We are not a nation founded upon Christianity

I wish to review the book, “Ten Tortured Words”. This book is a defense of a very conservative Christian view of the founding of our nation’s government. This book is historically inaccurate to say the least. Mr. Mansfield quotes James MadisonJames Madison for example, as writing this, “Religion is the basis and foundation of government. The problem is he never wrote that. This is what Madison actually wrote, "the equal right of every citizen to the free exercise of his Religion according to the dictates of conscience is held by the same tenure with all his other rights. If we recur to its origin, it is equally the gift of nature; if we weigh its importance, it cannot be less dear to us; if we consider the Declaration of those rights which pertain to the good people of Virginia, as the basis and foundation of government, it is enumerated with equal solemnity or rather studied emphasis."

Basically Mr. Mansfield made up a quote of Madison or gets an “F” in basic research. Madison was talking about the free exercise of religion, along with other rights, not religion itself as being the basis and foundation of government. To give the false quote that Madison believed that religion was the basis/foundation of government implies that Madison believed that government should be founded upon religion and his actual belief that government should not interfere in the religion of its’ citizens. Quite a distinction. Another false quote commonly given by religious conservatives is that Madison stated that we base American civilization upon abiding by the 10 Commandments. A quote found nowhere in anything Madison actually wrote. A real quote by Madison, “The civil government functions with complete success by the total separation of Church from the State”, letter to Gene Garman, 1819.

Thomas Jefferson in the 1779 Statute for Religious Freedom, “To compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves and abhors, is sinful and tyrannical.” Now, can Christians put up religious displays? . Any person should put up any religious display that they so wish but they just do not require governmental funding to do so. Religious beliefs and their symbols should compete in the marketplace of ideas. The secular are not opposed to prayer, they are opposed to school organized prayer. Who wants a prayer anyway drawn up by a government committee? Children can pray in school by themselves or among friends, that was never outlawed.