equal, government to serve corporations but not people. Notice I’m leaving out anything related to illegal searches, right to counsel, fair trials of our peers lest it be taken for anti cop instead of fundamental rights not given to citizens of other nations at that time.”

I keep hearing people say this is a Christian Nation, which I don’t believe to be true. I was taught in history classes that this nation was founded by people who were escaping places where there was an enforced religion, such as was the case in England. Those who came here wanted to practice religion as they saw it, not to be forced to believe the way the King did.

If you read our Constitution, you’ll find no mention of Jesus Christ or Christianity, nor the words the Bible, Creator, Divine, or even God. The only mention of religion is an injunction against religion, to wit: “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” (Article 6, section 3.) This gave equal citizenship to both believers and non-believers.

The Declaration of Independence took us away from the belief that Kings ruled under the authority of God, and set us up so that our government got its power from the people being governed. We are to have the power to say how we want the government to be. But the Declaration is not a constitutional document, merely a letter sent to England saying you don’t rule us now.

In 1796, we have the Treaty of Tripoli, which clearly states, in Article XI: “[T]he government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion.” This treaty was written while George Washington was president, and signed while John Adams was president.

In October of 1831 an Episcopalian minister complained in a sermon that none of the U.S. presidents to that date professed to being religious. This was widely reported at the time.

So I echo my sister in wishing we would return to our founding values. I’d like to see those who profess they are Christians actually “love thy neighbor as thyself,” whether those neighbors have the same religion, practice another religion, or even have no religion. As Pope Francis recently remarked in his speech to Congress, “Do unto others . . .”