by Keith Leslie

Over the past few months, we have received many letters from loyal Beacon readers. There is a stirring amongst the faith community... and rightfully so. Our world is changing all around us, with much we hold dear being tossed aside. We are encouraged to hear from Brothers and Sisters in Christ, who share their faith for the Glory of His Kingdom. We encourage your comments, so keep the cards and letters coming!

Here is a recent letter from a Beacon reader. Dear Editor: The phrase “One Nation under God” was added by Congress in 1954 to our Pledge of Allegiance as an expression of our character and cultural foundations. It declares a sentiment that, though challenged of late, would have been unquestionably acceptable to the Founding Fathers, had they ventured to draft such an oath of loyalty. For indeed, the Founding Fathers viewed this democratic experiment we call America as a Christian nation.

Their definition of the term “Christian nation” is not to be confused with the refashioned definition of today’s more progressive thinkers. It did not mean then, nor does it now, that America was to be a country composed exclusively of Christian adherents or requiring religious tests to govern. It did not mean then, nor does it now, that all citizens must embrace Christian belief or expression, or that Biblical laws should be imposed on citizens.

It does, however, acknowledge the legal and cultural fabric of our nation envisioned through the lens of a Judeo-Christian mindset and ethic. It is this worldview more than any other philosophical viewpoint which has shaped our culture. Not only did it serve as the new country’s best foundation, in Chief Justice John Marshall’s words, “It would be strange, indeed, if with such a people our institutions did not presuppose Christianity and did not often refer to it and exhibit relations with it.” Subsequently in our 233 years as a nation, our values, institutions, and actions have been largely shaped by the Judeo-Christian ethic.

During that time, the definition of America as a Christian nation—a nation founded on clearly Christian and Biblical principles—has been reaffirmed by representatives of all branches of government, as well as the common citizen. Even a cursory review of these reveals the historical contortions of those who wish to rewrite history to produce a “more enlightened”—if not fanciful—version of America’s beginnings void of the trappings of religion.

The Founding Fathers could not write, much less think, without constant reference to the hand of the Almighty upon the Nation and its institutions. John Adams summarized for many of his day in stating that “the general principles of which the [founding] fathers achieved independence were … the general principles of Christianity.” Even Thomas Jefferson, who has achieved patron saint status to progressives who wish to rewrite the history of the nation’s founding, acknowledged as much. Granted, his deist views would not fare well in conservative churches today; he was often biting in his criticism of the clergy and the church, rejected much of the Bible, and even refrained from calling himself a Christian when pressed to do so. Yet his embrace of those views did not detract from his leadership in establishing Sunday worship in the US Capitol and his attendance at those services.

In so doing, he wrote, “No nation has ever existed or been governed without religion. Nor can be. The Christian religion is the best religion that has been given to man and I, as Chief Magistrate of this nation, am bound to give it the sanction of my example.” To the point, his own theology did not lead him to deny the irrefutable truth that the ship of state was tautly moored in the Christian tradition.

Nevertheless, rewriters of history delight in debunking historical truth. There seems no shortage of those who, either ignorant of American history or dishonest in their assessment of it, make great efforts to hide the truth of her roots. Even the most educated and articulate fall prey to perpetuating revisionist myths.

Most recently, President Obama ignored these historical facts and cultural considerations in his apparent efforts to build goodwill in the Muslim world by declaring America is not a Christian nation. Some agree, characterizing Christian-nation thinkers as no better than fundamentalist Muslims on a quest to institute some Western form of sharia. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In real terms, “Christian nation” simply acknowledges what most Americans and the world have always known, and what children of past generations were taught in school: that America was born out of a religious tradition with respect for the social, cultural, and legal principles of the Judeo-Christian tradition. These principles acknowledge God-given (rather than state-granted) inalienable rights, embrace freedom of choice in religious belief and expression, allow that theology and behavior are separate issues, and forbid government interference with the full practice of faith.

Importantly, however, it allows for the inclusion of Christian principles, based on the will of the governed, that promote the general welfare without enforcing theological beliefs. Adherence to any religion is a matter of personal choice rather than a label of the culture: to adapt an old adage, one is no more a Christian, in the spiritual sense of the word, by simply living in a nation founded on such principles than a mouse becomes a cookie by living in a cookie jar. To accept the truth of America’s history neither claims that all citizens are believers, disparages other religions among us, nor establishes a state church. America is by no means perfect and at times has strayed from the principles that many would describe as “Christian.” Yet those principles derived from the Christian tradition have served her well for 233 years. For her future, we would do better to live the sentiment of “one Nation under God” rather than to deny that part of her history. Sincerely, John M. Bell San Antonio TX