In the 2008 presidential campaign, Republican candidate Mike Huckabee, who is a Baptist minister, stated “I have opponents in this race who do not want to change the Constitution, but I believe it’s a lot easier to change the Constitution than it would be to change the word of the living God. And that’s what we need to do – to amend the Constitution so it’s in God’s standards rather than try to change God’s standards so it lines up with some contemporary view.”

This statement should be of serious concern to every thinking, patriotic American and anyone who values freedom.

Mr. Huckabee, asked during one of the debates if he believed in the Bible, said he thought the Bible was the inerrant word of God. My question to him is just what part of the Constitution would he like to amend using the standards God supports and sanctions in the Holy Bible?

Perhaps he would like to bring back slavery, which is rampant throughout the Bible with no objection from the Lord.  Maybe he would like to see torture sanctioned. According to a recent Pew poll on the “enhanced interrogation techniques” authorized by the Bush/Cheney administration, the majority of Christians have no problem with torture. But most people know that when you torture someone, they will confess to or say just about anything and truth is not necessarily the outcome. Think of the Inquisition, witch hunts, and burning heretics at the stake.

By amending the Constitution, Mr. Huckabee could make abortion a crime, even though “abortion” is not mentioned in the Bible. Pro lifers cite Exodus 21:22-25 to justify their stance, but this passage actually says that if a man strikes his pregnant wife, causing her “fruit to depart,” the wife can punish the husband. But if the wife dies, he gets the death penalty. The punishment is for killing the woman not the child. The Bible has chapters and verses filled with God authorizing the killing of men, women, and children. (See 2 Kings 2:23-24, 1 Samuel 15:3, Deuteronomy 2:34, Isaiah 13:16 to name a few.) No matter how one interprets or justifies these passages, the Bible does not appear to be pro life.

As for homosexuality, in Leviticus 20:13 the penalty is death for both parties. However, the death penalty also applies to adultery (Leviticus 20:10). The two verses on homosexuality appear to be paramount to Christians, who think they know what constitutes a loving marriage (between a man and a woman) and healthy family values. Their definition of what and whom a marriage and family consist of is just as antiquated as the person/s who wrote Leviticus. The basis for their value system is also ironic since currently 50% of all marriages between men and women end in divorce.

How would adulterers feel, I wonder, if society treated them the same as homosexuals? There would be those who would justify killing them because the Bible said it was what they deserve. It is we the people who see just how insane this is and have begun to rectify the erroneous situation by introducing governmental hate bills.

Moreover, for all the ministers like Mr. Huckabee who are concerned about not being able to rant about the “abomination” of homosexuality, think about this. Priests and pedophiles and other adult deviants are raping young children as I write this. If Christian ministers want to express outrage or do something about the lives of ‘living’ children, let these people be their sermon. Consenting adult homosexuals don’t hurt anyone.

Then there’s the issue of women. Women in many societies have come a long way, but equality between the sexes is still not fully realized. Women’s status is debased in much of the Bible. They are blamed for the original sin and are held in contempt. “I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception, in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee,” God says to woman in Genesis 3:13. Would Mr. Huckabee and his Christian friends mandate women to be subservient to their husbands?

In short, I can’t imagine what Mr. Huckabee has in mind for amending the Constitution. God is very deliberately not mentioned in that document. The men who drafted it were not affirming or applying Christian or God’s standards when they wrote it. What kind of committee would be formed for Mr. Huckabee’s amendment undertaking and who would be on it? How would those who disagreed with or disobeyed their amendments be punished? Stoned to death or discriminated against and relegated to the fringes of society as many still are today who disagree with religious dogma and orthodoxy?

We do not get our morality from any holy book or religious dogma. “We the people” use reason, logic, and critical thinking when distinguishing right from wrong. There are those who do the right thing “in the name of God” and those who do not believe in God who do the right thing simply because it’s the right thing to do.

Much immorality has occurred throughout history “in the name of God.” Belief in God is still the basis for many atrocities today. The more pious a country is and the more it intermingles its religion with its government, the more oppressive and dangerous it is for its citizens. Hopefully more and more people will come to realize this. The US Constitution must remain secular, as the framers intended.

Related Posts:

1. Book Review – Jesus Interrupted: Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible (and Why We Don’t Know About Them)
2. Faith: Religion’s Achilles Heel

Tags | Bible, christianity, church and state