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Originally posted by Mojo_PeiPei
First off America is not solely a christian nation. But hey the people who colonized America came here for religious freedom. You can clearly see the Judeo-Christian influence in our founding, laws, and moral constructs. I'd say America is more of a theist nation then a secular nation, it just so happens that the majority of the people (maybe plurality) are Christian.
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true enough, but the religious condition during the periods of colonization and intensive european settlement of the new world in the 17th, 18th, and early 19th centuries was quite complex from a socio-political perspective. the conflicts over english state religions were localized. religious wars between catholic and protestant monarchies in europe went global and poured over into trade and colonization, touching all facets of society as nation-states developed. persecution was rampant within factions of christian religions, and the mediterranean region was rife with religious conflict between christian, jewish and muslim societies.
out of this context, the largely unregulated and wild american colonies presented a refuge for groups seeking religious freedom, but that did not necessarily mean they were tolerant in offering reciprocal freedom to others who did not fall in line with their beliefs. the plymouth colony and other new england settlements were established by fanatic separatists. they were violently opposed to papists, for instance. a large community of portuguese jews settled in port royal jamaica, and were victims of intense anti-semitism, even in the lawless haven of buccaneering and privateering. it was worse in north america.
soon after declaring independence, the united states found itself facing a serious threat to commerce with muslim pirates in north africa. islam was a real and serious threat to the new nation, and christians did not tend to even recognize it as a legitimate religion.
the founding fathers were not referring to jews and muslims when they framed the first amendment. many of the signers held the common view that the slave trade was actually moral, because captive africans were baptized and therefore saved. their world view and moral standards did not consider other religions. freedom of religion was part of a larger compromise to unite the states so that they could survive in the world arena, but it was focused on the many protestant varieties of christianity that conflicted and co-existed in north america.
that the open wording of the simple phrase allows broader interpretation today when our perceptions have matured is a testament to how good the basic framework of the constitution really is.
christianity is actually a pretty scary religion to those not in it. while jesus christ was a social radical who preached love and tolerance, a number of caveats to his simple message have been added since his martyrdom. stemming from catholicism, all christian religions share the basic tennet (or threat) that the unbaptized are condemned to hell: either you believe what we believe and do it our way, or you burn in the fire. and we're praying for the day when our guy will rise from the dead and give you what for.