As we approach the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, there has been a great deal of discussion on what makes America special. We should be asking ourselves: “What kind of a country were we meant to be and have we evolved in a way that has been true to our best ideals and aspirations?” How we understand this depends largely on our perception of our nation’s founding.
The Myth that America was Intended to be a Christian Nation
It was reported that at the National Prayer Breakfast on Feb. 5th, Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth declared: “America was founded as a Christian nation. It remains a Christian nation in our DNA, if we can keep it.”(i) He was simply parroting Christian Nationalism’s false narrative about the Christian origin of this country. This is the belief that America was and is God’s Chosen Nation, and because of that our destiny with greatness was both ordained and secure. A stunning 90% of Christian nationalists think God intended America to be a place where European Christians could create a new society. And in fact, this was how many of the early colonists viewed the New World. They were emboldened by the Doctrine of Discovery of 1452 in which Pope Nicolas V granted Christians the right to conquer non-Christian lands, enslave their people, and claim their resources. Many saw themselves as the New Israel and believed that this was the Promised Land designated by God for those who were white, European, and Christian.
The Truth about America’s Founding
The Founders never intended to establish the United States as a predominantly Christian nation. Let’s remember the context of America’s founding. Consider the fact that the American colonists came from Europe where the church dominated politics. For centuries the pope was seen as more powerful than kings and even the Holy Roman Emperor. There was no separation between church and state. In some cases, a theocracy of a certain religious bent governed the people such as in Calvin’s Geneva. In England, the monarch was and is considered head of both church and state. Our nation’s Founders sought to erect a “wall of separation” between religion and the government they created.
Some of the Founders, like Jefferson, Franklin, and Paine were, in fact, Deists. And many of them were greatly influenced by Enlightenment age philosophers like Locke, Voltaire, Descartes, and Rousseau who emphasized human reason, morality, and religious tolerance over Biblical dogma. The genius of the American experiment was that it relied on reason not doctrine. Our constitution is deliberately godless in that there are no references to gods, goddesses, or divine intervention. Supernatural power is rejected in favor of the natural power contained in the words “We the people.” And the Declaration of Independence reminds us of the radical aspirations of a new nation based on the ideals of liberty, equality, and justice for all.
A Betrayal of our Founders’ Intended Religious Freedom for All
Napoleon had ushered in an era of religious tolerance in France. This was the intended model for this newly formed nation. According to Thomas Paine, this was important so that all could learn a greater truth from listening to various voices including different faith traditions.(ii) And in his correspondence with several Jewish congregations, George Washington moved the American definition of religious freedom past the European concept of "toleration" to an inherent natural right. For example, the President wrote the Jewish community of Rhode Island assuring them that the new republic would give "to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance”. (iii)
Religious freedom is a radical invention that allows all Americans to believe or not believe as they choose, but on the condition that others are not harmed. In June, Rachel Laser, President of Americans United for Separation of Church and State attended a Washington DC event that launched “Religious Liberty for All: Celebrating This Founding Freedom at America 250.” In speaking out about the importance of religious freedom, she commented on what it is not. “It’s not a sword to harm others. It’s not a license to discriminate. It’s not a permission slip for the government to favor one set of religious views on all its workers. It’s not a trump card to play when someone else’s views are politically inconvenient. In other words, religious liberty is the opposite of what the Trump administration and other Christian nationalists claim it is.”(iv)
True democracy hinges on freedom of religion for all. The freedom to believe and worship as one chooses without state interference is essential to religious pluralism and to a society where people of differing faiths can co-exist together. Unfortunately, those freedoms have come under attack by the current regime. Contributing to the Report on “Religious Liberty for All,” U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman wrote: “Government neutrality in religion is designed to prevent the ascendance of any one faith over others. It’s exactly what the Founders intended…Unfortunately, the Trump administration’s sham Religious Liberty Commission and its politicized America 250 campaign seek to replace it with a fake Christian nationalist narrative that turns religious liberty from a shield that protects all of us into a sword that declares America a ‘Christian nation’ and privileges one religious group over all others.”(v)
America Can Yet Be a Beacon of Hope and Freedom
As we approach America’s 250th birthday celebration, many of us are deeply concerned about the future of our democracy. There is some good news to hang on to. A recent PRRI survey of over 5,400 Americans confirms that they are deeply attached to democracy. An impressive 68% think that “we are in real danger of losing important democratic rights and freedoms we have had in this country.” Moreover, a high percentage of Americans reject the imposition of monolithic white Christian nationalism. “Most Americans (64%) prefer the U.S. to be a nation made up of people belonging to a wide variety of religions rather than one primarily made up of people who follow the Christian faith (34%),” the survey found. And “most Americans (77%) prefer the U.S. to be a nation made up of people from all over the world than primarily made up of people of Western European heritage (20%).(vi)
Some of our current political and religious leaders are not interested in truth or history, only what is expedient and that guarantees them privilege, power, and influence. It is important that the rest of us—especially those in positions of influence—speak up to defend our precious freedoms while at the same time acknowledge the dark side of our history when we failed to live up to our ideals. We have much to repent for in our past—the genocide of indigenous tribal nations, slavery, discriminatory Jim Crow laws, incarceration of Japanese-American citizens during WW II, and the mass deportation of immigrants. We need to be more like the Germans who have sought to learn from their horrific past and vow never again. Presentations by both Barack and Michelle at the recent opening of the Obama Presidential Center revealed how hope, dignity, empathy, and faith can continue to inspire us. We were reminded that we have lived through dark times before and come through stronger, more resolute.
I believe most Americans are looking for truth, for courage, for love made visible in the way we treat the least among us. It is time to recall the dignity of every human being, that all people have worth. We are called to treat our neighbors with kindness, compassion, generosity, and care. This is what it means to an American. The exceptionalism of America is in living out the vision of a multi-faith democracy where we respect differences, build bridges, solve problems together, and restore the common good over individualist gain. Working toward this goal, we can yet claim this as our new and promised future.
i. Brian Kaylor, A Public Witness, February 5, 2026.
ii. The Life and Works of Thomas Paine. Edited by William M. Van der Weyde. Patriots' Edition. 10 vols. New Rochelle, N.Y.: Thomas Paine National Historical Association, 1925.
iii. From George Washington to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island | Wednesday, August 18, 1790; Geroge Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon.
iv. Jeff Brumley, “Religious Liberty is Not a Sword to Harm Others,” Baptist News Global (June 17, 2026)
v. Ibid.
vi. American Identity Survey, Public Religious Research Institute (PRRI), May 2026.
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