Those three make my skin crawl. They, especially Barton, are like vultures taking advantage of the current disaster to make their mark and insert these dreadful lies into an already strained system. Once this kind of nonsense is on the books, it is very difficult to remove. They have absolutely no concern or respect for the plurality of beliefs and those citizens who hold them. It is an entirely selfish move. Rep. Bryant was well informed and did a great job of defending the Constitutional point of view. You need to get someone to call you up there. At the very least it would make Barton sweat a little. What a charlatan.
I was offline, and didn't see this when you published it. Thank you. I'm afraid I will repeat myself:
The "rightwing" people who identify as Christians want the Giant Cheat Sheets everywhere, because they are unable/unwilling to memorize them (something I had to do when I was seven years old) and are not interested in writing them on their hearts. So by insisting they are displayed publicly, they can feel all holier than thou could ever hope to be, without any actual effort on their part.
I have no argument with this post. I do wonder: I’m told that in the late 18th and 19th centuries about a third of the population had some association with the Methodist church. Francis Asbury was the second most recognized public figure in his day. Members of the Silent/WWII generation have told me the Bible was read in their public schools and influenced their conversions. Again, I agree that 1) we were not established as a Christian nation, 2) Barton is dishonest and 3) we have become increasingly pluralistic. Do you believe that the influence of Judeo Christian teachings was significant in much of colonial and pre Civil War era USA?
The separation of church and state helped religion flourish in America. In the culture, Christianity was quite pervasive for most of our history and our political leaders are glad to exploit that whenever they can. However, what people do in their homes and churches is different than what the government does. The Founders created a government for everybody and people of all religions. People should not feel that their government is antagonistic toward their faith, but that is what is happening now and will happen more as Christian nationalism takes hold.
RE: Bible in schools. There were actual riots in American cities over which Bible to read in schools from the 1840s through the 1880s. Do we really want to go back to that?
Ha! I remember a dust up when my denomination moved from the KJV to the NIV. And I remember the controversy (including demonstrations at the Tennessee state capitol I recall) over the Living Bible (“your little green book”). I certainly get your point. I’m just trying to think it all through. Thanks for your reply, and the careful work you do.
Those three make my skin crawl. They, especially Barton, are like vultures taking advantage of the current disaster to make their mark and insert these dreadful lies into an already strained system. Once this kind of nonsense is on the books, it is very difficult to remove. They have absolutely no concern or respect for the plurality of beliefs and those citizens who hold them. It is an entirely selfish move. Rep. Bryant was well informed and did a great job of defending the Constitutional point of view. You need to get someone to call you up there. At the very least it would make Barton sweat a little. What a charlatan.
I was offline, and didn't see this when you published it. Thank you. I'm afraid I will repeat myself:
The "rightwing" people who identify as Christians want the Giant Cheat Sheets everywhere, because they are unable/unwilling to memorize them (something I had to do when I was seven years old) and are not interested in writing them on their hearts. So by insisting they are displayed publicly, they can feel all holier than thou could ever hope to be, without any actual effort on their part.
I have no argument with this post. I do wonder: I’m told that in the late 18th and 19th centuries about a third of the population had some association with the Methodist church. Francis Asbury was the second most recognized public figure in his day. Members of the Silent/WWII generation have told me the Bible was read in their public schools and influenced their conversions. Again, I agree that 1) we were not established as a Christian nation, 2) Barton is dishonest and 3) we have become increasingly pluralistic. Do you believe that the influence of Judeo Christian teachings was significant in much of colonial and pre Civil War era USA?
The separation of church and state helped religion flourish in America. In the culture, Christianity was quite pervasive for most of our history and our political leaders are glad to exploit that whenever they can. However, what people do in their homes and churches is different than what the government does. The Founders created a government for everybody and people of all religions. People should not feel that their government is antagonistic toward their faith, but that is what is happening now and will happen more as Christian nationalism takes hold.
RE: Bible in schools. There were actual riots in American cities over which Bible to read in schools from the 1840s through the 1880s. Do we really want to go back to that?
Ha! I remember a dust up when my denomination moved from the KJV to the NIV. And I remember the controversy (including demonstrations at the Tennessee state capitol I recall) over the Living Bible (“your little green book”). I certainly get your point. I’m just trying to think it all through. Thanks for your reply, and the careful work you do.