# Christian nation **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [March 18, 2011, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135 "2011-03-18T11:48:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/21 "2011-03-19T19:09:32Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > That’s news to me. They were church members even if their personal views were Deist. And regardless of who was in charge laws against adultery, bestilaity, buggery/sodomy, and so on were still in place. ---
**Author:** ![monavis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@monavis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monavis)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2011, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/22 "2011-03-20T10:44:53Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > That’s news to me. It has been many years since I studied the reason’s people came to this country, but many came for religious freedom. Even some of the early settlers tried to force people to live under their beliefs. Many European countries had state religions! ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2011, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/23 "2011-03-20T12:34:37Z")
There is a debate here about how to define “Christian” for the purpose of deciding whether this is a Christian nation. The US certainly has more Christian character on the basis of people’s self-identification as “Christian”, than it does that of any other religion. I think any debate about Christianity that hinges on the debater’s own definitions of “Christian” is really mostly a debate about the merits of that definition and other definitions. ---
**Author:** ![Sandwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/22d042/32.png) [@Sandwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sandwich)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2011, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/24 "2011-03-20T19:08:41Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > I see no sign this is a Christian nation. Paul, it’s because you’re in Qatar. Which is definitely not a Christian nation. ---
**Author:** ![Sandwich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/22d042/32.png) [@Sandwich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sandwich)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2011, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/25 "2011-03-20T19:15:28Z")
> [@New\_Deal\_Democrat](#): > > It is ironic that European countries that have state religions have much lower church attendance than we have in the United States. No it’s not. What do you think having a state religion involves, anyway? In other news, many European countries are monarchies and yet are more egalitarian than the US. Scientists reportedly ‘baffled’ by lack of irony. (Christian Scientists conclude ‘God has hidden the irony to test our faith’). ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2011, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/26 "2011-03-20T21:35:44Z")
> [@monavis](#): > > It has been many years since I studied the reason’s people came to this country, but many came for religious freedom. Even some of the early settlers tried to force people to live under their beliefs. Many European countries had state religions! Well, most of our founding fathers were born here. The American Revolution happened 100-150 years after the colonies were actually founded, and by the time of the Revolution, I wouldn’t say any of the colonies were under “church rule”. Some, like Massachusetts and Virginia, had state supported churches and religious tests for voting or holding office, but none were actually theocracies. They were all under the control of appointed governors and elected colonial assemblies. ---
**Author:** ![Otocor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d07c76/32.png) [@Otocor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otocor)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2011, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/27 "2011-03-20T21:53:51Z")
It is, rightly or wrongly, a “Christian nation.” The United States is referred to as an “English-speaking nation” despite having citizens who speak a glut of different language - a nation can have a generalization affixed to its name (like ‘Christian nation’) when a majority of its people fall into a certain category. That is an issue with the world, however. We don’t need these labels. We are all just people - the United States should be no more than a people nation and the world should be no more than a people world. ---
**Author:** ![Nadir](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nadir/32/7302_2.png) [@Nadir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nadir)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2011, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/28 "2011-03-20T22:09:33Z")
> [@Otocor](#): > > It is, rightly or wrongly, a “Christian nation.” The problem we see with this notion today is it is more about the nation part than the Christian part. Labeling and categorizing people in terms of “the nation” takes on a distinctly sinister flavor when employed by groups like the Westboro Baptists and others imposing their religious will on the minorities. ---
**Author:** ![monavis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@monavis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monavis)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2011, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135/29 "2011-03-21T11:05:10Z")
Even the Christians are divided on many things so it is hard to tell! There are, I believe, over a hundred sects of Christianity. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/christian-nation/575135.md?page=1)