The Ten Commandments had nothing to do with the beginning of this country. It is another one of those Evangelical Christian myths that our country was founded on “Judaeo-Christian” values.
Here is a new book exploring the facts in depth.
1 Like
I’m going to read that right away.
It doesn’t come out until May 7 but you can pre-order it now as I just did.
As a Canadian I often find myself marvelling at how the U.S. that prides itself in the “separation of church and state” seems to do neither. Nor, it seems to me, do most understand that this clause was more for the protection of the church from the government than vice versa. However, how it appears to me, is that the “religion” that seems to be in the air and the water of America is certainly not orthodox Christianity. It is, as sociologist Christian Smith coined over ten years ago - “moralistic therapeutic deism” (MTD).
It’s true that the U.S. was never a “Christian” country. The majorly of the inhabitants were…as well as the majority of those who made up western civilization. The ideas that gave birth to western civilization are certainly to be found in the Judeo-Christian ethic. So, to object to a displaying of the Ten Commandments is silly. Furthermore, do they object to the statement 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….” Even if they reject the background I’d doubt they reject the premise.
3 Likes
Many of our constitutional rights are not consistent with the Ten Commandments. The constitution says we can worship any deity we want, or none at all. The same applies to worshiping idols. The Ten Commandments state that you can only worship the God of the Bible. The Ten Commandments state that you can’t work on the Sabbath, while the Constitution has no such ban. The Ten Commandments state that you can’t take the Lord’s name in vain while we have free speech under the constitution.
I can’t think of anything specific to the Ten Commandments that is found in the US Constitution.
5 Likes
You missed the point.
For the formation of the US, it was a Enlightenment-based, Judeo-Christian ethic with a great plurality of thought. This is distinct from what the norm for Judeo-Christian ethics was prior or even what the Judeo-Christian norm was in other regions at the time.
4 Likes
That’s a valid point and a fair distinction. Undoubtedly, “Enlightenment values” greatly influenced the formation of the U.S. and western civilization.
However, one wonders if we could have had the Enlightenment without the foundation of the Jude’s-Christian ethic?
2 Likes
Doubtful. It’s probably based on a number of highly contingent events rather than an historical certainty. Who knows what other outcomes would have happened under different conditions, even under Christian rule? After all, Christianity was fragmented as well, split between a couple orthodox, a number of Protestant and a bunch of regional/country specific divides. Would the US have formed as it did under a unified Roman Catholic tradition? Probably not. Would the Enlightenment have been the same without Protestants? Probably not.
I think it’s fine to recognize the the role of history in a nation’s origin, but in the case of erecting distinctly religious displays, it’s probably better to be leave those out of government buildings that aren’t museums. We also have to recognize that norms change over time. What seemed fine or uncontroversial in the past doesn’t always age well. And we look at past events with new eyes with each generation. The Ten Commandment plaques are more than historical markers today. To be fair, they were more than historical artifacts when they were first put up.
4 Likes
Impossible to say. Out of all the possible influences, I don’t see why the Judeo-Christian ethic should be singled out. Other strong influences include good agricultural lands, advancement in technology and science, quality of domesticated farm animals, geography, etc. Jared Diamond’s “Guns, Germs, and Steel” is probably worth referencing. At some point, people were relatively rich which gave rise to a middle class, academics, and philosophers. Roman and Greek philosophers had hit on ideas of democracy and human rights before, and they did so in the absence of Judeo-Christianity.
Before the Enlightenment you had Divine Rule, Inquisitions, horrible human rights, and whole host of different forms of thought and governments. Judeo-Christian ethics were there throughout. I think it is impossible to point to a single influence that gave rise to the Enlightenment.
3 Likes
Well done, FFRF!
2 Likes
Work on the back of the one dollar bill next. It includes the Trinitarian Eye of Providence.