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Once and for All, Is America a Christian Nation? Kerry Walters | Susan Jacoby | Rob Boston Hector Avalos | David K

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Once and for All, Is America a Christian Nation? Kerry Walters | Susan Jacoby | Rob Boston Hector Avalos | David K FI JJ C1_Layout 1 5/3/12 10:15 AM Page 1 GEORGE A. WELLS reviews Bart Ehrman’s Did Jesus Exist? CELEBRATING REASON AND HUMANITY June/July 2012 Vol. 32 No.4 ONCE AND FOR ALL, IS AMERICA A CHRISTIAN NATION? KERRY WALTERS | SUSAN JACOBY | ROB BOSTON HECTOR AVALOS | DAVID K. CLARK | TIBOR R. MACHAN THE TRUE COST OF RELIGIOUS TAX EXEMPTIONS RYAN T. CRAGUN, STEPHANIE YEAGER, and DESMOND VEGA SHADIA B. DRURY TOM FLYNN GRETA CHRISTINA 07 | | P Z MYERS | OPHELIA BENSON Published by the Council for Secular Humanism 7725274 74957 FI June July cut_FI 5/2/12 4:36 PM Page 2 For many, mere atheism (the absence of belief in gods and the supernatural) or agnosticism (the view that such questions cannot be answered) aren’t enough. It’s liberating to recognize that supernatural beings are human creations … that there’s no such thing as “spirit” … that people are undesigned, unintended, and responsible for themselves. But what’s next? Atheism and agnosticism are silent on larger questions of values and meaning. If Meaning in life is not ordained from on high, what small-m meanings can we work out among ourselves? If eternal life is an illusion, how can we make the most of our only lives? As social beings sharing a godless world, how should we coexist? For the questions that remain unanswered after we’ve cleared our minds of gods and souls and spirits, many atheists, agnostics, skeptics, and freethinkers turn to secular humanism. Secular. “Pertaining to the world or things not spiritual or sacred.” Humanism. “Any system of thought or action concerned with the interests or ideals of people … the intellectual and cultural movement … characterized by an emphasis on human interests rather than … religion.” — Webster’s Dictionary Secular humanism is a comprehensive, nonreligious life stance incorporating: A naturalistic philosophy A cosmic outlook rooted in science, and A consequentialist ethical system in which acts are judged not by their conformance to preselected norms but by their consequences for men and women in the world. The Council for Secular Humanism is North America’s leading organization for nonreligious people who seek to live value-rich lives. FREE INQUIRY is its magazine. Welcome! To learn more, visit http://www.secularhumanism.org FI June July cut_FI 5/3/12 10:43 AM Page 3 June/July 2012 Vol. 32 No. 4 17 Once and for All, Is America a Christian Nation? Introduction CELEBRATING REASON AND HUMANITY Tom Flynn 18 The Myth of America’s Christian Heritage Kerry Walters 23 The Christian Nation Fiction, Then and Now Susan Jacoby 26 Five Reasons the United States Is Not a Christian Nation Rob Boston 30 Our UnChristian Nation Hector Avalos 33 Ought America to Be a Christian Nation? David K. Clark 37 Faiths and Public Affairs Tibor R. Machan 39 Research Report: How Secular Humanists (and Everyone Else) Subsidize Religion in the U.S. Ryan T. Cragun, Stephanie Yeager, and Desmond Vega EDITORIAL 14 Who’s Oppressing Whom? REVIEWS Ophelia Benson 4 Triple Play 58 Did Jesus Exist? The Historical Tom Flynn 15 American Conceit: The Case of Iran Argument for Jesus of Nazareth Shadia B. Drury by Bart D. Ehrman REPORT Reviewed by George A. Wells 8 Reason Rally 2012 16 The Intimate Dance of Religion and Nationalism 62 The Future of Blasphemy: Tom Rees Speaking of the Sacred in an LETTERS Age of Human Rights 13 DEPARTMENTS by Austin Dacey Reviewed by Ronald A. Lindsay 52 Church-State Update OP-EDS Vouchers vs. Public Education POETRY Edd Doerr 53 Up North 11 What Do You Say to 20,000 Wet Atheists? 54 God on Trial by Rick Ferris P Z Myers On Gods and Placebos Martin Jaffe 12 Do We Concede the Ground of Death Too Easily? 56 Humanism at Large Greta Christina Unreasonable Rally Josh Bunting and Ian Murphy FI June July cut_FI 5/2/12 4:36 PM Page 4 Editorial Staff Editor Thomas W. Flynn Associate Editors John R. Shook, Lauren Becker Tom Flynn Managing Editor Andrea Szalanski Editorial Columnists Ophelia Benson, Russell Blackford, Arthur Caplan, Greta Christina, Richard Dawkins, Edd Doerr, Shadia B. Drury, Nat Hentoff, Tibor R. Machan, P Z Myers, Tom Rees, Katrina Voss Triple Play Senior Editors Bill Cooke, Richard Dawkins, Edd Doerr, James A. Haught, Jim Herrick, Gerald A. Larue, Ronald A. Lindsay, Taslima Nasrin Contributing Editors Roy P. Fairfield, Charles Faulkner, Levi Fragell, t seems that it was just the issue important to their daily lives and that they Adolf Grünbaum, Marvin before last when we devoted a cover attended services weekly or almost every Kohl, Thelma Lavine, Lee Nisbet, J.J.C. Smart, Ifeature to the demographics of unbe- week. But here comes the bombshell: Thomas Szasz lief—to what we know, statistically speak- Gallup classified 32 percent of Americans as Ethics Editor Elliot D. Cohen ing, about America’s unbelievers and nonreligious! That’s how many respon- Literary Editor Austin MacRae how we know it. Wait, that was the issue dents disclosed that religion was not Assistant Editors Julia Lavarnway Brittany Muscarella before last (“Bridging the Gulf: At Last, important in their daily lives and also that Permissions Editor Julia Lavarnway Social Science Measures Secularity,” FI, they seldom or never attended religious Art Director Christopher S. Fix February/March 2012). Perhaps it merely services. Production Paul E. Loynes Sr. reflects that topic’s importance that there This is a wholly new statistic, based on have already been two significant new an approach to the questions that Gallup Council for Secular Humanism developments. has not taken in the past. For that reason, Chair Richard K. Schroeder point-to-point comparisons to previous Board of Directors Kendrick Frazier Nonreligious Americans: studies of religiosity by Gallup or others Dan Kelleher A Huge New Number are difficult or impossible. Still, if this find- Barry Kosmin Angie McAllister For several years now, we’ve been relying ing holds up, it suggests that America’s Richard K. Schroeder on the multiply attested statistic that 15 nonreligious population—which had Edward Tabash to 16 percent of Americans claim no reli- seemed “stuck” at 15 to 16 percent for Jonathan Tobert Leonard Tramiel gious affiliation. Though all such persons some eight years—is continuing to swell, Lawrence Krauss (Honorary) can be called “nonreligious” or simply almost certainly at the expense of the Chief Executive Officer Ronald A. Lindsay “nones,” a significant number of them devout. Executive Director Thomas W. Flynn reject such labels as “atheist,” “agnostic,” To understand how big a deal this is, Director, Campus and Community Programs (CFI) Lauren Becker or “secular humanist.” A study released by consider two things: (1) Gallup reports a Director, Secular Organizations the Gallup Organization late in March number of “nonreligious” Americans al - for Sobriety Jim Christopher may change that discourse dramatically. most exactly double the largest number Director, African Americans for Humanism Debbie Goddard It was based on polling performed in previously reported, and (2) Gallup’s defi- Acting Director of Planning 2011 according to a new methodology nition of “nonreligious” is actually more and Development (CFI) Jason Gross Director of Libraries (CFI) Timothy Binga (which unfortunately makes its findings rigorous than that used in “gold-stan- Communications Director Paul Fidalgo hard to compare against previous stud- dard” studies like the American Religious Legal Director (CFI) Steven Fox ies). Mainstream media spun it as a new Identi fi cation Survey (ARIS) 2008 and Database Manager (CFI) Jacalyn Mohr ranking of America’s most- and least-reli- recent Pew Foundation surveys. Gallup Webmaster Matthew Licata gious states, but it was far more than that. bases its measure of irreligion on both an Staff Pat Beauchamp, Ed Beck, Melissa Braun, Shirley In fact, Gallup has soft-pedaled what attitudinal question and a behavioral Brown, Cheryl Catania, may (if it holds up) be a dramatic new find- question: to be counted as nonreligious, Eric Chinchón, Matt Cravatta, Roe Giambrone, ing. Respondents had been asked how respondents must rank religion as unim- Jason Gross, Adam Isaak, important religion was as a part of their portant in their lives and report little to no Lisa Nolan, Paul Paulin, Anthony Santa Lucia, daily lives and how frequently they at - church-going. By contrast, all one had to John Sullivan, Diane Tobin, tended religious services. Gallup classified do to join the “no preference” population Vance Vigrass 40 percent of respondents as very religious tracked in older surveys was to state no Executive Director Emerita Jean Millholland based on their claims that religion was very religious preference. So Gallup seems to 4 FREE INQUIRY JUNE/JULY 2012 secularhumanism.org FI June July cut_FI 5/2/12 4:36 PM Page 5 be measuring a more outspoken kind of ical treatment. The possible ‘psychic irreligion than previous studies, and rewards’ to inmates of being able to despite that greater stringency, it is meas- express their opinions and describe their FREE INQUIRY (ISSN 0272-0701) is published bimonthly by uring irreligion at double the previously experiences on a survey questionnaire, or the Council for Secular Humanism, a nonprofit educational corporation, P.O. Box 664, Amherst, NY 14226-0664. Phone reported rate. the value of the information to the pub- (716) 636-7571. Fax (716) 636-1733. Copyright ©2012 by Maybe Gallup has discovered a new lic, generally are not considered sufficient the Council for Secular Humanism. All rights reserved. No part of this periodical may be reproduced without permission spike in the growth of American unbelief by correctional authorities to justify a sur- of the publisher. Periodicals postage paid at Buffalo, N.Y., and that previous studies did not detect.
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