The following letters to the editor were sent to the Echo Press in Alexandria following letters disparaging the lack of religion in the schools.
To the editor,
Recently opinion letters claimed that the loss of religion was the cause of the Jonesboro shootings. One quoted four presidents to support the view that religion should be more intertwined with our public schools.None of the four presidents were Christians. Washington, although misquoted, was supportive of religions role in society, but he was a Deist. Jefferson wrote the "Jefferson Bible", in which he sought to separate the ethical teachings of Jesus from the religious dogma and supernatural because he didn't believe in the divinity of Jesus. James Madison was the co-chairman of the committee that wrote the first amendment and was an adamant supporter of the separation of church and state. In a paper titled "Memorial and Remonstrance" Madison wrote specifically against the establishment of teachers of Christian beliefs. Lincoln wrote , "My earlier views of the unsoundness of the Christian scheme of salvation and the human origin of the scriptures, have become clearer and stronger with advancing years...."
None of these people would support the religious intrusion into public areas that the author advocates.
These are arguable statements, but if you disagree I ask ... If our founding fathers were all Christians, why doesn*t our constitution even mention the word "God"?
The Jonesboro shootings were a tragedy but it is wrong to assume the lack of religious belief is the cause and then use that for an excuse to intrude religion into public life. Both children are Christians, one of the kids was a choir boy. Religion isn*t the balm for all the woes of this society.We should remember other recent events...the Jonestown massacre, Heaven's Gate, Waco, and Northern Ireland. A few of many examples of religious belief run amok. Religion can help maintain a society. Religion can kill people.
Maintain the separation of church and state.
Tom Ebacher
Dear Sir:
Recent letters from Dan Morrow and Tom Ebacher concern the separation of church and state. Mr. Morrow's position is that the state of the country is desperate and the remedy is religious teaching in the public schools. Mr. Ebacher's position is that this remedy violates the separation of church and state, a traditional principle of this country.
Mr. Morrow supports his position by religious quotes attributed to Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and Lincoln. I'm afraid these quotes are misleading.
Morrow gives a direct quote to suggest that Jefferson was a Christian rather than a Deist: "I am a Christian in the only sense he [Jesus] wished anyone to be ..." (21 April 1803 letter from Jefferson to Benjamin Rush). However, Morrow does not give the rest of the sentence, in which Jefferson ascribes to Jesus "every HUMAN excellence" (emphasis in the original) but states his belief that Jesus never claimed divinity. The letter includes Jefferson's opinion on the doctrines of Jesus, in particular, his belief that Jesus died before developing a complete system of morals and that "the doctrines which he really delivered were defective as a whole, and fragments only of what he did deliver have come to us mutilated, misstated, and often unintellgible".
I should add here that Ebacher's reference to the "Jefferson Bible" is quite correct. Jefferson edited the gospels for his own use by removing all references to the supernatural, to the divinity of Christ, and to miracles, including the Resurrection.
Certain religious groups, such as David Barton's Wallbuilders, publish their own special interpretations of American history. After challenges by the James Madison scholar Robert Alley in 1995, this group issued a retraction of many of their quotes (see Church and State, July/August 1996). The James Madison and Abraham Lincoln quotes in Mr. Morrow's first letter are both on this list of retractions.
Sincerely,
Davis Cope
To the editor,
In two recent articles Dan Morrow has persisted in expressing the opinion that our most notable founding fathers were Christians when many were Deists. That having the Christian religion incorporated into the public schools and courts is consistent with their views and beneficial to our nation. He backed up his claims with mis-quotations of George Washington, quotations that have been retracted because they were unable to be substantiated when they were challenged by historians, quotations taken out of context that don't reflect the intent of the author and by misinterpreting historical documents. Dan suggested I go to Washington to check out the true history of our nation. Seems a long way to go to contradict someone.
Refuting Dan Morrow's erroneous arguments is important but the average reader's interest would flag considering the necessary length of such a point by point refutation. Instead I will provide to anyone, apon request, copies of supporting documentation of any comments I have made. More important than countering Dan Morrow's creative abilities is the issue of separation of Church and State.
We live in an era where this separation is in jeopardy unless people speak up to defend this important and vital principle of our nation. Dan Morrow wants our public school teachers to teach Christian religious beliefs to our children. If the tables were turned, and Christians were a minority, would you think it fair if our public school teachers were to teach your children atheist beliefs using your tax dollars?
James Madison in his paper "Memorial and Remonstrance" spoke against the state of Virginia establishing teachers of Christian Religion. (Dan claimed this paper refered to a particular religious sect). Madison's words apply equally well to using the Bible to teach morals in our public schools, having the ten commandments posted in our court rooms or to public school choirs singing predominantly Christian religious songs. The words of James Madison speak for themselves in showing Dan Morrow's distortions of the truth and present powerful arguments to maintain the separation of church and state. The following are exact quotations from "Memorial and Remonstrance"...
"..establishing a provision for Teachers of the Christian Religions,...will be a dangerous abuse of power...Who does not see that the same authority which can establish Christianity, in exclusion of all other religions, may establish with the same ease any particular sect of Christians, in exclusion of all other sects?...Rulers who are guilty of such encroachment...are Tyrants....acts obnoxious to so great a proportion of Citizens, tend to enervate the laws in general, and to slacken the bands of society....It degrades from the equal rank of Citizens all those whose opinions in Religion do not bend to those of the Legislative authority. Distant as it may be in it's present form from the Inquisition, it differs only in degree...The religion then of every man must be left to the conviction and conscience of every man...."Maintain the separation of church and state.
Tom Ebacher