An Independent Wants To Know

I wrote this when Obama was running for President - nothing has changed...

Democrats and Republicans have always stood on the opposite side of the fence, however:

1.  Why would I support amnesty for illegal immigrants?  Is it fair to the people who have waited for years and paid thousands of dollars to enter our country legally?

2. Why would I want my tax dollars to pay for abortions?  If it is a personal choice, shouldn’t they pay for it?

3.  Why would I be against English as being the official language in the United States?  This is America!

4.  Why would I want retroactive Social Security to illegal immigrants who gain U.S. citizenship through amnesty?

5.  Why would I want expanded welfare benefits and unlimited eligibility?

6.  Why would I want a national health care insurance plan that would be orchestrated by Washington, D.C.?  Who would they answer to?

7.  Why would I expect bureaucrats to be able to monitor health care when Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security are broke?

8.  Why doesn't everyone object to our government voting on their own personal agendas, i.e., raises, health care plan, or vacations? 

9.  Why am I sensitive to the fact that President Obama scraped the Missile Defense Shield that would protect Poland on the anniversary of the Soviet Union invasion of Poland in 1939? A bit insensitive, isn’t it?

10. Why I am upset that there are people in this country who want to turn over information that would put our soldiers in harms way?

11. Why isn’t everyone in Congress upset over the Acorn deceit and misappropriation of tax dollars? Child Prostitute! Can it get any worse? 

12. Why can’t we have a bi-partisan health care plan?

13. Why does our nation hate entrepreneurs, big business, and rich people? They sure like their cell phones, Iphones, Ipads?  Who do they think made them...not rich people, but they became rich.

14. Why is our country so divided, so selfish, so against God? And why did this happen?

--Estelle P. Shrum

www.Heistheword.com

The Muslim Brotherhood – verified by Wikipedia

WHY WE NEED TO WORRY...
The Muslim Brotherhood was founded by Hassan al-Banna in 1928 after the collapse of Turkey and returned to the precepts of the Qur’an. This is the official slogan of the Muslim Brotherhood:

THE MUSLIM BROTHERWOOD - WHY WE NEED TO WORRY...
The Muslim Brotherhood was founded by Hassan al-Banna in 1928 after the collapse of Turkey and returned to the precepts of the Qur’an. This is the official slogan of the Muslim Brotherhood: 
"Allah is our objective.
The Prophet is our leader.
Qur'an is our law.
Jihad is our way.
Dying in the way of Allah is our highest hope.”
The most famous slogan, used worldwide, is "Islam is the solution."
 
The Muslim Brotherhood's goal, as stated by Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna was to reclaim Islam's manifest destiny, an empire, stretching from Spain to Indonesia. It preaches that Islam enjoins man to strive for social justice, the eradication of poverty and corruption, and political freedom to the extent allowed by the laws of Islam. The Brotherhood strongly opposes Western colonialism, and helped overthrow the pro-western monarchies in Egypt and other Muslim countries during the early 20th century.

In October 2007, the Muslim Brotherhood issued a detailed political platform. Amongst other things it called for a board of Muslim clerics to oversee the government, and limiting the office of the presidency to Muslim men. It declared that a woman was not suited to be president because the post's religious and military duties ’conflict with her nature, social and other humanitarian roles.`

Arab Nations Involved with The Muslim Brotherhood:

Bahrain - It has strongly opposed the government's accession to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on the grounds that this would give Muslim citizens the right to change religion, when in the party's view they should be "beheaded".

Syria - Membership in the Syrian Brotherhood became a capital offence in Syria in 1980, (but the headquarters of the MB-linked Palestinian group, Hamas, is located in the Syria's capital Damascus, where it is given Syrian government support. This is seen by some as an example of the lack of international centralization or even coordination of the MB.

Jordan - The Hamas's Damascus-based leader, Khaled Meshaal, said: "Egypt's unrest will spread across the Mideast and Arabs will topple leaders allied with the United States." However, he did not specifically name Jordanian King Abdullah II. The Muslim brotherhood is rightfully or wrongfully feared by several commentators in the west; however it is not known how many seats in a democratic government the brotherhood will gain in any of the aforementioned countries.

Iran - Although Iran is a predominately Shia Muslim country and the Muslim Brotherhood is Sunni in doctrine, Olga Davidson and Mohammad Mahallati claim the Brotherhood has had influence among Shia in Iran.

Iraq - After the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime in 2003, the Islamic Party has reemerged as one of the main advocates of the country's Sunni community. Also, in the north of Iraq there are several Islamic movements inspired by or part of the Muslim Brotherhood network.

Palestine -The Islamic Resistance Movement, or Hamas, founded in 1987 in Gaza, is a wing of the Brotherhood, formed out of Brotherhood-affiliated charities and social institutions that had gained a strong foothold among the local population.

Saudi Arabia - The Brotherhood has been tolerated by the Saudi government, and maintains a presence in the country

Kuwait - The Muslim Brotherhood in Kuwait is represented in the Kuwaiti parliament by Hadas.

Yemen - The Muslim Brotherhood is the political arm of the Yemeni Congregation for Reform, commonly known as Islah.

Oman - The Muslim Brotherhood obtained support from the uneducated people.

Algeria - When a multi-party system was introduced in Algeria in the early 1990s, the Muslim Brotherhood formed the Movement for the Society of Peace (MSP), previously known as Hamas.

Sudan - Sudan has a long and deep history with the Muslim Brotherhood compared to many other countries. By April 1949, the first branch of the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood organization emerged. The Muslim Brotherhood/NIF's (National Islamic Front) main objective in Sudan was to Islamize the society "from above" and to institutionalize the Islamic law throughout the country where they succeeded.

Somalia - Somalia's wing of the Muslim Brotherhood is known by the name Harakat Al-Islah or "Reform Movement". Nonetheless, the Brotherhood, as mentioned earlier, has inspired many Islamist organizations in Somalia.

Tunisia - Like their counterparts elsewhere in the Islamic world in general, the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood has influenced the Tunisia's Islamists.

The United State of America - The Holy Land Foundation trial has led to the release, as evidence, of several documents on the Muslim Brotherhood. One of these documents, dated in 1991, explains that the goal of the Muslim Brotherhood in the U.S. is "settlement," defined by the brotherhood as a form of jihad aimed at destroying Western civilization from within and allowing for the victory of Islam over other religions. In another one of these documents, "Ikhwan in America", the author alleges that the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood in the US include going to camps to do weapons training (referred to as Special work by the Muslim Brotherhood), as well as engaging in counter-espionage against US government agencies such as the FBI and CIA (referred to as Securing the Group).

The United Kingdom - The Muslim Brotherhood has formally been active in the U.K since 1996 and now holds a significant but widely unknown presence within the U.K's Muslim population.

(FrontPage Magazine)
"The Muslim Brotherhood is a group that worries us not because it deals with philosophical or ideological ideas but because it defends the use of violence against civilians."

(Editor of The Al Qaeda Reade)
Muhammad himself described war as "deceit" and those Muslim Brotherhood disciples, past and present, merely duplicate the "everlasting words of Allah", as iterated in the Qur'an.

Former U.S. Middle East peace envoy Dennis Ross, who told Asharq Alawsat newspaper that the Muslim Brotherhood is a global, not a local organization, governed by a Shura Council, which rejects cessation of violence in Israel, and supports violence to achieve its political objectives elsewhere too.

The Interior Minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz has stated ‘The Muslim Brotherhood” has links to groups across the Arab world, including Jordan's main parliamentary opposition, the 'Islamic Action Front,' and the 'Palestinian resistance movement, 'Hamas." The Interior Minister's outburst against the Brotherhood came amid mounting criticism in the United States of Saudi Arabia's longstanding support for Islamist groups around the world.

The Financial Times reported financial links between 74-year-old Swiss Muslim convert, and businessman Ahmed Huber, and members of the Muslim Brotherhood, notably Youssef Nada, Ali Ghaleb Himmat. According to the U.S. government, Al Taqwa "has long acted as financial advisers to al-Qaeda." He is reported to have "confirmed" having "had contact with associates of Osama bin Laden at an Islamic conference in Beirut", whom he called "very discreet, well-educated, very intelligent people”.

Foreign Relations
The involvement of the Muslim Brotherhood in the failed assignation of former President Nasser and President Assad and numerous other officials makes it doubtful that they will support a democratic system where non-Muslim or secular voices have a chance. There are rumors that the Muslim Brotherhood wants to use the democratic system to hijack the government and to make Egypt into a Sunni version of Iran utilizing Sharia law as the main guiding principle of government. Coptic Christians have already been attacked by Muslim Brotherhood thugs so it is clear that the Muslim Brotherhood has no intent to protect Coptic Christians in Egypt.

Helmi el-Gazzar, member of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), stated that the party decided to abandon the slogan “Islam is the solution” used by the Muslim Brotherhood for decades in favor of the new slogan “Freedom is the Solution and Justice is the Application” during the next parliamentary elections.

I believe history speaks for itself.
-- Estelle P. Shrum
www.Heistheword.com

“Allah is our objective.
The Prophet is our leader.
Qur'an is our law.
Jihad is our way.
Dying in the way of Allah is our highest hope.”

The Muslim Brotherhood's goal, as stated by Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna was to reclaim Islam's manifest destiny, an empire, stretching from Spain to Indonesia. It preaches that Islam enjoins man to strive for social justice, the eradication of poverty and corruption, and political freedom to the extent allowed by the laws of Islam. The Brotherhood strongly opposes Western colonialism, and helped overthrow the pro-western monarchies in Egypt and other Muslim countries during the early 20th century.

In October 2007, the Muslim Brotherhood issued a detailed political platform. Amongst other things it called for a board of Muslim clerics to oversee the government, and limiting the office of the presidency to Muslim men. It declared that a woman was not suited to be president because the post's religious and military duties ’conflict with her nature, social and other humanitarian roles.`

Arab Nations Involved with The Muslim Brotherhood:

Bahrain - It has strongly opposed the government's accession to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on the grounds that this would give Muslim citizens the right to change religion, when in the party's view they should be "beheaded".

Syria - Membership in the Syrian Brotherhood became a capital offence in Syria in 1980, (but the headquarters of the MB-linked Palestinian group, Hamas, is located in the Syria's capital Damascus, where it is given Syrian government support. This is seen by some as an example of the lack of international centralization or even coordination of the MB.

Jordan - The Hamas's Damascus-based leader, Khaled Meshaal, said: "Egypt's unrest will spread across the Mideast and Arabs will topple leaders allied with the United States." However, he did not specifically name Jordanian King Abdullah II. The Muslim brotherhood is rightfully or wrongfully feared by several commentators in the west; however it is not known how many seats in a democratic government the brotherhood will gain in any of the aforementioned countries.

Iran - Although Iran is a predominately Shia Muslim country and the Muslim Brotherhood is Sunni in doctrine, Olga Davidson and Mohammad Mahallati claim the Brotherhood has had influence among Shia in Iran.

Iraq - After the fall of the Saddam Hussein regime in 2003, the Islamic Party has reemerged as one of the main advocates of the country's Sunni community. Also, in the north of Iraq there are several Islamic movements inspired by or part of the Muslim Brotherhood network.

Palestine -The Islamic Resistance Movement, or Hamas, founded in 1987 in Gaza, is a wing of the Brotherhood, formed out of Brotherhood-affiliated charities and social institutions that had gained a strong foothold among the local population.

Saudi Arabia - The Brotherhood has been tolerated by the Saudi government, and maintains a presence in the country

Kuwait - The Muslim Brotherhood in Kuwait is represented in the Kuwaiti parliament by Hadas.

Yemen - The Muslim Brotherhood is the political arm of the Yemeni Congregation for Reform, commonly known as Islah.

Oman - The Muslim Brotherhood obtained support from the uneducated people.

Algeria - When a multi-party system was introduced in Algeria in the early 1990s, the Muslim Brotherhood formed the Movement for the Society of Peace (MSP), previously known as Hamas.

Sudan - Sudan has a long and deep history with the Muslim Brotherhood compared to many other countries. By April 1949, the first branch of the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood organization emerged. The Muslim Brotherhood/NIF's (National Islamic Front) main objective in Sudan was to Islamize the society "from above" and to institutionalize the Islamic law throughout the country where they succeeded.

Somalia - Somalia's wing of the Muslim Brotherhood is known by the name Harakat Al-Islah or "Reform Movement". Nonetheless, the Brotherhood, as mentioned earlier, has inspired many Islamist organizations in Somalia.

Tunisia - Like their counterparts elsewhere in the Islamic world in general, the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood has influenced the Tunisia's Islamists.

The United State of America - The Holy Land Foundation trial has led to the release, as evidence, of several documents on the Muslim Brotherhood. One of these documents, dated in 1991, explains that the goal of the Muslim Brotherhood in the U.S. is "settlement," defined by the brotherhood as a form of jihad aimed at destroying Western civilization from within and allowing for the victory of Islam over other religions. In another one of these documents, "Ikhwan in America", the author alleges that the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood in the US include going to camps to do weapons training (referred to as Special work by the Muslim Brotherhood), as well as engaging in counter-espionage against US government agencies such as the FBI and CIA (referred to as Securing the Group).

The United Kingdom - The Muslim Brotherhood has formally been active in the U.K since 1996 and now holds a significant but widely unknown presence within the U.K's Muslim population.

 (FrontPage Magazine)

"The Muslim Brotherhood is a group that worries us not because it deals with philosophical or ideological ideas but because it defends the use of violence against civilians."

(Editor of The Al Qaeda Reade)

Muhammad himself described war as "deceit" and those Muslim Brotherhood disciples, past and present, merely duplicate the "everlasting words of Allah", as iterated in the Qur'an.

Former U.S. Middle East peace envoy Dennis Ross, who told Asharq Alawsat newspaper that the Muslim Brotherhood is a global, not a local organization, governed by a Shura Council, which rejects cessation of violence in Israel, and supports violence to achieve its political objectives elsewhere too.

The Interior Minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz has stated ‘The Muslim Brotherhood” has links to groups across the Arab world, including Jordan's main parliamentary opposition, the 'Islamic Action Front,' and the 'Palestinian resistance movement, 'Hamas." The Interior Minister's outburst against the Brotherhood came amid mounting criticism in the United States of Saudi Arabia's longstanding support for Islamist groups around the world.

The Financial Times reported financial links between 74-year-old Swiss Muslim convert, and businessman Ahmed Huber, and members of the Muslim Brotherhood, notably Youssef Nada, Ali Ghaleb Himmat. According to the U.S. government, Al Taqwa "has long acted as financial advisers to al-Qaeda." He is reported to have "confirmed" having "had contact with associates of Osama bin Laden at an Islamic conference in Beirut", whom he called "very discreet, well-educated, very intelligent people”.

Foreign Relations

The involvement of the Muslim Brotherhood in the failed assignation of former President Nasser and President Assad and numerous other officials makes it doubtful that they will support a democratic system where non-Muslim or secular voices have a chance. There are rumors that the Muslim Brotherhood wants to use the democratic system to hijack the government and to make Egypt into a Sunni version of Iran utilizing Sharia law as the main guiding principle of government. Coptic Christians have already been attacked by Muslim Brotherhood thugs so it is clear that the Muslim Brotherhood has no intent to protect Coptic Christians in Egypt.

Helmi el-Gazzar, member of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), stated that the party decided to abandon the slogan “Islam is the solution” used by the Muslim Brotherhood for decades in favor of the new slogan “Freedom is the Solution and Justice is the Application” during the next parliamentary elections

I believe history speaks for itself.

--  Estelle P. Shrum
www.Heistheword.com

This Is Not About Race or Politics...It's about Facts

I wrote this four years ago and it seems it seems like nothing has changed!

ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS WITHOUT RACISM OR POLITICS…

Isn’t it true that no one was called a racist when Bush was loathed and called every name under the sun?

Isn’t it true that Bush gave more money to help the people in Africa than any other President?

Isn’t it true that many white people voted for Obama and helped him to become President?

Isn’t it true that President Obama was the first person to use the race card?
Isn’t it true that racists have always been around, and not just with this
election, or this President?

Isn’t it true that President Kennedy met with much prejudice because he was Catholic?

Isn’t it true that Jimmy Carter’s politics is racist against the Jews, but he claims racism against Obama?

Isn’t it true that the American people love our country and are proud of it?

Isn’t it true that American’s give more money to charities than any other country in the world?

Isn’t it true that American people are frightened of a $23.1 trillion deficit over the next 10 years, and don’t want to leave a debt like this to their descendants?

Isn’t it a legitimate fear of the bail out money that went to the banks, insurance companies, and auto industry with so little accountability?

Isn’t it true that many people fear where this country is headed and think the changes may be for the worse?

Isn’t it true that conservatives disagree with liberals, and liberals disagree with conservatives, and it has nothing to do with race, color or creed?

Isn’t it true we are all immigrants to America? Most of our great-grandparents came from another country, with exception to the American Indian who had their land stolen from us.

Isn’t it true that separation of church and state means that government cannot dictate or forbid religion? But it doesn’t mean that government is not allowed to have faith in God?

Isn’t it true that Islamic extremists in many parts of the world tortured and chopped heads off of our U.S. soldiers and citizens? Can that compare to water boarding three killers?

Isn’t it true that President Obama announced to the world that America is NOT a Judeo/Christian nation?

Isn’t it true that President Obama ignored Nation Prayer Day? What message is he sending?

Isn’t it true that President Obama gave pause and recognized Gay and Lesbian Day? What message is he sending?

Isn’t it true that President Obama Bowed to the King of Saudi Arabia, and did not kiss the Pope’s ring? What message is he sending?

IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN AND LOVE THE LORD ASK YOURSELF THIS?

DO I HAVE HATE IN MY HEART FOR PRESIDENT OBAMA, OR ANYONE ELSE? I HOPE THE ANSWER IS NO BECAUSE IT IS A SCIENTIFIC FACT THAT TWO ELEMENTS CANNOT OCCUPY THE SAME SPACE. WE CANNOT HATE ANYONE AND LOVE CHRIST…

WHAT DOES YOUR HEART TELL YOU? PRAY FOR OUR NATION AND PRESIDENT OBAMA FOR I FEAR THE CHANGES HE IS GOING TO MAKE WILL DESTORY OUR COUNTRY.
   --- Estelle P. Shrum
www.Heistheword.com

How can I say this in a Godly way?

After thinking how I would approach this I have decided that there is no diplomatic way to say the things I am about to say. I do know that no one can cast the first stone, because we all sin, and fall short of the glory of God. I also believe that we are living in the end days as the Bible so clearly tells us. Of course, no one person, not even Jesus, when He walked the earth, knows the hour of His return, but the Bible tells us to watch the fig tree, and we can know when the season is near. The Bible tells us “This generation will not pass away” until all these things Jesus spoke of will come to pass. Well they are coming to pass more quickly than we realize. In the day of the internet with information so readily available, time is but a millisecond away.

When I was growing up people had the good sense not to discuss politics, religion, or sex. People had the good taste to keep their dirty laundry within the confines of their own home. No one hung out their dirty laundry. Today, the more people that are open about their bad habits, their personal feelings, or their secrets, are there for the world to witness. In my humble opinion that is why our society is so accepting of everything and anything. It actually makes one cool to air their dysfunctional lives.

Most people have a secret they we would not want known, but Christians confess it to God, and repent, because they are convicted of sin. Today our society just makes excuses for it. This is why our country will never move forward. We are living in the days of Sodom and Gomorra and there is no Noah to build us an ark.

O.K….let’s take sex, for example. Our society now accepts, open marital relationships, soft pornography, (at the moment most still frown at hard porn), people living together (we used to think of it as “shacking up”), but now it is quite acceptable. We embrace that homosexuals have all the benefits of marriage that God created for man and woman. Homosexuals have been around as long as the bible, this is not something new. Of course we never want to repeat the past and condemn anyone for their life style. Man was given free choice and a free will to do whatever our laws today allow. Christians believe sin is sin, and there is no sin that is better or worse than another. However, God is a holy God, and only one man walked the earth without sin and that was Jesus. No one, but Him, is without sin. However, as a society we accept whatever feels good and is politically correct, and that is a new standard.

Now let’s, take religion, another taboo topic. Today our society is very conscious of not offending most religions. I say most religions because it doesn’t seem that society cares about offending Christians. Between the three major religions, Jews, Christians, and Muslims, they have all suffered from persecution, but I am speaking of today, not the past. Today Christians are held in contempt. It is obvious they offend atheists, and far left liberals. Otherwise why would they fight so hard to remove God from every part of secular society by using a lame excuse as not mixing government and religion? They don’t care or understand what Thomas Jefferson wrote. It was written to defend freedom of religion, so government could never dictate religion, not the other way around. His quote will be at the end of this article.

Now, for another taboo subject…politics. This topic is more harmful and threatening than sex, and religion. It can cause you to lose more friends than disagreeing on either sex or religion. I am really amazed at how hateful people can become on their political views. The odd part is that most people know very little about politics, only what they hear on the news, and the people that are involved only listen to one side…either conservative or liberal news stations. For all practical purposes newspapers are extinct, the only good thing in them are the sales. So to be really up on political news, you must listen and read up on both sides of an issue; before you make your mind up on what you believe to be true. However, it is impossible not to mix sex, and religion with politics, because it’s our politics that dictate who we are and how our society should be ruled.

The rest of this article speaks to the 75% of the population in America who claim to be a Christian. I realize that Christians are no better or worse than anyone else, but I do have an issue that confuses me and shakes me to the core. There is no easy way to approach it…but why did 75% of the Christian population give their vote for legal abortions, especially allowing late term abortions. These babies are viable and can live outside the mother’s womb? How can anyone justify that? The Bible says there is a time to be born and a time to die, so if we make a choice to take a life we need to be sure it is justified, and only self defense is justified. Do they know that seven thousand babies are killed every year in Jacksonville, FL?

When I was a young girl I was raised Catholic and didn’t believe in abortion, but as I grew older my beliefs changed and although I still believed that I would never have an abortion, I still didn’t feel I had the right to make that choice for anyone else. I believed they would have to answer to God for what they did. Well, when I became a born again Christian, I realized that if I don’t speak out and say it is wrong, what I am actually saying is that’s it’s OK. It’s never OK to break God’s Commandments. It’s never OK to be silent when society goes against breaking the "Ten Commandments". I can tell you from experience of counseling women from all ages who had abortions that they never get over the pain and remorse of making that decision. They feel the lost of their child the rest of their lives.

Also, why do Christians in our society not care that marriage has been redefined by our society to appease the minority. Marriage was a gift from God for man and woman to be united as one. Homosexuals have been married by civil law for years, so how do Christians justify these broken commandments that God gave to the Jews and Christians?

Another issue that grieves me is that so many people seem to want a socialist society. Do they really want their freedom to choose taken away? Do they want the government to take care of them? Why is their anger targeted at only the 1% of the population who are rich? Do they not realize the 1% of rich people are the people who start up big factories and business that create their jobs? Most of these "rich" people are self-made millionaires. It would be far easier to take away their “loop-holes” than unfairly taxing them just because they’re rich? God only asks Christians to give 10% for the warehouse, so there should be plenty left over to take care of the poor and the hungry. Do these Christians give God their 10%? Do they feed the hungry, or give to the poor. Or do they want the rich to do it all? It is a fact that middle class conservatives give more money to charities than the far left liberals.

So why do we allow the minority far left wing to rule our nation? What has happened in the last ten years to divide our nation so drastically? It is more than just greed. Greed has always been around, democrats and republicans have always been around. The rich, the middle class, and the poor, have always been around. Immigration has always been around, atheists and agnostics have always been around, and extremists have always been around. So what has changed?

It is man’s heart that has changed, and he has turned his back on his creator for the last time. We are living in the end days, where sin will increase at a remarkable rate, and the book of Matthew will come to pass. History has already witnessed hundreds of prophecies come true. If you are not a Bible believer, I tell you true, it is the most remarkable, truthful, and inspiring book you will ever read. It has been with us from Genesis 1145 B.C. to Revelation early 90 A.D. It is the spirit of the living God and through his Saints He gave witness of His love for mankind.

So when you vote next year, vote your conscience, and not politics. If we want to make the right choice as Christians we have to choose God’s Word every time. Politics has no conscience. For believers, it’s God’s way or the highway. We can not vote race, color or creed. Never allow politics to override God’s principles.

CHURCH AND STATE

Ancient history

Ancient history is replete with examples of the mixing and melding of Church and state. Typically a successful ruler or king would assume various "priestly" titles, in addition to the "temporal" titles that such a position tended to confer. Some examples of this certain Church-state mixing and melding are: the execution of Socrates, whereby Socrates was sentenced to death by the Athenian state for among other things, "his disrespect for the Gods", the claim of many of the ancient Judean kings to rule with a mandate from Heaven, or the Edict of Thessalonica, whereby Christianity was officially made the state religion of the Roman Empire.

Reformation

At the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther articulated a doctrine of the two kingdoms. According to James Madison, perhaps one of the most important modern proponents of the separation of church and state, Luther's doctrine of the two kingdoms marked the beginning of the modern conception of separation of church and state.

In the 1530s Henry VIII, angered by the Catholic Church's refusal to annul his marriage with his wife Catherine of Aragon, decided to break with the Church and set himself as ruler of the new Church of England, the Anglican Church, ending the separation that had existed^[ between Church and State in England. Main article: Separation of church and state in the United States

In the United States, the term is an offshoot of the phrase, "wall of separation between church and state," as written in Thomas Jefferson's letter to the Danbury Baptist Association in 1802. The original text reads: "... I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between Church & State." Jefferson reflected his frequent speaking theme that the government is not to interfere with religion. The phrase was quoted by the United States Supreme Court first in 1878, and then in a series of cases starting in 1947. The phrase "separation of church and state" itself does not appear in the United States Constitution. The First Amendment states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." The Supreme Court did not consider the question of how this applied to the states until 1947; when they did, in Everson v. Board of Education, all nine justices agreed that there was a wall of separation between church and state, but a majority held that the present case (a local authority paying to transport parochial students to school), the benefits to the children outweighed the Constitutional objection.

 

By Estelle P. Shrum

www.Heistheword.com

Author of:  He Is The Word

QUOTES BY MARK TWAIN ON GOVERNMENT

The government is not best which secures mere life and property -- there is a more valuable thing -- manhood. - Mark Twain's Notebook
 

...nations have no command over their governments, & in fact no influence over them, except of a fleeting & rather ineffectual sort.

- Letter to Baroness von Suttner, 17 February 1898

I think it is not wise for an emperor, or a king, or a president, to come down into the boxing ring, so to speak, and lower the dignity of his office by meddling in the small affairs of private citizens.

-- Mark Twain in Eruption

The government of my country snubs honest simplicity, but fondles artistic villainy, and I think I might have developed into a very capable pickpocket if I had remained in the public service a year or two.

-- Roughing It

That's the difference between governments and individuals. Governments don't care, individuals do.  -- A Tramp Abroad

 

...no country can be well governed unless its citizens as a body keep religiously before their minds that they are the guardians of the law and that the law officers are only the machinery for its execution, nothing more.

- The Gilded Age

The mania for giving the Government power to meddle with the private affairs of cities or citizens is likely to cause endless trouble, through the rivaly of schools and creeds that are anxious to obtain official recognition, and there is great danger that our people will lose our independence of thought and action which is the cause of much of our greatness, and sink into the helplessness of the Frenchman or German who expects his government to feed him when hungry, clothe him when naked, to prescribe when his child may be born and when he may die, and, in fine, to regulate every act of humanity from the cradle to the tomb, including the manner in which he may seek future admission to paradise.  - "Official Physic"

 

There is a phrase which has grown so common in the world's mouth that it has come to seem to have sense and meaning--the sense and meaning implied when it is used: that is the phrase which refers to this or that or the other nation as possibly being "capable of self-government;" and the implied sense of it is, that there has been a nation somewhere, some time or other, which wasn't capable of it - wasn't as able to govern itself as some self-appointed specailists were or would be to govern it. The master minds of all nations, in all ages, have sprung, in affluent multitude, from the mass of the nation, and from the mass of the nation only--not from its privileged classes; and so, no matter what the nation's intellectual grade was, whether high or low, the bulk of its ability was in the long ranks of its nameless and its poor, and so it never saw the day that it had not the material in abundance whereby to govern itself. Which is to assert an always self-proven fact: that even the best governed and most free and most enlightened monarchy is still behind the best condition attainable by its people; and that the same is true of kindred governments of lower grades all the way down to the lowest.

- A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court