Always the victims, Christians are once again playing the poorest hand at the table when it comes to their self-proclaimed “War on Christians” and the self-inflicted damage in the name of demonstrating they are indeed the target of some conspiracy in this country. While the delusions with which they justify claims of victimization are laughable (e.g., “this nation was founded as a Christian nation,” “same-sex marriage will be the downfall of civilization,” “abortion is killing our younger generations and degrading our moral fiber,” and so on), the undeniable truth remains: Christians are waging their own jihad against all things non-Christian, and that includes homosexuals, Muslims, Jews, pro-choicers, and a great many others, including anyone who does not believe exactly what they believe and practice it with the same evil abandon with which they practice it. It is a shameful violation of all they claim to believe, I know, and I certainly spent many years learning that truth. It is one of the greatest reasons I dislike religion. Today, the level of hypocrisy and hatred fueled by intolerance is growing exponentially and is being perpetrated around the globe by the vast majority of religious followers, but the horrific truth is that America, once the shining example of religious tolerance and shared morality, has truly become the Great Satan that for so long the Arab world believed us to be.
In light of the frightening movement in our country whereby Christians bemoan their own victimization, a fallacious argument based solely on the troglodyte mentality that the only freedoms people should have are those in which they themselves believe, it comes as a great surprise — but not a shock — that Christians already have unconstitutional advantages in many states that specifically discriminate against atheists or other religions. I believe you’ll find this to be of as much interest as I did.
First, let’s understand the guarantees put in place by the U.S. Constitution that prohibit any American government from supporting or otherwise requiring religion.
Clause 3 of Article VI states:
… but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.
The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment states:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;
The Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause states:
No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
When considered in toto, these provisions of our nation’s most sacred document clearly prohibit any state from doing what the federal government itself cannot do: support, respect, require, or otherwise endorse any religious view under any circumstances. It is frightening to realize in light of this that many states have done just that, and it has been done on a scale that is disturbing at best. What you will realize given the information below is that there are states which have gone much farther than simply endorsing a religion: they have made it a requirement.
Section 1 of Article 19 in the Arkansas state constitution, surreptitiously hidden as part of the “Miscellaneous Provisions,” strips atheists of the right to hold public office and to testify in court. To wit:
No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any court.
Maryland’s Declaration of Rights, Article 36, makes clear the only people deserving of rights are those who believe in God.
That as it is the duty of every man to worship God in such manner as he thinks most acceptable to Him, all persons are equally entitled to protection in their religious liberty; wherefore, no person ought by any law to be molested in his person or estate, on account of his religious persuasion, or profession, or for his religious practice, unless, under the color of religion, he shall disturb the good order, peace or safety of the State, or shall infringe the laws of morality, or injure others in their natural, civil or religious rights; nor ought any person to be compelled to frequent, or maintain, or contribute, unless on contract, to maintain, any place of worship, or any ministry; nor shall any person, otherwise competent, be deemed incompetent as a witness, or juror, on account of his religious belief; provided, he believes in the existence of God, and that under His dispensation such person will be held morally accountable for his acts, and be rewarded or punished therefore either in this world or in the world to come.
Massachusetts takes this a step further by engraining equal protection under the law only for Christians and not any other religion, let alone anyone who is not religious. Article 3 of their state consitution makes this clear.
Any every denomination of Christians, demeaning themselves peaceably, and as good subjects of the commonwealth, shall be equally under the protection of the law: and no subordination of any one sect or denomination to another shall ever be established by law.
Mississippi has no time to waste on extraneous language and insinuation. Instead, the state constitution in Article 14 Section 265, under the “General Provisions” heading, simply goes for the jugular.
No person who denies the existence of a Supreme Being shall hold any office in this state.
Not to be outdone by their southern counterparts, North Carolina’s state constitution, in Article 6 Section 8, lays the smackdown for disallowing people in public office with the following:
Disqualifications of office. The following persons shall be disqualified for office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God.
Pennsylvania found it unnecessary to discriminate specifically against non-believers, or at least not to say it so clearly as to be overly obvious. That state’s constitution instead clarifies the protections spelled out for believers so as to minimize any blatant or untoward identification of those they do not want in office. Article 1 Section 4 of the document makes it clear.
No person who acknowledges the being of a God and a future state of rewards and punishments shall, on account of his religious sentiments, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust or profit under this Commonwealth.
Article 4 Section 2 of South Carolina’s constitution places a religious qualification on those who can be governor of the state.
No person shall be eligible to the office of Governor who denies the existence of the Supreme Being; …
In addition, further down in Section 8 of the same document rests a note that the lieutenant governor must also meet that requirement.
Tennessee is less forgiving in Article 9 Section 2 of its state constitution. They believe no one should hold civil office unless they are religious.
No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this state.
That brings us to Texas, the state in which I live. The Lone Star State’s constitution, in Article 1 Section 4, states the following:
No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being.
Interesting, eh? It is an absolute certainty each of these conditions are wholly unconstitutional. It is equally clear they favor Christians (more so than other religions in some cases, although arguably less so in others). With such unconcealed religious endorsement and prerequisites for public office, how comes it then that Christians can claim themselves the targets of an ongoing social war? Insomuch as the law favors them outright and clearly places those like me at a disadvantage, even going so far as to completely restrict me from public office because I am not simple-minded enough to need a spiritual crutch, it is I and fellow atheists who should claim a “War on Atheists” and begin taking the battle to court.
The irony in all of this is unequivocal. The humor, on the other hand, seems only to be clear to those of us who understand Christianity has long enjoyed privileges reserved for their majority position in our country. As the Reverend Robert M. Franklin said, this “strikes me as a spoiled-brat response by Christians…”
In the meantime, are there any guesses as to how quickly constitutional lawsuits might be filed in each of these states to have this unfair and clearly illegal language removed, even if the compulsions remain unenforced?