Jason Centeio
11/29/09
Critical Thinking
Final Essay
Final draft
Religion and Government: An Open Relationship
Religion is an ideology that has been interchanged, remodeled and modernized
throughout time since the ancient Egyptians. The story of religion has been recycled by
different cultures around the world. This is an interesting topic to discuss because
millions of people around the world have been misinformed about truth in religion.
Research has given insight on the idea that believing in the existence of a “greater being”
or “the Creator of all things” opposes discoveries that have been made in sciences, such
as, astronomy thousands of years ago. It is important to have some understanding of
astronomy and the evolution of life in order for someone with strong religious beliefs to
consume such truthful information.
First, it is important to understand that many religions of the world share almost
the same stories as those constituted back when Ancient Egyptians lived in the most
modern of civilizations. There were many questions about the world in general, and small
discoveries of how the world worked needed to be explained to the general public. The
film “Zeitgeist” (2007), by Peter Joseph, talks a lot about the origin of these
interchangeable religious scriptures and anecdotes. For example, Joseph explains that
when the ancient Egyptians discovered the rotation of the sun, in order for such a
discovery to be recognized and explained to a society that is still young and uneducated,
higher powers in society originated a story about a “Sun God” and a “God of Darkness”
fighting each other for day and night. The story explains that Horus, “The Sun God”,
triumphs over the night time and brings life to the world. Throughout the day, the forces
of light or “Good” supposedly win the daily mythical battle with the darkness, or “Evil”,
while at night, the darkness conquers the light. In other words, Horus and Set were only
personifications of light and darkness. Point being, the stories expressed in religious
scriptures today are simply reproductions of stories made-up by Ancient Egyptians to
explain solar activities, constellations, and other astrological discoveries. While
comparing Ancient Egyptian culture to modern world religions, you may realize that such
stories were manipulated to create this idea of religion and soon after it was restructured
and corrupted to the point where religion actually served as acting governments during
some historical time periods.
After observing and comprehending the film “Zeitgeist” (2007), a viewer might
gain a new perspective on religion and its relationship to government. The Ideology of
religion was once a form of government and an apparatus for mental manipulation to
control people in society. Joseph mentions in the film:
“It reduces human responsibility to the effect that "God" controls everything,
and in turn awful crimes can be justified in the name of Divine Pursuit. And
most importantly, it empowers those who know the truth but use the myth to
manipulate and control societies. The religious myth is the most powerful
device ever created, and serves as the psychological soil upon which other
myths can flourish” (Joseph, p.1).
ADD something about the significance of quote
Governments tend to use the most common religion practiced in the nation as a tool to
manipulate the public opinion. Religious expression and terminology is common from
government leaders, even when the major beliefs of the religion are entirely opposed to
the government's policies or actions.
With that said, can an American citizen agree that a lot of the ambience of United
States federal and state laws compliments that of biblical and religious standards? The
intertwining of religious scriptures and politics is quite visible to the public eye. For
instance, this relationship may have been evident when some of our individual state
governments approved laws allowing homosexuals to get married and claim legal rights.
In the editorial, “Religion and Government Should Never Be Mixed”, written by Elissar
Saleeba, Saleeba reveals that, “To those religions that find homosexuality is offensive
this argument would not even up for debate” (Saleeba, p.1). The idea of gay marriage is
usually acceptable to those who respect the concept of marriage as a contract honored by
the government and its signatory associates and to those without individual biased
opinions. As soon as religious views are applied to the “abomination” of homosexual
matrimony, the notion is disapproved and frowned upon. Some may agree that the
hypothetical boundary between religion and politics was crossed when the idea of same
sex marriage was offered and federal governments didn’t acquiesce to this perfectly
humane proposition in a positive manor. Thus, the US shows a lack of restriction when
collaborating religious influence with matters of politics regarding federal and state laws.
When observing this “open relationship” between religion and politics, one may
see that the George W. Bush Administration has used religion to manipulate the public
opinion about the War on Terror in the Middle-East. George Bush used God and
references to the bible in order to “keep the ears”, so to speak, of the religious population.
He uses God’s name, not to excuse his actions, but to guide his authority and to make it
seem as though he is doing the right thing by going to war with Iraq. In his State of the
Union Address in 2003, Bush ends his speech saying, “May He guide us now. And may
God continue to bless the United States of America” (Bush 1, 2003). Unconcealed
connections between religion and politics are exposed. George W. Bush gave a speech to
the vast and immeasurably diverse American population (and the whole world) on
political matters and indecently expressed his religious views involuntarily disregarding
those who may not believe in the same God and those who do not practice religious
beliefs. Reference to religious elements by an American president and other personnel in
government positions shouldn’t be acceptable because there is a vast population of
American citizens who do not believe in God. That group of people may feel left out as
citizens of this nation when such references are mad because it seems like the speaker is
mainly speaking to the religious audience.
So, why is it appropriate to get religious when dealing with politics? It most
definitely shouldn’t be mixed because politics is the process by which group decisions
are made and religion is a union or organization to express belief in a divine power.
Saleeba explains that by linking these two ideologically different matters one may be
inclined to confuse what’s “just and unjust” with “good and evil”. Saleeba, intelligently
and thoughtfully, write:
“The problem with church and government mixing usually means the issues
begin to be defined not as fair or just, but as good and evil… Christians,
Muslims and Jews see the world as a test and struggle to the souls of
humanity for eternal reward to the believers and eternal punishment for the
unbelievers. Hence compromise with those outside the group in power
usually isn’t an option as they are not good or as good as the ones with
religion. In essence, it is wrong to compromise with evil” (Saleeba, p.1).
Religion is strict when it comes to their “rules and regulations” in terms of opposing or
breaking those rules. So, when a person in power is a devout believer, their religious
views may impede or conflict with what is just and what is essentially “right”. What
people might consider “right” and “wrong” varies from person to person due to personal
underlying principle. Actions and ideas considered “ethical” may veer depending on an
individual’s personal opinion. Consequently, one’s religious views can make all the
difference in the self-interpretation of fair judgment.
During his address to a joint session of Congress following the attacks on 9/11,
delivered on September 20, 2001, George Bush used the word “evil” to describe the
actions of these dubious perpetrators. The president deliberately shined a negative light
on these alleged “terrorists”, and in the process, many Americans and 9/11 patrons
developed certain abhorrence towards people of Middle-Eastern background. Bush
announced, “Its [Muslim] teachings are good and peaceful, and those who commit evil in
the name of Allah blaspheme the name of Allah” (Bush, p. 11). In essence, the
disquisition was given as a means to comfort the people of the United States, and it was
politically erroneous for Bush to mention the inspiration of good and evil while
illuminating a particular group of people. Bush’s speech contributed to the development
of a bias and stereotypical atmosphere for the Middle-Eastern population in the United
States. Bush refers to “Allah”, the god of the nation of, perhaps, to try and reach the
Muslim communities throughout America. It was a sympathetic act to mention the
Muslim god but it shouldn’t have been considered appropriate because Bush was never
ordained as a religious spokes person nor was he in a religious place or worship. Once
again, President Bush was mixing politics with religion in order to indulge the American
people along with its Middle-eastern population.
In summation, the open relationship between religion and politics has an
astronomical impact on the United States government’s system of communication with
its citizens. After analyzing written history, a researcher will learn that the inspiration of
religion originated from an Ancient Egyptian mythological story of the Sun God, Horus,
which has been modified and reprocessed throughout time since. This mere allegory has
been retold and paraphrased for so long that its actual significance has been reinvented
into a religious movement that has impacted judgment of our former government. Former
U.S. president, George W. Bush, incorporated many religious views in conjunction with
his political expression. That shouldn’t be acceptable and isn’t appropriate because
religious views can influence one’s authentic interpretation of justice and impartiality
Sources:
-Joseph, P. (Producer/Director). (2007). Zeitgeist [Film Documentary]
-Joseph, P. (2007). Part One: The Greatest Story Ever Told. Zeitgeist. Retrieved from
http://www.zeitgeistmovie.com/transcript.htm
- Saleeba, E. (2004). Religion and Government Should Never Be Mixed. Retrieved from
http://soc.hfac.uh.edu/artman/publish/article_102.shtml
- Bostdorff, D. M. (2003). George W. Bush’s Post-September 11
Rhetoric of Covenant Renewal: Upholding the Faith of the Greatest Generation. Quarterly Journal of
Speech, 89, pp. 293–319. Retrieved from
http://www.comm.unt.edu/Brian%20Lain%20Classes/3440/Bostdprff.pdf
- Bush, G.W. (2001). Address to a Joint Session of Congress Following 9/11 Attacks. Retrieved from
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/gwbush911jointsessionspeech.htm
- Bush, G.W. (2003). State of the Union Address, 2003. Retrieved from
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/01/28/sotu.transcript/