Supreme Court once confirmed: We are a Christian nation

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(03-30-2016, 09:32 AM)Belsnickel Wrote: It was first coined by Jefferson, but the idea of SOCAS is something that really got a kick start with Martin Luther in his two kingdoms doctrine. The idea became a large part of the Enlightenment thanks to John Locke. The Enlightenment, more than anything else, is what influenced the Bill of Rights. Jefferson used the term to describe a concept that was a large part of the Enlightenment and was designed to protect primarily the church from corruption by the state.

Now, I've never seen a judge refer to a SOCAS clause, but they have interpreted the establishment clause to mean that, essentially, an all or none approach should be taken to religions. In order for a government to give favor to one religion, they must give favor to all. If they are not willing, then they cannot give favor to any.

The country may have been founded on Christian beliefs because the country always has been predominantly Christian and therefore the people in power have always had an influence of their faith. But, this is not a Christian nation. We do not have a state church. There is no official status within any religion for our elected officials and clergy are afforded no positions in the government due to their status simply as clergy. The state is secular, and that is as it should be.

There are a number of theories to the term Seperation of Church and State and folks will gravitate to the one that suits them most. I have read the term came from the fact that in early days Government meeting were held in churches, because they were places big enough to hold the meetings. A seperation of church and state was used to distinguish that although we are in church we are talking about the state.