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Ryan Martin Honors American March 29, 2012 More Americans Say Too Much Religion in Politics  Today in politics some people think there is too much religion in politics. In 2001, the amount of people who said there was too much religion mixed with politics versus the people who said there should be more religion in politics was the same. As the years passed, the percentage of people who thought there was too much religion in politics started to increase. Democrats are the majority of this percentile, and republicans are split. About fifty-eight percent of the supporters of the presidential nominees think that the church should stay out of politics. Currently, Catholics are not pleased with President Obama in his decisions, and the President is not even trying to get their votes because he does not agree with them in religious regards. The Puritans, who were the first people to set foot in this country from Europe, wanted religious freedom (Puritan). The government was formed around the religious believers of the founding fathers. George Washington, the first President of the United States, was a strong Christian, and he set laws that were based off of his beliefs. This is why it makes no cents that in the 21st century we are fighting to get rid of Christ, the foundation of this great country, out of all public areas and politics.  One fight that has been going on in the Supreme Court is a case where people are trying to remove the Ten Commandments, another religious symbol, from public places. The Supreme Court thought about this case and decided not to hear it. Another case involving the Ten Commandments deals with a school in Kentucky trying to take the Ten Commandments out of their public schools (Richey). The Commandments were removed. The Ten Commandments and other religious symbols being removed from public places has been a large issue that religious and non-religious people are fighting about. The Ten Commandments are a big part of Christian’s lives because they are the foundation for this country’s moral beliefs. Christians believe if they follow these laws, God will grant them passage into heaven. Christians have been in this country from the very beginning and are part of the foundation that every Americans is made of. People are trying to get farther away from this belief. This is creating a fight because Christians believe that we should have the religious symbols out for people to see, look at, and follow. However, people don’t think that religions should be out in public places just like the article //More Americans Say too Much Religion in Politics // (Liptak). In some public places the Ten Commandments have been removed and in some places they still remain for the time-being.  The new biggest issue is the healthcare bill that President Obama is trying to get passed. The President is requiring all business to provide contraceptive care to their employees. He has indicated that there would be a waiver for certain religious organizations, but most likely that would not cover all religious organizations. The health insurance company would have to “foot the bill” for the contraceptives, but if the organization is self-insurance, where there is not insurance company involved, the religious organization would be footing the bill. In this case, Obama care would be requiring a religious organization to pay for something that is against their religious beliefs which is a violation of the separation of church and state. Other people think that it will help their employees. The Bill of Rights gives us the freedom of religion in the First Amendment (States). The government cannot take away a person’s religion or tell them what to worship; however, they can take the symbols for these religions out of public places for some reason. This is why the church is fighting so hard against the bill because they morally don’t believe in it and say that it is infringing on their rights (Lopez). Our forefathers built this country on religious freedoms, but they didn’t believe that the government should be influenced by religion. That is why we have the policy of separation of church and state, but it is not a total separation of church from state.  Religion being taken out of the government is a very big deal. The government was originally based off of Christianity and most of the founding fathers were Christians. Religion ties into almost everything. The article //More Americans Say too Much Religion in Politics // is saying that people don’t want religion in politics or the government. Churches and religious groups are saying that we need these religious foundations for the government. With the presidential election coming up, the presidential nominees are going to have to focus on religious values and are going to have to try to get these groups on their side.  Religion will always be here and is probably always going to cause conflicts between people. The government has to find ways to manage church and state. Every branch of religion wants the government to respect them so that they can do what they feel is morally right. This country was founded on religious freedom, not government control of religion. How can the government manage church and state? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Can the government stay out of the church? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">How can the presidential nominees appeal to all religions? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Where should we draw the line as to what symbols can and cannot be displayed on public property? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">How can we ensure that there will always be religious freedoms in the US? <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">How can the government force a bill or law that goes against religions?
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Liptak, Kevin. "More Americans say too much religion in politics." //CNN// 21 Mar. 2012: 1. Print. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Lopez, Kathryn Jean. "Religious Freedom and the Health-Care Law." //National Review// 28 Mar. 2012: 1. Print. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"Puritan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. Web. 28 Mar. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puritan>. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Richey, Warren. "Supreme Court refuses appeal about Ten Commandments displays." //Christian Science Monitor//. 22 Feb. 2011: 1. Print. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">States:, the United. "The United States Constitution - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net." //Index Page - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net//. Web. 28 Mar. 2012. <http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html#Am1>.