Heather Meadows
Separation of Church and State
The appropriate relationship between the institutions of Church and State in relation to
the formation of laws, public policy, and political activity should be separate in the united states.
No government should be able to dictate what one can and cannot do based on their belief
system. This has been an issue within the country since it had first been founded. In 1663, in the
Colony of Rhode Island, Roger Williams stated that no one within the colony at any time should
be disciplined because of differing opinions in religions and that everyone should be able to
relish in their own judgments in religious matters.[1] Hanna M. Ryman and J. Mark Alcorn
states, that Roger Williams “believed that any government involvement in the church would
corrupt the church.”[2] This can be witnessed even today. For example, the separation of the
Methodist church. Because some of the Methodists would like to be “politically correct” by
allowing same-sex marriages and LGBTQ clergy inside the church. Just as the government
should not dictate right and wrong of our beliefs, we as Christians should recognize that we
should stay strictly Biblical teachings and not try to condone worldly ideas.
Benjamin Franklin claimed “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations
become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.”[3] For the church to be separate
from the government we as followers of Christ do need to continue to be virtuous and good. This
will prove to the government that they do not need to dictate to us because we can govern and
police ourselves. Once we turn into a people who do not heed God’s word the government will
step in and take control because we have proven that we were not afraid of even the Almightiest
ruler.
In 1802 President Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to the Danbury Baptist Association
which expresses “the idea that national government cannot take sides with one church over
another.”[4]This showed that the government would have no direct affiliation with any one
church institute. If the government was to take a side with religion it would go back to how
England, Rome and other countries were ruled by the Catholic Church. With this ruling the
church and the government were corrupt. We as a nation cannot afford for that to happen.
Especially with so many different religious sects and teaching in America.
One major issue that I think of is that some people of Islamic faith are trying to set up a
Sharia Law within the United States. This would be disastrous for this nation and all the core
beliefs that it was started from. Once this was set up there would be no longer a need for
separation of Church and State because Islam would become the nation’s religion. This would
cause the nation to step back on all the improvements and freedoms that everyone has gained.
Women and those of different ideas will once again become second class citizens.
The United States of America having a separation of Church and state is highly important
for the relationships and standings of both the church and state.
Reply to Heather
Heather,
I agree with that no government should be able to dictate our belief system because that
would be against true freedom. The founders knew that religion was necessary for freedom and
for the experiment of America to be successful. But religion needed to be detached from
government for success to happen[CITATION Met16 \p 75 \l 1033 ]. This detachment would
give water to the freshly planted seed of freedom to grow.
This detachment though was not to mean what it is interrupted to mean today. That the
government cannot have a religion. What I mean by that is the officials in government have the
right to believe in a faith themselves. Yet, today in city councils and up to the house floor, elected
officials cannot acknowledge their God in name (i.e. in Jesus’ name). But in a historical context
the Founders knew you could never really separate religion and politics because every man
places something at the apex of their axiological hierarchy and that something is their god. In
other words, all man has a religion and have religious presuppositions which will affect their
philosophy on government. So, on an individual level, a government official will be influenced
by whatever faith or lack of faith they follow, and they will legislate on that faith being it is who
they are.
The Founders believed and I think Jefferson summed it up nicely in his letter to Danbury
Baptist that, “the legitimate powers of government reach actions only and not opinions”
[ CITATION Tho20 \l 1033 ] In other words the government had jurisdiction on actions that are
crimes against government and society and man is held accountable for those crimes in order to
maintain the virtue of the people. This jurisdiction limited government from infringing on man’s
pursuit of religion and life, liberty, and happiness because these are all based on each person’s
opinion on how to obtain them.
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