QUOTE(Isaac_Putin @ Apr 8 2006, 09:29 PM)
You have made some great points, Rackman. However, I think a strong case could be made that the founding fathers were NOT big fans of organized religion and the effect that Christianity, tightly interwoven with government, had had on other governments.
I would agree that the Founding Fathers, on whole, were not big fans of *organized* religion. I think that's why so many of them identified themselves as Deists.
QUOTE(Isaac_Putin @ Apr 8 2006, 09:29 PM)
Also, John Adams, from his statements, may have had a mild case of schizophrenia..
Did you notice that one was from John QUINCY Adams?
QUOTE(Isaac_Putin @ Apr 8 2006, 09:29 PM)
As to a government based on religious principles -- I have two things to point out. One is that many of the principles found in the Christian religion can be found in others......I have never been a fan of the idea that ethics could only be rooted in religion (especially the idea that for someone to behave they have to believe that they would go to hell for misbehaving). Instead, I believe that ethics can spring from the ideas of the right to self determination (also right to own property, defend oneself from harm, etc.) as well as the Aristotelian principals of the golden mean -- walking a fine line between one's own interests and those of others. Once you observe those ethical principles, I believe that you would already also be living by the tenets of the 10 Commandments -- except maybe for the first two.
I agree with you here, too. I wouldn't argue that the "Christian principles" of our government are unique to Christianity. Nor would I argue that the principles of our government are wholly aligned with Christianity; true Christianity is more like communism ("our brothers' keepers") and less like the "live and let live" concept embodied by the Constitution.
However, it's difficult to prove the *source* of many of the ideas found in the Constitution. Were they religious in origin, or a product of the Enlightenment? In any case, it would be wrong for someone to employ a "separation of church and state" argument in an attempt to *remove* those ideas from the Constitution.
Self-determination, property rights, Aristotle.... Just out of curiosity, does the phrase "A=A" mean anything to you? (Secret question of sorts.)