George Washington – The Father of Our Country

I SWORE I would never talk about religion on this blog! It’s a well-known fact that the surest ways to offend everybody, including close friends and family, is to talk about politics and religion. Of course I’ve already crossed the political Rubicon, and with the candidacy of Rick Santorum I see NO way to avoid the big one….religion.

One of the most oft-repeated memes of the right-wing, is that our nation was founded “on Judeo-Christian” beliefs. In other words, we are a “Christian nation”. The truth of course is that our nation was born from the collective minds of a diverse group of men with widely varied religious philosophies. The truth is also that our government was carefully designed by these same men to be neutral on the subject of religion. If they had intended to make this a “Christian nation”, you’d have thought they would have mentioned that fundamental truth in the freaking constitution!! But NO, there is NO mention of Christ in that foundational document EXCEPT in the final words where it says “in the year of our lord”, and that was the conventional way of indicating the year during that period of time.

I’ve tried to focus my writing this week, on the eccentricities of Rick Santorum, and he has a LOT of them. Today though, the subject is specifically religion and that is an area in which Mr. Santorum is clearly out of the mainstream. In a speech earlier this week, Santorum was talking about the impact of global warming. He referred to the entire subject as something “made up” by “radical environmentalists” to destroy the economy of course, then he said “it’s not about the quality of life, it’s not about your jobs. It’s about some phony ideal, a phony theology. Oh, not a theology based on the Bible, but a different theology”.

And there you have it, in a nutshell, Santorum’s idea of how government should function, under a “theology based on the Bible”. Now in the interest of fairness, I will admit that he has come out in a carefully worded statement, stating that he did not want to make the United States government a “theocracy” but his words, his record, and his entire demeanor suggest otherwise.

Let’s consider just a few of Santorum’s most recent observations about life in America. He is on record as saying that contraceptives should not be covered under insurance. He said that contraception was ” Not OK It’s a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be. It’s not for the purpose of procreation.” Where does this idea of sex being purely for procreation come from? From his religious beliefs of course…and it’s a radical interpretation of those beliefs.

He has publicly stated that pre-natal screenings are bad and that they should not be made available without cost to pregnant women (although apparently it’s OK for those families who can afford to pay $2000 out-of-pocket). And why does he thing the Obama administration wants to have these procedures covered under insurance? Because apparently, the Obama administration wants to increase the number of abortions as much as possible. This idiotic idea comes from his religious beliefs…and it’s a radical interpretation of those beliefs.

He has stated that he doesn’t think women belong in combat and he’s stated that women should not be working outside the home. Both of those ideas are drawn directly from his fundamentalist religious beliefs, and they are both radical interpretations of those beliefs.

In a speech he made in 2008, he said, “Satan has his sights on the United States of America,” the conservative presidential candidate warned in 2008. “Satan is attacking the great institutions of America, using those great vices of pride, vanity and sensuality as the root to attack all of the strong plants that has so deeply rooted in the American tradition.” He said that we were engaged in what he called a “spiritual war” in this country and added, “The Father of Lies has his sights on what you would think the Father of Lies would have his sights on: a good, decent, powerful, influential country — the United States of America,”. He then added that mainline Protestantism in this country “is in shambles. It is gone from the world of Christianity as I see it.”

Rick Santorum is also the candidate that called the Mormon faith a “dangerous cult” and has implied many times during the campaign that the President has Muslim views and was raised in Muslim traditions. Neither one of those statements is true of course nor does either one of those things matter in who we elect as our president, but Rick Santorum is a man DRIVEN by one thing, and one thing only. He wants to return our nation to its fictitional “Christian roots”. Nothing else is acceptable and he see it as his “god-given” duty to restore the Bible as the chief legal document in our country.

Wikipedia defines “Theocracy” as “a form of government in which the official policy is to be governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided, or simply pursuant to the doctrine of a particular religious sect or religion.” Look closely at this definition and see if you can detect a hint of Rick Santorum’s philosophies. There are of course, other theocracies across our globe. Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Mauritania are strict theocratic countries and have one thing in common. They are all centers of violence, human rights abuses, and atrocities committed daily under the name of god.

Now I don’t believe that Rick Santorum wants our country to be a place like that. I think he’s eccentric, not evil. But I so see a lot of similarities between those countries and any country that would seek to limit access to birth control, limit opportunities for women in the workplace, make decisions of conscience and morality for individuals and families. And I DO see how a country ruled by religious fundamentalists could easily slip into a country shackled by religiously based (Sharia??) law.

I’ve always thought that our founding fathers showed their true genius and their staunchest morality in keeping religion out of government. That separation of church and state is a fundamental part of who we are as a country and a major factor in the success of our great nation. We are a nation of religious freedom where ALL faiths are welcomed and respected. In Article VI of our Constitution it clearly states that, “No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States”. CLEARLY the founding fathers did not want a person’s religious beliefs to be a basis for electing our leaders nor did they want a person’s religious beliefs to be a basis for EXCLUDING leaders.

To put it simply, our country was founded as a secularly governed nation of people. Religious beliefs were not a part of our founding and should NEVER be a part of our government. Santorum’s ideals and worldview clearly show that he believes god should be in charge. His public statements clearly show that he strongly believes that his “Christian” god with his strict fundamentalist tenets should prevail over and above any other considerations.

There is a place for religion in life and there is a place for government. Jesus himself famously said, “render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, and render unto God, what is God’s.” What clearer statement of a separation of church and state has ever been uttered?

Mike Walker Tomorrow – Santorum on Economics and Government