What is your opinion on the separation of Church and State?

What is your opinion regarding the separation of Church and State?

I believe that it is absolutely vital that an unbreachable "wall" separate religion doctrine from the law making process.

 

We should build a big beautiful wall and make the Church pay for it.

 

Well, I agre with the idea of separation of church and state, but I disagree with your interpretation of it. I guess you want to bring slavery back and black people being subjugated. Abolitionism and the civil rights movement were both religious ideas, and were put forth by religious people.

That said, churches should have no dealings with the government, and vice versa. All of us should be free to believe (or not believe), and practice (or not practice) any religion we choose.

 

There is no constitutional right to the separation of the church from the state.​

Who exactly would lay claim to such a right I have no idea, but it is not enumerated in the Constitution. Closest thing to it is the establishment clause, and that only applies at the federal level.

 

Not when it comes to rights, they have supremacy to state and local law.

 

My opinion is this.

Congress shall make no law concerning an establishment of religion or the free practice there of.

And
“The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”
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That is all..

 

You didn't understand a word I said.

 

I was a long time for an absolute separation of church and state. I have more and more doubts. I'm atheist. Okay for getting ridden of religion, but what if it's other radical non religious opinions who get in power ? Such as communism, fascism or far left ideologies ?

Right now, I remain hostile to both meddling.

 

I think we've gone too far in the direction of secularism and need to re-establish the importance of a moral and religious grounding to remain a strong and cohesive nation. Our disagreements are, on the surface, mostly economic, but underneath, they are about the fundamental values of our nation. Do we stand for capitalism and the rule of law or do we stand for socialism and the rule of feelings? A white Anglo-Saxon Protestant nation once knew the answer to that question. Today's multi-racial, multi-culti, anything goes nation doesn't know.

 

Unfettered unregulated immoral and unethical capitalist GREED has been IMPOSED on those nation by those who PRETEND to have Christian "values".

The white "christian" nationalists have DESTROYED the American Dream for 66% of We the People through this capitalist greed OBSESSION.

Since their religion never stopped them from doing this egregious harm to our nation they are in no position to point fingers at any other group.

 

If Christians lived their lives in a 'Christ like' way, I would agree with you. But the strain that has inserted themselves into politics today are a little too selective in their behaviors and actions to be trusted to re-establish 'morality'.

 

That was always true, but that's part of the Christian lesson, that no one is sin-free. Just as the Declaration of Independence declared that all men are born equal while at the same time slavery was alive and well, it's the principle and not the practice that is important. You can get closer to the principle in practice, but if you abandon the principle, you'll stop making progress.

 

The statement that "all men are created equal" was in reference to monarchs who ruled claimed divine right.

 

So slavery is fine as long as the white slave owners PRETEND to believe that all WHITE men are "born equal"?

 

I used to think it was necessary for Church and State to separate for 'progression'. As I get older, I notice that the separation has caused a lot of moral decay in society.

I attribute a lot of today's ills to nihilism.

 

There is absolutely no reason for national church to force us to pay tithes.

 

Why is the State responsible for the "moral decay in society" while the church, that is SUPPOSED to be the upholder of morals, is NOT responsible?

When was responsibility for morality TRANSFERRED from the church to the state?

 

Speaking from the UK, when they lost their hold over education, television and radio - So around the early-mid 90s. When I was a nipper you would never get away with what is shown on TV now for example, it was good wholesome programs designed to improve oneself and spread love. Now it is just violence and sex. Hence why our society is disgustingly sexual and violent.

 

So CENSORSHIP was the means by which the state imposed morality?

Freedom of Expression is OBVIOUSLY NOT a "god given right" as far as theists are concerned.

 

Are you certain that a lot of the moral decay of society has been caused by the separation of Church and State? And how, exactly, would you define that moral 'decay'?

 

I wouldn't say certain, I would say it's my belief from my own observation.

 

I believe in a certain amount of censorship. I don't think you can have a loving, peaceful society when popular culture centres around greed, materialism, sexual violence and violence in general. These 'sins' are growing by the year and society becomes more and more grotesque and perverted.

 

I am for government officials representing the people who elected them. If religious people elect a person for their religious views then that representative should be guided by his religion up to the point where it butts up against the constitution.

 

Fair enough. But what is the moral decay to which you refer?

 

The state is not responsible for greed and materialism so that is a nonstarter. That the church FAILED to respond to those changes in society does NOT make the state liable for them.

The prevention and prosecution of violation of all types is the purview of the state and no amount of "morality" is going to make the slightest difference as far as violence is concerned. If you want to end violence you need to pay higher taxes so that the state is empowered to protect and serve the needs of the people.

So WHY has the church FAILED to instill morality into society? Did it really need to DICTATE the terms of CENSORSHIP to the state because it was INCAPABLE of convincing people to be "moral" based upon the "message"alone?

Perhaps if the church had been more aware and capable of adapting it would not be facing extinction in a changing environment.

It is not up to the state to provide a "safe place" for the church but rather it is up to the church to PROVE that it is RELEVANT in today's society.

The church's current FAILURE is what you are observing so why are you not berating the church for failing to do what it pretends to be it's reason for existence?