Okay. And this is where the argument always gets halted. So let's just, for the moment, stipulate that this is all true. Where are you going with this train of thought? What conclusions or actions do you think need to follow from our rights being endowed by a supernatural being?
It explains a great deal about the US and Americans. Having your rights handed to you on a plate directly from God takes you one step further than the King's right to rule being endowed by a supernatural being.
I've touched on this before, but allow me to reiterate my point about the American vs. European way of dealing with religion. In Europe, belief in God has traditionally been a case between you, your church and your god, where your church was acting as a sort of intermediary. Your faith and what you believed in was controlled by the church. E.g., the Pope and the Vatica lays down the tenets of faith for the Catholics. The Church of Denmark does the same (the bishops, not the state). Traditionally, it is not up to the believer to interpret God and the Bible, that's what the Churches are there for.
In the US, however, the relationship between you and your god is much more direct. Sure, there are "Big Churches" similar to the European structure, but there is also a more grassroot-approach to religion. You go to church, listen to sermons from the priest, but the church acts first and foremost as a social glue: That's where people meet socially (even having bake sales). The local church is a major binding force in not just small rural areas, but also in neighborhoods in a much more pronounced sense than in Europe. It has possibly to do with the overall rural society that the US started out as: The various religious groups banded together in their own communities. When the big cities began to form, they took the pattern with them.
Faith is, by and large, a private matter in Europe. In the US, you
flaunt your religion. Your politicians make a point out of just how religious they are. I don't know what the courts of England, France, Germany or Italy looks like from the inside, but nowhere do you see any references to any kind of deity in Danish courts. We don't swear on the Bible. We don't have "In God We Trust" on the wall, serving as a constant reminder of who really judges us. You have had compulsory prayer in schools. Even your most sacred of all, your money, has this reminder on them. Your pledge of Allegiance clearly states that you are one nation under God.
A good example of how confused you are about this issue, is that the courts have ruled that references to God is not a reference to religion, despite overwhelming percentage of U.S. citizens thinking otherwise. How silly is that? If this is so, why strike down Creationism being taught in science class?
The really odd thing is that Americans - as can be seen in this thread - are so dead-set against this idea of living in a religious society. You are extremely fond of pointing to your godless constitution, often chiding other nations for not being as forward as you are. And yet, reality shows quite another picture.
How often have we not, as skeptics, lamented attempts to enforce Creationism in the US? About how bad atheists are treated? How much religion means in not just the neighborhood, but also at work and when Americans are with their friends?
Can you name one American skeptic here who has not had any problems regarding his/her lack of beliefs in the supernatural? I don't think you can. It's a main reason why people come here: To find out they are not alone.
But in this thread, there's no
end to just how secular the US is. Sorry, I ain't buyin'.
