THE ROLE OF RELIGION

In The

AMERICAN POLITICAL SYSTEM

Wayne D. Leeper

 

   Two hundred, twenty-seven years ago a group of men came together at a particular time and in a particular place, men who would change the course of human history.  They would establish a nation, the likes of which had never before been known on the earth, or imagined in the minds of men.  It would be a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.  It would preserve and promote freedom and liberty through a system of equal justice under law which would provide every person equal treatment.  Furthermore, it would place the ultimate power, not in the government, but in the hands of the people.

   We call these men our founding fathers and the nation they founded the United States of America.  They have been described as "enlightened geniuses touched by divine intervention."  I cannot imagine a better description, and I am convinced that only God could have brought together such men, at such a time, in such a place, and with such a purpose.  The purpose was God's, and the men were His instruments for accomplishing it.

   The first document resulting from this combination of unique minds was one we call our Declaration of Independence.  Notice the eternal truths they set forth as justifying our national existence and the purpose of our government.

We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights Governments are established among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” [Emphases Added]

Declaration of Independence

United States of America

July 4, 1776

   Notice what these geniuses set forth in this simple opening statement.

1. There is a Creator.

2. We are His creation.

3. He endowed us with certain unalienable rights.

4. Among which are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

5. The purpose of government is to secure and protect these

rights.

   They ended the document by saying:

"And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor." [Emphases Added]

   These men have long since departed the earth and gone to reconcile with their Creator, but the nation they established has risen to become the most powerful and successful in the history of mankind.  Eighty-seven years later Abraham Lincoln reaffirmed their purpose when he said:

"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.  Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure...we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain...that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom...and that government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth." [Emphases added]

Gettysburg Address

November 19, 1863

   In 1787 the same founding fathers drafted the Constitution of the Unites States of America.  In the first Amendment thereto they stated that:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment  of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." [Emphases added]

   Two facts were behind this Amendment. First, when the thirteen colonies threw off the yoke of the King of England they also threw off the yoke of the Church of England; the national church of the British Empire.  This “church” was even above the King, with the authority to order religious crusades, dismiss kings, and imprison anyone at its pleasure. Those who ruled the church ruled the land.  This was never to be the case in America.  In America the individual, not the government, would determine his own faith and his manner of expressing it.

   Secondly, and just as important, is the recognition of the importance of religion as the basis of our national morality, and its public expression as essential to our national existence.

   We hear a lot these days about the “Constitutional wall of Separation between church and state.”  That statement is completely false, not found in the Constitution, and totally foreign to the thinking of the founding fathers.  It comes from, and only from, apologists who have little or no faith in God and are adamant in their opposition to those of us who do.  It falls in the same category as the statement claiming a woman's "Constitutional right to an abortion."  I challenge anyone to find one single place where a "right to abortion" is protected, advocated, or even suggested, in any of our founding documents or the writings of our founding fathers.      

   Our Constitution does not put a wall between church and state, it places restrictions on government; it prohibits governmental authority over churches.  The government is prohibited from either establishing a state church or restricting any of us from publicly practicing our own religion. There is a church which my wife and I attend every Sunday.  It has a set of beliefs with which we agree.  Many of you have such a church which you attend.  I pass a number of other churches on the way to ours.  I disagree with many of the things they believe and teach but they have the same right to exist and practice their religion as I have to practice mine.  That is the right found in the first amendment to our Constitution and it is a right basic to a free and orderly society.

If there could be any doubt concerning their beliefs regarding the important contribution to national morality and the public good that organized religion would provide, notice the words of George Washington:

"Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.  In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these finest props of the duties of men and citizens.  The mere politician, equally with the pious man, ought to respect and to cherish them.  A volume could not trace all their connections with private and public felicity.  Let it simply be asked: Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation deserts the oaths which are the instruments of investigation in courts of justice?  And let us with caution indulge in the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion.  Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on the minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in the exclusion of religious principle." [Emphases added]

George Washington

Farewell Address to the Nation

September 17, 1796

   Thirty-five years later, in 1831, a young Frenchman by the name of Alexis De Tocqueville toured the United States with a friend.  Later he wrote these words concerning what he had learned in America.

“I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers, and it was not there.  I Sought for the greatness and genius of America in her  fertile fields and boundless forest, and it was not there.  I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her rich mines and her vast world commerce, and it was not there.  I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her public school system and her institutions of learning, and it was not there.  I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her democratic congress and her matchless constitution, and it was not there.  Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power.  America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.” 

   In his inaugural address George Bush reaffirmed these values  and concepts upon which our nation has long been based.

We have a place, all of us in a long story...a story we continue, but whose end we will not see...It is) a story of flawed and fallible people, united across the generations by grand and enduring ideals....because we are guided by a power larger than ourselves Who creates us equal in His Image... Today we affirm a new commitment to live out our nation’s promise through civility, courage, compassion and character...Church and charity, synagogue and mosque lend our communities their humanity, and they will have an honored place in our plans and in our laws...And I can pledge our nation to a goal: When we see that wounded traveler on the road to Jericho, we will not pass to the other side...We find the fullness of life not only in options, but in commitments.  And we find that children and community are the commitments that set us free.  Our public interest depends on private character, on civic duty and family bonds and basic fairness, on uncounted, unhonored, acts of decency which give direction to our freedom.... sometimes in life we are called to do great things. But as a saint of our times has said, every day we are called to do small things with great love.....Americans are generous and strong and decent, not because we believe in ourselves, but because we hold beliefs beyond ourselves...We are not this story's Author, Who fills time and eternity with His purpose. Yet His purpose is achieved in our duty, and our duty is fulfilled in service to one another....  Never tiring, never yielding, never finishing, we renew that purpose today, to make our country more just and generous, to affirm the dignity of our lives and every life.  God bless you all, and God bless America." [Emphases added]

George Walker Bush

  First Inaugural Address

  January 20, 2001

   I have never heard a better description of God's plan for the  role and purpose of government in our lives.  God ordained three great institutions which working together would satisfy the hopes, needs, and aspirations of mankind: the family, the church, and the government.  No thinking person can deny God's wisdom in designing the family structure as the deepest and most enduring of all human relationships, and in providing the church as the means by which the family of mankind should be united.  In this pamphlet we will consider the legitimate role of government in promoting, protecting, and preserving God's plan for the family and the church.

   The family is the very core of our social structure. This fact has always been true in every society, whether it be civilized or primitive. Home and hearth are universally recognized as the best, deepest, and most satisfying form of human relationships. It is through family that standards are set, values established, and lives are molded; both for good and for bad.  My wife is a school teacher.  Within a few days of the beginning of any school year she can tell you with about ninety percent accuracy exactly what type of home each child in her class comes from.  Children’s conduct in class is almost always a reflection of the home in which they live.

   The next step in society beyond the home is the social group.  There are many social groups with various purposes, but which group really addresses the basic needs of the individual?  The only difference between a congregation of worshipers and a street gang is the composition and the purpose of its members.  Both offer social acceptance, companionship and goals of achievement.  The street gang demands that the rules of the gang be more important than the individual; while the church teaches that each member must be concerned with both the physical as well as the spiritual welfare of every other member.  Who would argue that the individual is not better served by the church than by the gang?

   Family and church are mutually supporting.  This system of shared values gives direction and meaning to human life. By working together standards are reaffirmed, ideals are reinforced, and respect for authority is mutually fostered.  Individual conduct in both the church and the family is rightly judged by the divine standards set forth in the Bible.  God intends that these two groups work together to elevate and build up every person.  This noble cause must be preserved and protected.  To do this God ordained that there should be governments established among men.

   The men and women who comprise our government determine the level  of our national morality.  Some leaders lift their eyes to the heavens for inspiration, while others raise their fingers into the wind for political guidance.  Some live and lead by and with the moral standards that have given our nation its greatness, while others, in the name of tolerance, and for the sake of votes, seek to accommodate the most vile desires of the human mind.  Some rightly understand that if human life is not respected and protected at every level it will not be respected or protected at any level.  Others are more interested in the pursuit of power than the protection of life, the rule of gold than the "golden rule," and the lust of the flesh than the needs of the people.

   Our Constitution requires equal protection under law for every citizen of this nation.  This can only happen if our leaders themselves live and legislate in accordance with the divine commandments so beautifully set forth in the Holy Scriptures.  Our founding fathers understood it, our Declaration of Independence and Constitution proclaim it, and our national existence demands it.  Yes, America became great by being godly and she will continue to be great only if she returns to being godly.

   Therefore, the first and foremost purpose of government is to establish a high level of national morality.  Evil exists in this world, and the only thing necessary for it to prevail and pervert our society, our homes, and our families is for good men to remain silent.  Government can and must step forward as the primary defense against the encroachment of evil into the lives of our citizens.  If the rights of church and family are not protected, neither our families, our society, nor our nation will long exist.

   The Biblical cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed because of rampant homosexuality and the social degradation and disease that inevitably follows in its path.  Every historical scholar agrees that Rome was never conquered, but decayed from within because of rampant immorality.  No reasonable person would maintain that society as we know it could survive if there were no moral codes controlling our lives.  Truly, the maintenance of national morality is the primary function of government by which all other accomplishments must be judged There are many things which God has left to man to decide, but there are some things that are so basic and so vital to the human experience that God has made them a part of His law for mankind.  The Bible teaches a fundamental fact regarding God's laws for the nation that will find favor in His eyes and the right to look to Him for eternal blessing and protection.

“Righteousness exalts a nation, while sin is a reproach to any  people.” (Proverbs 14:34)

   In recent weeks the question of same sex marriage has dominated the news and sparked a major debate within the nation. Both sides are adamant in their positions.  On a recent TV talk show, the host asked his guest, “Who is harmed if two ‘loving persons’ of the same sex want to get married?”  I am going to let God answer that question for him, and for the rest of our nation at the same time. 

“Therefore God gave them up to uncleanness, in the lust of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves .....For even their  women exchanged the natural use for that which is against nature.  Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due....who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.” (Romans 1:24-32)

“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?  Do not be deceived, Neither the fornicators, nor  idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites.... will inherit the kingdom of God.” (I Corinthians 6:9-10)

   Who will be harmed?  First of all those who commit these acts will be harmed because they are condemning themselves to an eternal spiritual  death.  Secondly, those who approve of the forbidden acts are promised the same punishment as those who are performing them.  Finally, and most important, the people of America will be harmed because, just as God condemned and destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah for this very thing, He will reach a point where He is forced to, if not destroy this nation, at least remove His blessing and protection which we have enjoyed for the past two hundred, twenty-seven years.  The unbeliever will not be swayed by God’s commandments, but believers should have good reason to pause and reconsider their position.  So should all persons who, believing in God, would vote for individuals who do not take a firm and absolute stand against both homosexuality and same sex marriage.

   The second legitimate purpose of government is the protection of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  It is God’s intention that all human beings, no matter how great or how small, have the right to exercise their free moral agency.  They have the right to buy and to sell, to work and to earn, to plan and to dream.  They have the right to love and to be loved, to worship God, and to raise their children.  In America all individuals, even the unbelievers, have the right to live according to the dictates of their own consciences and the needs of their souls.  In America we call it freedom.

   There are some words that make a person feel proud, and  can bring a lump into the throat.  These are words that can lift us above self and selfish interest, directing us to a higher calling; a bringing out the best in each of us.  These are words that call us forth to sacrificial service and elevate us to the highest levels of human endeavor. These are words that speak to our innermost soul and touch us at the very heart of our existence.  These are words worth fighting for and worth dying for.  Freedom is one of these words.

   Freedom says simply, "I have a right to exist."  I have a right to be me.  I have a right to be born, a right to grow, and a right to learn.  I have a right to choose a lifetime mate and to raise my children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.  I have a right to labor and to earn; then to spend my earnings for the benefit of myself and my family.  I have the right to own property that I have legitimately acquired.  I have the right to live with honor, to worship my God with devoutness, and to die with dignity.

   Legitimate government recognizes and preserves these rights by recognizing and respecting the dignity of every person who is subject to that government.  This includes the rich as well as the poor, the Caucasian as well as the persons of color, the unborn child as well as the aged and infirm.  If something is growing it is alive.  We have rightly condemned Adolph Hitler for, in the name of creating a “superior race,” slaughtering over seven million Jewish people, yet we have allowed, in the name of “a woman’s right to choose,” the slaughter of forty million unborn babies in our own country.  Is the spotted owl or the Riegle sea turtle to be more highly valued in America than the life of the unborn child?  Why is one protected and the other not?

   We need to understand that the human being is the most important thing that exists on the earth and is to have dominion and consideration over and above everything else.  That is because  every person has a soul that will live forever.  The animal rights activist and environmentalist have a legitimate position and remind us of very important issues concerning the protection and preservation of God's creation.  But they must accept two facts set forth by God Himself.  Man is to have dominion over the animals (Genesis 2:26), and man is to subdue the earth. (Genesis 1:28)  Every environmental law must ask first and foremost “What is in the best interest of man?”, not the animals and not the environment.

   To place the animal kingdom or the environment above the good of man is a serious mistake.  The two must be balanced if mankind is to survive, and it is a legitimate function of government to determine that balance.  We need to preserve our natural resources while, at the same time, insuring that those same resources are not denied use for the very purpose that God intended them.  God created this world to be a habitat for man and to provide him with all the necessities of life.  God did not create man to be subservient to nature.

   There are two ways in which the government acts to protect the rights of the individual.  The first is to provide for the common defense.  Just as God has His enemies, our nation has ours.  There are those who, for various reasons, would seek to destroy America and all that it stands for.  Why is this?  Is it jealousy, or desire for our land and resources, or just the desire to destroy what we have?  What is the influence directing foreign leaders and terrorist that would cause them to want to destroy America?  Why instead, would they not want to copy this great experience in democracy and freedom?

   The facts suggest that just as God raised up America as a force for good in the world, Satan might influence other nations to seek to destroy that which God has established.  Think about it for a moment.  If Satan is not above encouraging individuals to turn against God, why should he be above encouraging national leaders to oppose and seek to destroy that nation that God has raised up, blessed, and protected.

   The second manner in which government protects the individual is to provide protection for our homes and property.  God has never given the individual the function, or the right, to take human life or to right wrongs.  He assigned that function to government.  The government does not bear the sword in vain. (Romans 13:4).  This is not to say that we cannot protect our person, our family, or our property.  This just says that determination of guilt,  and assignment of punishment belong in courts of justice, not in the province of individual discretion.

   Finally, we need to understand that government and church have complementary roles in protecting and advancing the rights and aspirations of mankind.  Since God ordained and established both the church and the government, it is only reasonable to believe that He expects and demands that the two should work together in support of His crowning achievement, the family.

   There are areas where the needs of the family are best served by the government:  military protection, police protection, courts of law, and education.  In other areas the needs of family are best served by the church: worship, spiritual enrichment, edification, charitable activities, and the establishment of moral standards.  The church is not capable of satisfying the role of government and the government is not capable of satisfying the role of the church.  Each is uniquely qualified to serve particular needs in the life of the family.  Only when the two work together can their God given purposes be fulfilled.  What is too often ignored is that nowhere in our Constitution is the government restricted from working together with churches for the good of our citizens. 

   Social service is an area that can best be served by both government and churches working together.  Churches have an obligation to reach out to and to assist their fellow human beings.  The Bible commands us to "Do good to all men, especially those of the household of faith." (Gelatins 6:10). Churches are able to enlist thousands of dedicated volunteers to assist in their programs.  People who are destitute and hurting need both physical and spiritual assistance.  We need to feed the body, but we also need to feed the spirit by assisting the person in regaining self respect, confidence, and a sense of being a part of something greater than themselves.  Churches have the ability to do this; governments do not.

   Churches are on the ground, and keenly aware of the legitimate needs of those in their community.  They are in the ghettos, they are in the cities, and they are in the country.  They exist and function where the people are and know their particular needs.  No one will deny that undeserving people take advantage of government programs, programs to which they are not entitled, and from which they drain funds, thus depriving the truly deserving.  Churches are in a position to eliminate these people from their programs and to insure that only the deserving benefit from them.

   At the dawn of creation our God visualized a system under which His children would live and prosper.  He visualized men and women who would join themselves together in lifetime unions.  He visualized His world being populated and trained through the institution of the marriage of one man and one woman, thus creating the family.  He visualized two great institutions that would strive together to protect and preserve the family and the family way of life.  One would be the government which would protect and preserve the physical needs of His children.  The other would be His church which would service their spiritual needs.  Together these two great institutions would respect, serve, and satisfy the needs of His children, as both institutions looked to Him for direction and guidance.

   To prove the wisdom of His plan, and its ability  to achieve national exaltation, He brought together, upon this continent, a unique group of men.  Men devoted, first to their God, and second to the right of every man and woman to breath the air of freedom and liberty.  Together they established a nation, under God, dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

   Today that nation is engaged in a great war that will determine the future of America, not just for ourselves, but for our children and grandchildren for generations to come.  It is not the “war against terrorism” or the “war in Iraq.”  It is the war being waged within our borders for the heart and soul of our nation.  As a people we are divided more so than we have ever been  since the Civil War, and, like then, the division is over moral issues.

   One side advocates the right to abortion, the right for same sex  marriage, and the freedom to display every form of pornography and ungodliness before us and our children.  Members of this group  advocate the silencing of morality and religious principles in our schools, in our halls of Justice, in our chambers of Congress, and in every other place they choose to describe as the public square.  By their definition, the marketplace of free expression is limited to those who refrain from bringing anything advocated by God’s people into the discussion.  In the name of tolerance they would seek to introduce upon these shores every form of licentiousness and ungodliness ever conceived in the hearts of men.  They would seek to turn our nation into a jungle of unrighteousness, greed and moral decadence, unparalleled since the fall of the Roman empire.

   The other side affirms the principle that governments are indeed instituted for the benefit of and with the consent of the governed.  They believe that there is a Divine Being who oversees and judges the actions of both men and nations.  They believe that the principles set forth in the Holy Scriptures should determine the decisions to be made and the course to be followed by those who would seek to lead this nation.  They believe that obedience to the commandments of God is the best and greatest hope for our continuation as a Divinely blessed and protected people.  They rightly understand that to accomplish this, we must return to those principles of national morality advocated by the founding fathers.

   Yes, the nation those men established so long ago was indeed an experiment in government unique from all others.  It was a nation which looked to God for its right to exist, for its protection, and for His guidance in the affairs of state.  What is more, it gave us, as citizens and voters, the ability to demand a government which will uphold those ideals which have made us great. The decision now lies with us.  Either we will remain one nation, under God, or descend into the abyss of immorality that has claimed so many nations before us.

   Like many of you, I am an old man who has enjoyed the blessings of this great nation for many years.  Yes, we walk a little slower these days and our hearing and eyesight are not what they once were.  The torch has passed from our generation to a new generation to whom we must look for leadership and protection during our golden years.  It is my humble prayer that this new generation will have the wisdom to preserve those values the young men of this nation have fought and died for over the last two hundred and twenty-seven years. 

   A United States senator, who opposed war, once stood on the floor of the Senate and made the bold statement that “Freedom has never been established at the point of a bayonet.”  Another senator arose to ask the simple question, “Sir, how does the good senator think we got ours?”  Americans have understood since our founding that there are some things worth fighting and even dying for.  The protection of our nation is one of those things. 

   So whether it was considered necessary by Washington, Lincoln, Wilson, Roosevelt, or Bush, we answered the call, not as heroes, but as scared eighteen and nineteen year old kids.  Most of us would rather forget about it than talk about it.  We did not come home seeking to exploit our military record, as some politicians do, because we know that the real heroes did not come home.  They are the ones Abraham Lincoln described as having given their “last full measure of devotion.”  For them the bugles are silent and their deeds are buried with their bodies under small white crosses somewhere in France, or in unmarked graves in the jungles of Vietnam, while their spirits have soared like eagles to the arms of a loving God. 

   Those of us who were fortunate came home, married our sweethearts, and with them raised our children, worshiped our God and grew old together.  Many years have passed since then, but I have to believe in my heart of hearts that in our cities, towns and communities there are legions of good and honest men and women who, like me, want to preserve for our children and our grandchildren that which we have lived and loved. 

   Those of us who believe in God, also believe that the best course for America to follow is that course laid out by the founding fathers,  and there are more of us than there are of those who would destroy the morality of this nation.  So why then are we continuing to see a decline of morality in our nation?  There are basically two reasons for this decline and in both cases the fault rests with those of us who claim to be believers in God.

   First is the fact that too many morally upright men and women, good God-fearing people all, go to the polls and vote for the party rather than the man.  They refuse to hold the members of their party accountable for their voting records and, choosing to ignore the policies being advocated, the freedoms being abused, and the standards of morality being destroyed, pull the lever that they have always pulled, then complain about the declining level of morality in our nation.  There is an old saying, “If you keep on doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep on getting what you’ve always got.”  

   The second thing that allows evil to prevail is the fact that too many other morally upright men and women, good people all, believe their one vote is not important, and will not make a difference, or they are just are too indifferent; so they fail to cast a vote at all. Yes, evil prevails because good men and women remain silent. If every God-fearing person in America went to the polls and voted for only good and honest men and women, the good would win in a landslide of a proportion never before seen in this nation. 

   In November, Americans are going to have to make a choice which, having made, we may never have the opportunity to change.  Our choice will not be between two national political parties, but between two conflicting ideals for our national existence.  We, as voters, will make the choice but it is our children and grandchildren who will have to live with the choice we make.  As believers in a Power greater than ourselves, we must either stand and vote for those persons who will support that which is right; that which is honorable, and that which will lift this nation to greater morality in the eyes of our Creator; or we must stand before Him in eternity to explain why we disregarded His teaching, His commands, and His design, to elect persons who would advocate and vote to support that which is worldly, ungodly, and profane.

   The next President will appoint, and the next Senate will confirm, three or four men or women to sit on the Supreme Court of the United States.  It will not be the president or the senators who determine the kind of the persons who are appointed and confirmed; it will be us, the voters.  If we elect men to these offices who advocate ungodly principles, we can only expect that they will appoint and confirm persons to the highest judicial positions who, like themselves, have no regard for the God of heaven or His commandments.

   If this land is to continue to be blessed by Him who is eternal in the heavens we must let our voices ring out loud and clear.  We must reclaim our nation, restore the principles of our founding fathers, and look to the same God who inspired them in establishing it to aid us in reclaiming it. We must go to the polls in droves and tell the world that this is still America, the land of the free and the home of the brave; one nation UNDER GOD, both now and until He returns.