Friday, December 15, 2006

The US as a Christian Nation

Writing in the Post, Cal Thomas makes the following point:

Declaring America as special, or uniquely Christian, or more favored by God than, say, Canada, or Mexico, or even Iran, is a form of idolatry.

It also reflects an unbiblical view that God's Kingdom and the United States have a kind of "special relationship," the theological equivalent of the "special relationship" that has existed between the U.S. and Britain. A lot of Scripture has to be twisted to reach such a conclusion.

Only individuals can be Christian, not countries, and those who think otherwise are in danger of breaking the Commandment, "Thou shalt not have no [sic] other gods before me."

No kidding. I mean, the religious part of his argument notwithstanding ('cos it's bullshit), nothing drives me more crazy than people who intone that clearly, God has smiled upon the US and blessed it as God's Chosen Nation. (As a corrolary is the nonsense about how muslim congresman Keith Ellison swearing his oath on the Koran will undermine American civilization. Puh-lease.)

And if someone religious could inform me as to the objective facts that point to God favouring the US above all other nations, I'd be really happy.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Google the Treaty of Tripoli. Pay special attention to Article 11. This treaty was written and approved during the time of the Founding Fathers. Or check it out at http://www.stephenjaygould.org/ctrl/treaty_tripoli.html

Dean P said...

oh my! yes! How could we forget, that important treaty with Tripoli! That shows, conclusively, the Christian nature of the Country!

We didn't think it important to put in, oh, the Constitution, or anything--but that treaty of Tripoli!

Bullshit. It's a line in a treaty. That's it. All sorts of things get put in treaties; it doesn't mean they actually mean anything.

But if you're holding out the fact that the US is a christian nation because it happens to be mentioned in some random and very irrelevant treaty--well, that's not very compelling evidence.

Mike B said...

Article 11 was also removed from a subsequent treaty.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tripoli

Anonymous said...

uh, dean, you might want to read the link before you blast me for mentioning it. i'm doing the OPPOSITE of what you think i'm doing.