Separation of church and state, anyone?

The president doesn't speak for the state in the same way that the Queen of
England does, for instance.

Abraham Lincoln:

``I have often wished I was a more devout man. Nevertheless, amid the great
difficulties of my administration, when I could not see any other resort, I
would place my whole reliance in God, knowing all would go well and that He
would decide for the right.''


When asked if he believed ``the Lord was on the Union's side,'' he replied, ``I
am not at all concerned about that, for I know that the Lord is always on the
right side. It is my constant anxiety and prayer that I and this nation should
be on His side.''

Also consider:

"I have not forgotten--probably never shall forget--the very impressive
occasion when yourself and friends visited me on a Sabbath forenoon two years
ago. Nor has your kind letter, written nearly a year later, ever been
forgotten. In all, it has been your purpose to strengthen my reliance on God. I
am much indebted to the good Christian people of the country for their constant
prayers and consolations; and to no one of them, more than to yourself. The
purposes of the Almighty are perfect, and must prevail, though we erring
mortals may fail to accurately perceive them in advance.

We hoped for a happy termination of this terrible war long before this; but God
knows best, and has ruled otherwise. We shall yet acknowledge His wisdom and
our own error therein. Meanwhile we must work earnestly in the best light He
gives us, trusting that so working still conduces to the great ends He ordains.
Surely He intends some great good to follow this mighty convulsion, which no
mortal could make, and no mortal could stay."

Abraham Lincoln Letter to Eliza Gurney, September 4, 1864.

"We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been
preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers,
wealth and power as no nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God.
Intoxicated with unbroken successes, we have become too self-sufficient to feel
the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God
that made us. It behooves us, then, to humble ourselves before the offended
power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness."


--A. Lincoln March 30, 1863


The framers wanted Americans to have freedom -of- religion, not freedom -from-
religion.

Walt