by Darren Meade

Created on: July 02, 2009   Last Updated: July 06, 2009

Minimal understanding and recognition is given to the fact that the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Bill of Rights of the United States were formulated and written by Freemasons who were deists and theist and not religionists. Thus, there is the guarantee of freedom FROM the government imposition of religion (theocracy) as well as freedom OF expression of religion. The original pilgrims who founded America sought freedom from persecution and religious liberty of expression (Napolitano, 2006). Please read that again, 'There is a guarantee of freedom FROM the government as well as a freedom of expression of religion.' Read the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights for yourself, and you will see that the argument from the other side is not only in error, it does not exist.

The weakness of interpretations comes down to the lack of clarity about what the phrase, "to establish a religion", means. Obviously, the mere mention of the word 'God' does not itself establish a 'religion'. The United States government actually spells out in detail the requirements for legally 'establishing a religion', and the Internal Revenue Service gives rather lengthy descriptions of the necessary components (fourteen major categories) for the recognition of a religion. If just affirming the belief in the reality of God, or putting up holiday decorations were sufficient to 'establish a religion', then ninety-two percent of Americans could become tax-exempt.

As Samuel Adams wrote in a letter to James Warren on Februray 12, 1779:

"A general Dissolution of Principles & Manners will more surely overthrow the Liberties of America than the whole Force of Common Enemy. While the People are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but when once they lose their Virtue they will be ready to surrender their Liberties to the first external or internal Invader." (Samuel Adams Papers, Lenox Library, Lenox, MA).

Because we argue positionalities which come from the ego, we miss what the truth is of the issue at hand. As first described by Protagoras of ancient Greece, everyone naively presumes that their own perception, opinions, and comprehension of life and its events are 'real, true, factual', and therefore 'right'. Hence if other people have a different viewpoint, they are considered to be 'wrong, misinformed, prejudiced, politically incorrect or ignorant'. The vanity of the ego has a vested interest in being 'right', which carries with it an associated sense of importance.

If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it...." - Joseph Goebbels, Nazi propaganda minister. Therefore I challenge the reader of either side of the document to read the documents our founding fathers wrote and learn that what has been told about the separation between church and state is a big lie.

Then the government and IRS have guidelines as to what constitutes a religion; Therefore, if a Christmas Tree or the words 'Merry Christmas' or the Ten Commandments constituted a religion, we would all be tax-exempt.

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