01 Aug 2005 Has Secular Humanism Become a Religion? by Carletta Skinner

A big question usually posed to those nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court concerns the nominee’s views on the separation between church and state.  The upcoming confirmation hearings for Judge John G. Roberts, Jr. will be no different.

We’ve seen prayer removed from our schools, and pretty much any expression of faith in the workplace has become taboo.  Not only do secularists want to erase any mention of God in the public square, they also want to ignore the faith of our Founding Fathers – a faith that built this country.

That’s something the senators grilling Judge Roberts should be worried about.

As the prayers engraved on monuments attest, reminders of that faith are everywhere.  The values of the men who formed America guided them as they carefully crafted a document which gives us the right to worship publicly if we choose: the Constitution.  But this right is slowly being eroded.

Saddest of all is what is left in its place: nothing.

People who believe in nothing similarly want to turn our faith into nothing.  They want to promote this nothing as truth.

A hostile minority seemingly without moral values is seeking to prevent Christians from showing any outward manifestation of God’s grace, and to exert control over those who don’t share their ideology.  Unfortunately, this aggressive group looks to be growing, and Christianity appears to be losing ground.

Secular humanists believe in a “free and open” society, but what they want is freedom from religion.  They don’t want to be subjected to references about God, and don’t want Christian values “forced” on them.  Ironically, they force their ideology on us as they take away our children’s right to pray in schools and banish God from the public square.  They believe, incorrectly, that this suppression will somehow soothe their hatred of religion, ease their guilt and insulate them from exposure to Christian values.

Christians have held prominent leadership positions since American’s inception, but the enemies of Christianity are now attempting to stamp out the very idea of God.  The Constitution was inspired by biblical precepts, and our country is great precisely because of its solid foundation of morality.

A tree without roots cannot stand, and once religious expression is suppressed, America won’t be the powerful and blessed country she is today.  As we replace our strong foundation with nothing, we will crumble.

I’ve heard the usual reasons why people don’t believe in God, from hypocrisy in the church to the audacity of Christians to claim salvation for themselves and warn anyone who believes differently of the consequences.  But efforts to rewrite history and ignore the underpinnings upon which America rests denies the very essence of our greatness.

I predict that one day, secular humanists will try to trample on our right to even pray in church.  What happens to Christians after freedom of religion is further eroded by one Supreme Court ruling after another?  What happens to America when secular humanists are allowed to curtail religious expression and shatter the very foundation upon which America stands?

It is this looming threat that senators should be thinking about when they quiz Judge Roberts, and not whether his faith is going to keep him from fairly administering justice.

###
Carletta Skinner is a member of the National Advisory Council of the black leadership network Project 21.  Comments may be sent to [email protected].

Published by The National Center for Public Policy Research. Reprints permitted provided source is credited. New Visions Commentaries reflect the views of their author, and not necessarily those of Project 21.