Is America a Christian Nation? First Amendment Violation

  

"As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility, of Mussulmen [Muslims]; and as the said States never entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries."

— The Treaty of Tripoli: Ratified by the U.S. Senate in 1797.

As long as I have walked this arid wilderness, I have witnessed a fascinating paradox in America. It's spectacular because it exists right in front of everyone's eyes but remains unnoticed. It is a jaw-dropping violation of the separation of church and state by the Judao-Christian cult. Yes, it's technically a cult, and "you're not in it" if you don't believe in their celestial guru. And let us not forget that Christianity is based on the acceptance of a human sacrifice to appease the anger of Jehovah. That's not hyperbole.

Oxford Dictionary - cult (noun)

• a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object.
• a group of people having religious beliefs or practices regarded by others as strange.
• a misplaced or excessive admiration for a particular person or thing.

Another oddity is the coupling of the words "Judao and Christianity" since they are diametrically opposed. Judaism believes in One God and rejects the Christian concept of God in human form. Christianity is based on the life of Christ and threatens everlasting damnation for those who reject this idea. That would put Judaism in the crosshairs. Could there be a political agenda here?

Now, most Jews and Christians I have met are generally kind, ethical people. Having grown up in a Jesus cult, I am no stranger to orthodoxy. I was born Catholic, raised in the Worldwide Church of God, and became a missionary and evangelist in my early 20s. After awakening to my non-believing primate self in 2012, I took a closer look at Christianity in America. 

I wondered why witnesses in a court of law and incoming presidents raise their right hand and place their left hand on a Bible to swear loyalty and allegiance. I wondered why political rallies invoke God, pray collectively, and are filled with Jesus-chanting believers with apocalyptic messages about the future of our country. I got curious about the phrase "In God We Trust" added to our coins and dollar bills in 1957. I couldn't help but notice the Masonic All-Seeing-Eye at the top of an esoteric pyramid surrounded by occult symbols on our paper currency. Where's Jesus?

Christians claim that America is a Christian nation founded on Christian principles by the Founding Fathers. If that's the case, why are there Masonic symbols on government buildings rather than symbols and statues of Jesus, the Angels, and Jehovah? Why is an Obelisk representing the Egyptian sun god Ra towering in our nation's capital? I don't see a colossal crucifix on the national mall.

The origins of the United States are intricately linked to the Order of the Bavarian Illuminati. George Washington, the inaugural President of the United States, was a member of this order, as were several of his generals who were also Freemasons. Thomas Jefferson played a significant role in drafting and securing the signatures for the American Declaration of Independence, with a notable portion of the signatories being Freemasons. It's reasonable to assert that the existence of the Illuminati played a pivotal role in the formation of the United States of America.

America is more of a Masonic country than Christian. Even the streets of the nation's capital are laid out in Freemasonic geometry. 

The Founding Fathers and Religion

Many founding fathers and presidents like George Washington were deists and spoke against organized religion. They understood the necessity of separating religion from government to protect the people from tyrannical ideologies.

Washington “avoided referring to Jesus Christ in his letters, attended religious services irregularly, did not kneel during prayer, and often dodged out of church before communion,” according to Lengel

 — Moral Minority: Our Skeptical Founding Fathers

One of the most well-known quotes regarding the separation of church and state comes from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptists in 1802. In this letter, Jefferson used the phrase "a wall of separation between Church & State" to express his views on religious freedom and the importance of preventing government interference in religious matters. The full quote is as follows:

"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."

This letter reflects Thomas Jefferson's commitment to the idea that the government should not interfere with religious beliefs or practices and that all individuals should be free to worship (or not worship) according to their conscience. The phrase "separation of church and state" has since become a central principle in discussions about religious freedom and the relationship between religion and government in the United States.

 Many of our deistic Founding Fathers clarified their contrarian views:

"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."

— Thomas Jefferson

"During almost fifteen centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What have been its fruits? More or less in all places, pride and indolence in the clergy; ignorance and servility in the laity; in both, superstition, bigotry, and persecution."

— James Madison

"I do not find in orthodox Christianity one redeeming feature."

— Thomas Jefferson

Although I understand the need some people have for faith, the whole idea behind America's principles was secular. It didn't matter what the Founding Fathers personally believed. It mattered what they implemented into the rules and regulations of government. The United States represents all faiths under the First Amendment:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Religion Does Not Reflect Morality

Christian apologists have injected the idea into our society that Christian values are the measuring stick for morality. This couldn't be further from the truth. Based on its history, it could be argued that Christianity is based on horrific violence and violation of human rights. Even the belief that all citizens who don't believe as they do (non-club members) will be damned to Hell for eternal torture is unethical. Islam has its own version of negation and punishment for infidels.

All religions have ethical principles (shrouded in obnoxious beliefs), but the most crucial point is that humans are "good without God." You see it every day around the world. Humans do good things for each other. Social workers labor for society, the 'anonymous' donate to charities, and empathic people offer their time on hotlines for rape victims, child abuse survivors, drug addicts, and suicide victims.

On the other side of the coin, the devils of religion reflect the evils of the human ape. The history of human violence is far too vast to cover here. But if you are agreeable to the myth of the Noble Savage, you may be shocked to learn about the human predator.

Then you have the startling crime stats on secular and religious countries. From the article Think religion makes society less violent? Think again:

If it were true that when belief in God weakens, societal well-being diminishes, then we should see abundant evidence for this. But we don’t. In fact, we find just the opposite: Those societies today that are the most religious — where faith in God is strong and religious participation is high — tend to have the highest violent crime rates, while those societies in which faith and church attendance are the weakest — the most secular societies — tend to have the lowest.

According to the United Nations’ 2011 Global Study on Homicide, of the 10 nations with the highest homicide rates, all are very religious, and many — such as Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador and Brazil — are among the most theistic nations in the world. Of the nations with the lowest homicide rates, nearly all are very secular, with seven ranking among the least theistic nations, such as Sweden, Japan, Norway and the Netherlands.

According to an article by Phil Zuckerman, professor of sociobiology and secular studies:

What about within the United States? According to the latest study from the Pew Research Center, the 10 states that report the highest levels of belief in God are Louisiana, Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee and Oklahoma (tied with Utah). The 10 states with the lowest levels of belief in God are Maine, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Alaska, Oregon and California.

The Separation of Church and State

Let's let the Founding Fathers speak for themselves on the separation of church and state:

"The civil government functions with complete success by the total separation of the Church from the State." - James Madison (Writings, 1819)

"No religious doctrine shall be established by law." - Elbridge Gerry (Annals of Congress, 1789)

"The divorce between Church and State ought to be absolute." - James Madison (Letter to Robert Walsh, 1819)

"Congress should not establish a religion and enforce the legal observation of it by law." - James Madison (Annals of Congress, 1789)

"Every new and successful example of a perfect separation between ecclesiastical and civil matters is of importance." - James Madison (Letter to Edward Livingston, 1822)

"Religious bondage shackles and debilitates the mind and unfits it for every noble enterprise." - James Madison (Letter to William Bradford, 1774)

"I do not believe that any type of religion should ever be introduced into the public schools of the United States." - Benjamin Franklin (Letter to Charles W. F. Dumas, 1787)

"Our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions any more than our opinions in physics or geometry." - Thomas Jefferson (Notes on Virginia, 1782)

"The best service that can be rendered to religion is to let it be free in its own untrammeled exercise by all mankind." - John Carroll (Letter to Charles Carroll, 1785)

"If I could conceive that the general government might ever be so administered as to render the liberty of conscience insecure, I beg you will be persuaded that no one would be more zealous than myself to establish effectual barriers against the horrors of spiritual tyranny, and every species of religious persecution." - George Washington (Letter to the United Baptist Churches of Virginia, 1789)

Self-Realization or Unrealized Puppets?

I agree with Christopher Hitchens that "Religion Poisons Everything." But don't get me wrong, humans have an incredible subjective ecosystem that should not be dismissed by born-again atheists. Our inner world is where our thoughts and feelings exist. It is the realm of our personal origins rooted in childhood.

People who are unaware of their psychological shadow are sleepwalkers. Possessed by their unowned toxic complexes, they project onto others and have no measuring rod for ethical behavior. They are unrealized puppets of their unconscious.

The religious story is nothing more than a template for our individual stories. We must retrieve our emotional history. We must find our spiritual story, accept our real-life origins, heal from our wounds, and accept life on its own terms. We discover who we are by descending from heavenly myths and doing the internal work of self-realization.

American Christians are caught up in a political agenda that appeals to their emotions and blind faith. Both politicians and the public violate the Constitution every time they invoke their God from the legislative pulpit. And yet, the average person is so drunk on normalcy bias they can't see the forest from the trees.

For those who do, it's time to raise the temperature of this conversation.

— Zzenn