Separation of Church and State

I'm not a political type of girl, nor do I feel I'm an activist or take strong stands on many topics. I'm generally laid back and probably like most Americans, I could be described as complacent. However, the older I get, the more I find myself not only interested in what is going on in our nation, but compelled to take a stand on certain things. I don't support one politician over another, I have a hard time saying that one man is or has the answers to the nation's problems. That is why we have a congress, right? So those elected officials can collaborate and determine what is best practice for us as a community? That being said, I do feel it is of great importance who we choose to place in the White House.

I read an article the other day that my father shared on Facebook. It was about one of the presidential candidates for this upcoming 2012 elections and the apparent stand this person takes on separation of church and state. The article claims this man has declared that the catholic church should be involved in law making (or that the principles they hold should be at any rate). Now, I will gladly admit that I have not done more research to find out whether this article is factual or not in regards to the stand this candidate makes but it brings up the topic of separation of church and state, which spurred my interest.

I was raised Baptist and spent most of my childhood going to church every week and very involved in church activities. My whole life I've heard members of the church say that Christians are persecuted and that we should have prayer in school, etc. One thing that always struck me as off about those statements is one; Christians make up the majority of the American population, two; what about the other kids who aren't Christians? What if they don't believe in a god at all, or they pray in a different way? How would I feel if I were forced to pray like them, or not be allowed to pray at all? How would I feel if the school said, "We're going to pray to Allah and you don't have to, but that is what we will do and you will be an outcast if you don't follow suit"? Saying, "You don't have to," but it's against the norm only makes a child feel ostracized and uncomfortable.


I beg my fellow citizens, my fellow Christians, my fellow PEOPLE, to think about what you're saying when you demand that church be a part of the government.  THINK about the reason our nation was founded and HOW our nation was founded.  These men didn't want to be ruled by one man who would tell them how they must live their individual lives, they no longer wanted to be persecuted for worshiping (or not worshiping) in the manner they saw best for their own spiritual lives.  They saw the corruption caused by a government ruled by a king who was strongly influenced by a church.