I Agree with Cal Thomas

Cal Thomas, at WaPo’s “On Faith” page:

While Christine O’Donnell’s apparent ignorance of the actual wording of the First Amendment leaves questions about her constitutional literacy, there is a more fundamental question.

If one reads the debate among the Founders, the First Amendment provision regarding the establishment clause was to protect the church from the state, not the reverse. The establishment clause was also designed to promote the “free exercise” of religion, not suppress it….

The “separation” claim by Coons and others is to prevent seriously religious people (meaning pro-life, pro-opposite sex marriage, etc) from full participation in our nation’s political life, as if the source of their beliefs make their ideas illegitimate. Meanwhile, the secularists, liberal Christians and others get to promote their beliefs (pro-choice, pro-gay marriage, big government, higher taxes) and remain engaged in the political process with no calls to stand down. It’s a double standard.

Religious people — left and right –have a right to make cases for their causes and beliefs in the public square. Whether they should expect the state to do what they have been told only God can do is a subject for another debate.

What are your thoughts on this?