Resources

=Through quotes by the Founding Fathers, we hope to prove that their intentions were to create a nonreligious nation, whose government operated based on the needs of the people, and not religious rhetoric. Through quotes, statistics, and articles dealing with religious politicians and hot-button issues like gay marriage and abortion, we hope to prove America's descent into fanatical religiousness, in areas both in and out of the political arena.= = = =Resources:=


 * 1) http://atheistempire.com/greatminds/index.php
 * Thomas Jefferson: "History I believe furnishes no example of a priest-ridden people maintaining a free, civil government" (anti-theocracy quote. Jefferson wants to oust religion from political issues)
 * John Adams: "The government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion.  (The vision of the Founding Fathers is mentioned here as well, as Adams clearly states that U.S. government is not subject to religion, will not operate on religion, and will not bow to the will of religion. Since Christianity was dominant among the Founding Fathers, Adams was talking about all religion as much as Christianity)
 * George Washington: "Religious controversies are always productive of more acrimony and irreconcilable hatreds than those which spring from any other cause." (This quote reflects the views of the Founding Fathers: religion can be detrimental and should not be trusted in the hands of politicians. They did not want religion to mix with American political affairs.)

2. http://atheism.about.com/od/gaymarriage/a/MarriageSacred.htm
 * "Indeed, if it weren’t for the idea that marriage is sacred, it seems unlikely that the debate would be as rancorous as it is."
 * Gay marriage is, in fact, only an issue because of the lack of separation America has between church and state.

3. http://www.uua.org/visitors/uuperspectives/55665.shtml
 * "According to a recent Beliefnet poll (September 2007), 55% of the American people believe that the United States was founded as a Christian nation." Although popular belief is that the U.S. was founded as a Christian religion, the founding fathers did not plan it this way.
 * "Religion will always have a place in our politics. Religious values are, or should be, moral values." Even though the founding fathers did not establish this country using religious standards. Recently, politicians have said that religious values and moral values should be the same thing. It can be up to interpretation whether they are saying people should be religious.

4. Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,134530,00.html > The nine at middle risk: Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania. > The 20 at lower risk: Alaska, California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia and Wyoming.
 * The 21 states considered at high risk of banning abortion were: Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin.

5. Abortion: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/religion/religion.shtml
 * "All the religions have taken strong positions on abortion; they believe that the issue encompasses profound issues of life and death, right and wrong, human relationships and the nature of society, that make it a major religious concern."

6. What does The Bible say about abortion?

Here are two verses from The Bible. The most important parts of each verse are **bolded** for convenience purposes only.


 * For you created my inmost being; **you knit me together in my mother's womb.** I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, **your eyes saw my unformed body**. All the days ordained for me were written in your books before one of them came to be (Psalm 139:13-16).


 * The word of the Lord came to me saying, "**Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart;** I appointed you as a prophet to the nations" (Jeremiah 1:4-5).

These are two verses that have stirred up a lot of hubbub in the press in recent years. Many people have been trying to say that the idea that abortion is wrong is solely a Christian idea. These two verse do not say "abortion" but many people have interpreted them this way.

http://www.dougbrittonbooks.com/onlinebiblestudies-cultureandsocietyinfluences/abortionoflifeinthewomb-sinandgodsforgiveness.php