The Crack in Democracy

Some months ago my brother died.  I was tasked with the job of closing out his life here on this earth.  It was and still is the most difficult task I have ever had to do.  To be peering into his life in a way that I would never have felt comfortable with.  He and I shared everything with one another.  We talked about what I believed and what he believed.  My brother told me that he was an atheist.  I on the other hand am Pentecostal.  For years we had discussions and continued a relationship as close friends not only siblings.  He discussed his problems and I discussed mine.  The differences in what we believed did not inhibit our ability to accept one another.  I thought of this as I watched a portion of Meet the Press on television Sunday after church.  There were several men and one woman  discussing the right of the government to enact laws against religious beliefs.  I was confounded that these very people wanted us to bring the government into our bedrooms by trying to control our personal lives.  I was surprised that this topic would come up.  One thing that my brother and I both agreed on is the separation of church and state.  I do not want to live in a theocratic government.  We have a few of those over the world.  The end result is that everyone has to believe the way the theocracy has determined.  

I am old enough to remember saying a simple prayer after the flag was raised in school.  At that time in our history most people were of Protestant faith.  In other words, the religions were compatible.  I remember how bent out of shape people became when Madelyn Murray O'Hare filed a law suit because she was an atheist and did not want her son to be forced to pray.  Many of the churches thought the end of the world had come.  What they really should have seen was the initial crack in our democracy.  Suddenly, people were jumping on the band wagon demanding that prayer be brought back to the schools and blaming the absence of this one simple prayer as the downfall of the school system.  Slowly the drumbeat against the government began.  And the enemy of our very soul danced with delight.  He finally got the attention of these sleeping religious people.  He had a huge wedge and now with pronounced glee he shoved it deeper.  His plot to destroy this country seems to be succeeding.  However, it is not a war of church and state, but really much more dangerous-- a war of division.  "A house divided against itself cannot stand."  Suddenly anyone who did not agree with the Protestant faith was the enemy.  The fight began to reclaim the government, while completely disregarding the life of Christ and how he viewed government.  He lived under an occupation.  The Romans ruled Israel at that time.  Jesus made it clear that He had not come to change the government.  It is almost a joke to see people today trying to insert their religious practices into our government.  Bringing up their religious beliefs even while campaigning for a job as the President of the United States. Is that really relevant?  We need someone who will uphold our Constitution without shaping it based on their own biases.  The wedge only created a small crack but quickly people were divided on the issue and today religion in American is at war with democracy.  As the war wages on, the outcome can only be devastating to our country.  Gone are the days when people were tolerant of one another, when people actually walked as our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with open arms accepting each one of us with His unconditional love.  It is heart breaking to see what this huge wave of hatred and intolerance will do not only to our government but to our very lives.  Slowly the walls of democracy will collapse and perhaps we will become a Corporate State.  As Bob Dylan once said, "You gotta serve somebody."  What do we want really- Freedom- to believe as we want to live in peace.  Jesus once said "Pray for peace"  In times of war, few are won to Christ.  We become engaged in other practices and thoughts. May we lay aside our petty differences and realize that America was founded on the efforts of many very different people and many differing beliefs.  Please give them room.  Walk and talk as Jesus did.  Only, He can bring about real peace. And that my friend is The Real Truth.