RELIGION AND GOVERNMENT

Paul Greenberg's column July 10 gives us the same one-sided, illogical half-truth that has helped lead us to our present-day anti-religious bigotry. He tries to make the point that a government-sponsored religion is not what any of the early founders of our nation wanted. Neither did they want the government to restrict in any way the free exercise of religion. He leaves out that every one of them preferred the Christian religion and its moral teachings. But, most importantly, they could not have conceived our nation's denial of perhaps the greatest ideal agreed up at the time: that these moral truths were to be the guiding principles of this nation's government.

If Greenberg sees this as a contradiction and an abomination, let us be assured the founders did not.

I dare anyone to take any of today's moral dilemmas and apply them to the moral litmus test of the founders' writings and beliefs. Although flawed men, they knew better than to disregard the ultimate truths of the creator in their endeavors of building a government that would stand the test of time.

Today, I believe, we can agree that a government-sponsored religion is not an ideal we wish to see implemented. Yet why was the government (University of Virginia) already sponsoring other religious newspapers? Why was it only unfair to sponsor a "Christian" newspaper? Where were Greenberg and the ACLU when these other religious newspapers were printing, sponsored by the government?

Greenberg quoted Jefferson, "Almighty God hath created the mind free" and went from there to conclude "that to compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves is sinful and tyrannical."

If this is to be used as the test, then what would Jefferson say about government distribution of condoms to public school children, sex education for elementary-age children, government promotion of the sin of homosexuality, government funding of pro-abortion family planning, government-funded abortion, fetal tissue research and gays in the military?

If it was the intent of these men to take religion out of every aspect of government, why did they institute prayer before every meeting prior to the Declaration of Independence and, afterwards, in every meeting of the judiciary and Congress? Why did they use the Bible in almost every court case? Why were the 10 Commandments as well as many other direct quotes from the Bible used and inscribed on government buildings all around the country?

If we think the governmental revisionists of the National Endowment for the Humanities' new history textbooks went too far, we need to think again. The biggest duping of this country came many years ago when our country agreed to deny all of these previous self-evident truths.

We need a national realization of the problems facing us, yet an abiding faith which says if we confront our problems and choose the godly answers to these problems, that together with the help of God we can overcome these problems.

Optimism is preferable to pessimism as a daily routine, yet blindfolded optimism will rarely save anyone from walking off a cliff, much less a nation.

Bruce Collier is a resident of Cape Girardeau.