Religion in the USA

Thanks to the religious lobby, many people assume that the USA has always been a deeply religious country. But most of the Founding Fathers were religious sceptics or even outright atheists. The Treaty of Tripoli, written during the administration of President George Washington, signed by President John Adams, and unanimously approved by the Senate, stated, "The Government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion." 

The phrase "separation of church and state" originated with Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence. He wrote: "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 and state." 

This was in a letter to a Baptist church, to reassure them that the U.S. would keep religion and government separate.  The Baptists were painfully aware of that danger, because of their own recent experiences of not being the favoured religion in some states and other countries.  Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun said it best.  "A government cannot be premised on the belief that all persons are created equal when it asserts that God prefers some."

Only in recent times have right wing conservatives attempted to smuggle religion into the laws and Constitution of the USA. In 1954, Republican President Eisenhower added "under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance. These words explicitly showed that his idea was to link religiosity and patriotism, at the height of the Cold War, when US imperialism was engaged in a global conflict with Soviet "Communism".   Following in his footsteps, the right wing Republican President Reagan established the National Day of Prayer in 1988. 

But the most extreme example is George W. Bush, who has done everything in his power to undermine the separation of state and church, which is one of the cornerstones of democracy and a pillar of the US Constitution. The religious right - extreme Christian fundamentalists with links to the most reactionary and aggressive circles of the US establishment - largely dominate the Republican Party. Not only do they organise noisy campaigns to alter the laws on abortion and other matters, but they are striving to subvert the Constitution itself.

On March 27, 2003, House Resolution 153 passed by an overwhelming vote.  It urges the President to issue a proclamation "designating a day for humility, prayer, and fasting for all people of the United States."  We are "to seek guidance from God to achieve a greater understanding of our own failings," and "to gain resolve in meeting the challenges that confront our nation."  The Senate unanimously passed a similar bill.  These government actions violate the spirit, if not the letter, of the First Amendment. 

Only the Reverend Tony Blair equalled Bush in his religious mania. These two gentlemen apparently prayed together before they decided to bomb the Iraqis to hell. This is how the religious right interprets the phrase: "Blessed be the Peacemakers." Here rabid reactionism tries to cover its nakedness with religious hypocrisy.

Thus, over 200 years after the American Revolution, the decay of capitalism is reflected in the desire of an important section of the ruling class to abolish fundamental liberties, cancel progress and replace science with obscurantism. This is just another indication that capitalism is no longer compatible with progress and the advancement of human freedom and civilization.

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