Myopia in a Secular Age
By Suzanne Fields
Monday, October 1, 2007

Of all the triumphs of the Founding Fathers, the separation of church and state stands alone at the top. It enabled God-fearing men and women to worship -- or not worship -- as they please, and to let their impulses of conscience guide their votes.

The separation of church and state was specifically written into the First Amendment to protect the new nation from establishing a state church or investing a leader with divinity. Religious influences were left to flourish in our politics, but Americans would always be skeptical of established religion. Thomas Jefferson was attacked as an atheist, but John F. Kennedy was required by public opinion to assure Americans that his Catholic faith would not dictate how he would govern. He would take no orders from the pope.

Modernity began with the Enlightenment when science and reason pushed God from the center of the city, epitomized centuries later by Nietzsche's famous declaration that "God is dead." But religious faith remains at the center of culture and society, continuing to influence how we think about politics. Candidates for president cite the influence of religion on their lives, citing faith as a source of inspiration. The Bible is evoked with references we all understand, as both metaphor and truth. the rest