So would you prefer to be a nation built on corporate principals? It does seem to me to be what is going on these days, thats why these religious issues are being so pushed. Corporations want to dictate how families should live, what other businesses should do (or not do) and it has really crossed the lines on where one issue starts and another ends.
Case in point- Hobby Lobby and their feelings on health care rights. Are you a store or are you a religious sect pushing your values?
The other thing that confuses me is this gay rights thing. I don't care how someone wants to have sex, or who they want to live with. If they want to have a party and call it a wedding what business is that of a store, much less a state. Why would a bakery refuse a paying customer? Just don't supply the cake topper for crying out loud.
Humans are insecure beings. Many of us cannot 'take a stand on what we think is right' unless a) there's a leader-figure that speaks 'the truth' (so that we're "jus` followin` orders") and b) there's someone 'wrong' to take a stand-against.
Corporations ARE the same thing as churches---congregations of people who uphold a set of values for the sake of possible prosperity.
HOBBY LOBBY, in my current state-of-residence (Oklahoma ... I probably went to high-school with some of their kin) has said that they made that decision based on their Christian foundation---even though 'abortion' has nothing to do with Christianity, they had to
use Christianity to back their wussy 'stand.' (They denied the Health Care because they considered it tantamount to 'condoning abortion.' And--out here in 'the sticks'--most of the married men WOULDN'T be married if-abortion were common practice & -'that one night in bed with "her"' hadn't resulted in 'the ultimate responsibility.')
And 'gay rights': they don't approve of that for a lot of reasons; but basically, it's for the same reason they don't plaster profanity anywhere---they don't want it to become normal.
Sorry to say that religion has been infiltrating the USA for hundreds of years. Every facet of our livelihood has been stapled with religious redirect. Look at our currency. It has in god we trust written all over it. God and state has been one entity for a very long time and people have not seen it yet.
I remember every morning in school we had to pledge allegiance to the United States of America. It was under god that we had to do it, while saying the verse. Back then we didn't know it, but we were being conditioned to pledge allegiance to the flag, our country, under god. What god?
I don't think there will be a massive outbreak and extremist in America. I don't think normal citizens would put up with that at all.
God is not part of religion! Religions WORSHIP God, yes; but God doesn't love 'religionists' any more-or-less than 'atheists.' The god that the pledge was talking-about (maybe this sounds like 'the company-line') is merely 'whatever power citizens believe to be greater than any man (or -to be the greatest human, to atheists).'
I'm a Christian. I don't make it a point to push my beliefs on anyone. I'm not the guy that will see you in a bad spot and say "Shoulda prayed bro." I've been through some rough patches and my faith has gotten me through them. To each their own, really. I don't really appreciate all of the extremists making us all look like crazy people. Yes I believe in God. Yes I'm a Christian. No I don't think it's my duty to recruit people into my religion. I just make it a point to love others, help others and give spiritual advice to people that are SEEKING it. As far as my country, I don't know. I can't call how this place is turning out. lol I guess I'm getting old, but right now everyone looks crazy to me. lol
I believe that God is everything. That's not 'God is the most important thing,' not 'each thing is a god'; that's the fact that "all things working together" equal God (that's one way to know his will---it's "What Works with Everything Together").
That's why Jesus told us the Greatest Commandment in two ways---Love God, Love your neighbor as yourself. By doing the second, you do the first; if you do the first, you can't help but do the second.
Jesus told his disciples to make disciples of all nations; we do that not by 'hoping they accept our leadership,' but by KNOWING THAT THEY FOLLOW US if we follow faithfully.
I think it's annoying to tell you the truth. Go ahead and worship God or whoever you want, but having a religion doesn't make anyone better than another person, and it shouldn't have anything to do with dominance in the country.
Again, GOD IS NOT RELIGIOUS. "Religion" literally means 'by the books' (that's "the books" as in 'the account-balance'). "As you sow, so also shall you reap."
