The other day I came across a bumper sticker which read:

"The last time we mixed politics with religion people got burned at the stake."

No doubt some village wit thought this was a clever statement and would make a sale—after all, he made at least one. Now while one might surmise several general characteristics about the person who rides around with such a bumper sticker, of greater concern is the message itself, because it is misleading and outrageously biased.

With that said, however, while it is true that there have been abuses in the name of God, it does not necessarily follow that the perpetrators were somehow being faithful to their religious tenets. For instance, the Crusades rightly remain at the forefront of any discussion of great examples of religious perversion within Christendom. Fought over the course of nearly two centuries, the bishop of Rome perpetrated wars against Muslims, pagans, Jews, Eastern Christians and other political foes—all of this in stark contrast to the commands of Christ and the purity of the apostolic message. So when rulers act contrary to the truth as revealed in God’s Word, the fault lies solely with the perpetrators and is not somehow a tacit admission of a flawed religion. One must also remember that abuses committed in the name of Christianity are more directly in line with atheistic presuppositions, not Christian ones. After all, upon what basis can the atheist object to immorality? He cannot. He must first borrow the idea of ultimately truth, right and wrong, from the Christian worldview, and then use that to attack the God of Christianity.

Nevertheless, let’s just consider for a moment what happens when religious principles, or more specifically, Judeo-Christian principles, are cast aside in favor of atheistic ones. What happens when politicians eliminate the Judeo-Christian influence from political considerations? In America, we have seen first hand the result. First and foremost there is the murder of the unborn through the open and lauded practice of infanticide, all in the name of "choice". Then, there is the increase of violence in homes, in the streets, and in the classroom. (should we be surprised? Just look at the T.V. shows, movies, music, and video games...)Third, there is the rise of the militant homosexual agenda with its perverted behavior, which the Bible tells us is contrary to nature. Finally, there is the growing exploitation of the wealth of the nation through political greed. All of these can rightly be condemned by the Christian because of his or her worldview. Can the atheist? Can the atheist truly criticize any one of these acts? The answer of course is no. While the atheist might not like violence, greed, or whatever, he has no rational or consistent basis upon which to object--but the Christian does. The Christian has an ultimate truth to which he or she can appeal for what is right and what is wrong, and that absolute standard is God.

Those who do not care to think critically about what they are saying and are only looking for ways to insult the Judeo-Christian religion should reassess the reality of the pernicious effects the atheistic worldview has already had upon our country after the dismissal and elimination of the Moral Law of God as summarized in the Ten Commandments.

And just for the record, if the reference on the bumper sticker had in mind Salem, Massachusetts, here is a bit of historical fact. Burning witches never actually took place in the United States. Even during the notorious Salem witch trials of 1692, 19 accused witches were executed by means of hanging at Gallows Hill. Giles Corey was the 20th; he was crushed to death with stone weights. It is believed that 13 other accused witches died in jail.