Government and Religion

Was the United States founded as a “Christian nation?”

Introduction

A decades-long culture war over the relationship between government and religion and the role of faith in civil society shows no sign of abating. New cases are coming before the Supreme Court, and fresh conflicts are arising over the placement of religious displays on public property and the use of government money to support faith-based social-service programs. At the heart of the battle lies the question of whether the United States was formed as a “Christian nation” — as many conservatives contend — or whether the Founding Fathers meant to build a high wall of separation between church and state. President Obama outraged conservatives when he declared, “we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or Muslim nation” but a “nation ...

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