We all know that this country was founded on religious freedom, but we also know that many Christians of the nation wish to rewrite history to make it seem as if we were founded upon Judeo-Christian values. Not so. The Treaty of Tripoli says, and I quote:

“The United States government is in no way founded upon the Christian religion.”

But tell that to Arizona Republicans, who have introduced a bill that would require high school graduates to take an oath that includes the words “so help me God.” In other words, if you’re an atheist, you have to proclaim belief in God to graduate high school. Unbelievable in 2013, in a country that was founded upon religious freedom, right?





Here is the oath:

I, _______, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge these duties; So help me God.

The bill, House Bill 2467, would violate the Constitution by requiring a religious declaration to graduate. Hell, Pentecostal and Jehovah’s Witness students can’t even say the Pledge of Allegiance due to religious liberties, and you cannot legally make them do it. How the hell do they expect to make something like this stand?

Now, it is bad enough that they even have this. It is a complete waste of time. This is the work of quite a few GOP legislators: Bob Thorpe, Sonny Borrelli, Carl Seel, T.J. Shope, Jeff Dial, David Livingston, Chester Crandell, and Steve Smith. Aren’t they supposed to be making school better, or something? Like, imparting more knowledge? Memorize their names, folks. They are the ones wishing to take away your religious freedom.

The thing is, we aren’t taking oaths of office when we graduate high school. We are taking courses that we pass to show we have a certain amount of knowledge to gain a rite of passage, and to show we know certain things. I repeat, we are not taking an oath of office. But that isn’t the point. Hell, even if we were, it is unconstitutional to have a religious test for public office. So, Republicans, guess what? On this one, your argument is invalid. Get a life. You cannot and will not sneak fundamentalist Christianity into public schools and essentially make being an atheist illegal. It is against the Constitution you all claim to uphold so righteously.