Jimi Jobin, an alumnus of the evangelical Liberty University and pastor of Terra Nova Faith Community in Las Vegas, has written an article giving a very convincing argument as to why conservative Christians should uphold and celebrate our forefathers' constitutional inclusion of religion-government separation.
Jobin makes the overarching point that the American colonists and our founders experienced time after time church-sponsored or run states (e.g. The Holy Commonwealth of Massachussetts - Puritans/Congregationalists, southern states - Anglican, Pennsylvania - Quakers) and the oppression and persecution that this most often elicited. So, they made sure that this wasn't going to occur when they were outlining and formulating the Constitution for the Union and thus included the first clause (no establishment clause) of the 1st Amendment.
It's a very compelling and informed open letter, and shows that there are some conservative Christian brothers and sisters who do recognize the importance of the separation between church and state. We should never keep religion out of public life, but it has no place in our governing structures, for sure.
Read the article at Religion Dispatches.
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