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In a country with such diverse opinions about eternity and spirituality, swearing on the Bible has now become an insult to both Christians and non-Christians alike. Our justice system is full of rituals that encourage every citizen to consider the sacredness of human life and the laws that govern healthy human interaction. Traditionally, swearing on the Bible has been a symbol of how our national commitment to morality and justice should extend beyond the law to a love for neighbor and for God. Now, when the existence and character of God are openly debated, the insistence that religious texts should be used in public rituals poses a threat of syncretism and/or civil religion that is insulting to Christians, Muslims, Neo-Pagans, and Atheists alike.

Syncretism is the hodge-podge mixing of religious beliefs to create a unified (personal) belief system. To an extent, everyone is a syncretist it is difficult to find a purely orthodox Catholic, Muslim, Mormon, and it is harder to find an Evangelical that fits in one denominational category. We shape our personal faith from our own experiences, and the influence of each individual's past will always bring forth a slightly different faith. This process is a natural element of spirituality.

Syncretism presents a problem when antithetical beliefs are mixed. An obvious example is that an individual cannot be an atheist and believe in the Judeo-Christian's Yahweh. To believe both these faith propositions as true brings the nature of Truth and Reality into doubt. Every time the court encourages a non-Christian to swear on the Bible, it tangibly symbolizes this same inconsistency. Each time this happens, conscientious observers should question the Court's view of Truth and Reality.

Civil religion is the assimilation of religious rhetoric and practice into the public, political sphere. When this happens, the originally sacred meaning is reduced to the lowest common denominator of public belief. For example, the secular political use of Christian symbolism has reduced Christianity to include those who believe Jesus of Nazareth was only a moral teacher worth following. Now, after a couple hundred years of American Christianity, those who draw a hard line with the Nicene Creed are considered the sectarian fundamentalists.

We can see the dangers of civil religion when we consider the radical attempts of terrorists to force religion on the masses, but we have missed its danger here at home. Politics must protect faith, not devalue it. For the sake of our faith's holy separateness, we must remove religious rhetoric from the political forums that profane it. Swearing on the Bible is a prime place to start.

Learn more about this author, Joseph South.
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