Baptists and Atheists in Agreement: Separation of Church and State

I spent quite a bit of time today recording a phone interview with Luke Muehlhauser for a podcast that will appear on Common Sense Atheism. It touched on my “Golden Rule approach” to historical study and interaction with other traditions, as well as evolution, the Clergy Letter Project, and much else. While we certainly have differences, Luke’s “Golden Rule Atheism” and my own “Scooby Doo Christianity” are not as far apart as one might initially assume they must be.

Afterwards I came across this video (via Why Evolution Is True) in which Dan Barker of the Freedom From Religion Foundation articulates what is also the classic Baptist view of the separation of church and state. Anyone who understands the nature of American democracy and its safeguards for the freedom of religion would be unlikely to disagree which anything in the video.

I’ll also share one more of their banners, even though it is worth noting that, while the Treaty of Tripoli was signed into law by John Adams, the language itself was penned by Joel Barlow, US Consul.

There are many things that Baptists and atheists might disagree about, but hopefully we can stand together for the separation of church and state, and resist the attempts of some in our time to rewrite the history of the United States in ways that puts religious freedom at risk!