However, the law was deliberately written vaguely enough to be applicable beyond the 18th century, and the courts (Supreme included) have ruled time and again that the principle of separation of church and state applies at all levels, including local establishments such as public schools.
Yes, they have, although not quite as much as some people seem to believe. And courts have been wrong before. If I can dig up any of the sources I vaguely recall, I'll post them
Using my tax dollars to pay for the nativity scene in front of the local post office? I don't think so.
Which is where the democratic part comes in, in my hypothetical situation -- tell your local government you're utterly opposed to it, and if enough of your fellow citizens agree, your tax money won't be used for that. In some areas, of course, you'll be voted down -- but such is part of life. My tax money goes to pay for the teaching of evolution and various other things that I would not voluntarily spend money on.
America is a secular country with Judeo-Christian leanings. It was not ever declared a Christian state. Pakistan, on the other hand, was founded with the intention of being a Muslim country. And if France (a country of many Catholics) can be classed as secular, so can the U.S.
True, America was never declared a Christian state; I didn't say it ever had been. But it was founded by people who, for the most part, believed in the Judeo-Christian God (bearing in mind that there are lots of discussion & disagreements within Christianity, so I'm speaking pretty generally here), and that belief had a lot to do with the concept of natural rights -- granted by a supreme being, not the state. And, as I said, some 90% of Americans say they're Christians. That seems like a fairly solid majority.
France used to be Catholic, yes, but they've been consciously changing over to secularism over the past few decades. It's illegal, for instance, for kids to wear religious symbols (head scarves, stars of David, crosses) to school. We're heading down that road, I think, but haven't gone nearly as far.
You've got me on Pakistan <g> I really wasn't talking about forms of government so much as widespread beliefs -- but of course, if it's borderline illegal to not be Muslim, that's gonna influence how people answer those poll questions, so the two are not unrelated.
I'm sorry, but the bolded portion of your statement is wholly inaccurate, as well as a tad offensive.
I apologize for any offense. I've read in multiple sources that Islam considers church and state to be inseperable (sharia law, etc) but there are tons of things out there I haven't read, so I'd be quite interested in looking into any resources anyone can give, to disprove the point.
PJ
