At the White House

Christmas Tree is now Holiday Tree

At the White House

Some people are already crying foul.

All the other presidents have called their tree a Christmas tree. The President wants to dub it a Holiday Tree. Here is a quote from an email sent to me by a conservative friend.

“Just thought you should know what the new residents in the WH plan for the future of America. If you missed his statement that "we do not consider ourselves a Christian Nation" this should confirm that he plans to take us away from our religious foundation as quickly as possible. Just another step toward turning America away from Christianity! We should shout to the highest hills that the White House is ours - not the Obamas', and 85% of Americans believe in Christ (Christmas).”

I do think the President wants his official Christmas statement to be inclusive. Jews, members of Islam, Buddhists, Atheists, Agnostics and all non-Christians have been assaulted by so-called Christian sentiments from high places from the beginning of the republic.

The founding fathers made it very clear that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..." This has never ever been a Christian country. It is true that various politicians and church groups have talked as if this were a Christian nation.

The worst thing that ever happened to Christianity was when it became allied with the state in the fifth Century when it became the state church of the Roman Empire. The church lost its integrity and freedom and was completely identified with the state. Inquisitions, pogroms, crusades, papal and protestant chicanery became more important than the basic message of Jesus. Power and money usurped love and forgiveness. The founding fathers of our country made sure that the new nation would have none of it.

Nations by their very nature are in the business of self-preservation. To that end our government has supported slavery, war, racial discrimination, oppression of women and homosexuals, snatching of other peoples' land and countries. It approves of capital punishment and allows greed to overcome the poor. Many Americans do not want other Americans to have adequate medical care, decent housing and food for starving children. Our government could never be accused of following the teachings of Jesus.

The message of Jesus is a call for love, forgiveness, care for the poor, the hungry and prisoners, and a call for peace.

Governments and the citizens of our country do not spend much time on these values of Jesus. Christians in government and politics do the best they can with the gospel demands, but they choose to live in a world where there is no way they can adhere to the words of Jesus fully.

It is up to us individual Christians who find our basic values in Jesus’ message to live our lives as deeply committed as we can. We do all we can to have government reflect our basic values. But we also know that we are weak and frail and fall short of our mark of loving and forgiving.

We are not a Christian country. We are a nation where Christians and others have the freedom to practice their religion.