It's so interesting that one of the biggest news stories right now is Romney's speech about his faith. I'm currently reading "American Gospel" by Jon Meacham. Well, I've been reading it for several months now. (I don't get a lot of time to sit and read)
Anyway, the chapter I was reading this morning covered Theodore Roosevelt speaking about Taft's position while running for the Presidency. Taft was a Unitarian and did not believe Jesus Christ was the son of God. TR actually spoke out for him.
"If there is one thing for which we stand in this country, it is for complete religious freedom and for the right of every man to worship his Creator as his conscience dictates....it is an emphatic negation of this right to cross-examine a man on his religious views before being willing to support him for office. Is he a good man, and is he fit for the office? These are the only questions which there is a right to ask, and to both of these in Mr. Taft's case, the answer must be in the affirmative....Discrimination against the holder of one faith means retaliatory discrimination against men of other faiths. The inevitable result of entering upon such a practice would be an abandonment of our real freedom of conscience and a reversion to the dreadful conditions of religious dissension which in so many lands have proved fatal to true liberty, to true religion, and to all advance in civilization." ~Theodore Roosevelt
There is a lot more that he spoke out on with that topic, but I'm trying to keep it short. The book is amazing and I suggest it for anyone, Christian, or otherwise to read it. It's all about the struggle between church and state in our country. It has been a fight since the formation of our government. Lincoln did not choose an official religion and that was frowned upon. Roosevelt wanted to remove "In God we trust" from coins. He stated, "It is a motto which it is indeed well to have inscribed on our great national monuments, in our temples of justice, in our legislative halls, and in buildings such as those at West Point and Annapolis-in short, wherever it will tend to arouse and inspire a lofty emotion in those who look theron...but it seems to me eminently unwise to cheapen such a motto by use on coins, just as it would be to cheapen it by use on postage stamps, or in advertisements."
I've just learned a lot about past Presidents and our founding fathers and their faiths. Jefferson was also an Unitarian and would even cut parts of his Bible out that he felt he did not agree with.
I'm not even sure where I fall with the argument of church and state. On one hand, I fall with the lefties and say that our country was founded on having religious freedom. That is the whole purpose in coming here. We wanted to be free to worship in any way for whatever religion we choose. Then, at the same time, I think that our country was formed with similar Christian beliefs and fear that if we let go of some of our faith based practices, that our country could change in a negative way.
Basically, just like the founding fathers, I'm stuck right in the middle.
One side note: Only 11 days until I jump on a plane for 10 days in Texas!
