Separation of Church & State
Many people think the main controversy over the Separation of Church & State is a matter of Christians vs. Atheists but it is actually a matter of freedom against discrimination. The United States of America is based on the notion that all man is created equal and stands for “freedom for all” despite one’s race, wealth, or religion. Christianity on the other hand is trying to make their religion the dominant one and force it on the rest of country which is against The First Amendment. The United States was founded as a secular nation and our Founding Fathers intended to keep it that way.		Isn't U.S.A. a Christian Nation? The church has gone out of its way to convince their followers that the United States of America was founded on Christianity and was meant to be a Christian nation. Nothing however could be further from the truth yet it is preached as truth and many who have not done any research honestly think that it true. The false claim is strictly based on the churches attempt to force their religious views on the country and thus give it more power. America was actually founded though on those fleeing religious tyranny and that's why this is the only country with a constitution against the mixing of Church & State.

The First Amendment:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

The United States Constitution (1787) serves as the law of the land for the U.S. and displays the intent of our Founding Fathers, a secular government. Some will say it shows support of Christianity since it contains the words "of our Lord." At the end of the Constitution it records the year of its ratification by stating, "the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven." The mentioning of "our Lord" in the text does not suggest the country appeals to any particular supreme being but it merely conveys the English translation of the Latin, Anno Domini (AD) "in the Year of our Lord."

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the federal legislature from making laws that establish a state religion or a certain preferred religion. This is known as the “Establishment Clause” and it is clearly broken on several accounts by those of Christian faith. The use of Christian phrases on or in government related material is not only unconstitutional but also discrimination to the people’s freedom of religion. The following state mottos and seals are in direct disrespect to the First Amendment and The United States;

» Arizona “Ditat Deus” Latin for “God enriches”
» Florida “In God we trust”
» South Dakota "Under God the people rule"

» Ohio "With God, all things are possible"
» Kentucky "Deo gratiam habeamus" Latin for We give thanks to God"
(adopted in 2002, formerly was "United we stand, divided we fall")

Treaty with Tripoli (1796)

The Treaty of Tripoli (the Treaty of Peace and Friendship) was a 1796 peace treaty between the United States and Tripoli. It was signed at Tripoli on November 4, 1796 and at Algiers (for a third-party guarantee) on January 3, 1797 by Joel Barlow, the American consul to the Barbary States of Algiers, Tripoli and Tunis. It was ratified by the United States on June 10, 1797.

Article 11 states, "As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries."

In an attempt to deny that this country was not founded on Christianity some have claimed that the original Arabic version of Article 11 was not an article at all but rather just a letter from the Dey of Algiers to the Pasha of Tripoli. Nevertheless, the English version of Article 11 was recorded in the certified copy on January 4, 1797 and is contained in the version that was approved by President John Adams and Secretary of State Timothy Pickering and ratified by the Senate.

"As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion"

- Treaty with Tripoli (1796)

Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence is the document in which the Thirteen Colonies in North America declared themselves independent of the Kingdom of Great Britain and explained their justifications for doing so. It was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. This anniversary is celebrated as Independence Day in the United States.

Many Christian's who try to claim that The United States of America was founded upon Christianity usually use the Declaration of Independence as their "proof" because of the mentioning of a God and of a creator. One thing you must know first is that the Declaration of Independence was created before the establishment of our lawful government with the Constitution and does not represent the laws our Founding Fathers had for this country. It's sole purpose is to declare freedom for the people of this nation from Britain and other restraints along with hopes for liberty and the pursuit of happiness no mater ones background or beliefs. It was not until the Constitution when they officially decided how this newly freed country should be ran.

The mentioning of a god in the Declaration does not describe the personal God of Christianity but rather talks of "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God" which appeals to all religious beliefs. Just because some says "God" does not mean they are referring to the Christian God. This confusion comes from the poor English translations of the bible that simply say “God” instead of the Christian god’s actual name, Yahweh. Shamefully the vast majority of Christians doesn’t know the name of their god and assume the word “God” is his name and that all reference to the word is a reference to their god. It is the same as a person naming their dog "Dog" and then assuming that every time someone talks about a dog that they are really talking about their dog. One must also keep in mind that the majority of the Declaration was written by Thomas Jefferson who held deist beliefs.

"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." This passage talks of a "Creator" but does not imply a particular creator nor a god of a particular religion. It is merely a fancy way of saying we were all born with equal rights and are entitled the them as people no matter what. It does not try to claim who or what we were created from. Whether we were created by the Christian God, a four armed Elephant God, or by evolution (as we later discovered) we still came to be, and upon that creation of us we are entitled to certain rights as people no matter our differences.