"Value" Separation of Church and State

Ellen Goodman writes an excellent column entitled Conflation of Church and State

Some points:

"In September, there was a Values Voter Summit in Washington. The equation between values voters and conservative evangelical Christians had become so automatic that no one even noticed that the summit was held on Rosh Hashanah, a high holy day on the Jewish calendar. No Jews need apply. Or Muslims or liberal Protestants or ... fill in the blank."

"On Tuesday morning, at 7:46, the 300 millionth American was born into the most religiously diverse country in the world. We include an estimated 5 million Muslims, 2 million Hindus and 2 million Buddhists. We are home as well to Zoroastrians and Druids and millions who attach themselves to no religion. While 80 percent of Americans identify themselves as Christian, half now personally know a Hindu, a Muslim or a Buddhist. We go to school together, work together, live together."

"religious groups have obtained hundreds of millions of dollars in government funding—98.3 percent of it to Christian charities"

"In one hospital in the ultra-sensitive Muslim turf of Pakistan, the X-ray machine, the blood bank refrigerator and the radiology computer bear the USAID sticker, “From the American People.” In the waiting room of this underutilized hospital “The Jesus Film” is shown. "

Yet, we try to explain to Muslims that they need democracy instead of theocracy.