mlizzy and anti-utopian both have come to the conclusion that, based on the sinful behavior and actions of many Americans, America is not a “Christian” nation.
I have two responses to their conclusion.
First, if perfect Christian behavior on the part of the majority of a particular country’s citizens is the primary requirement for determining whether or not a nation is Christian, then I don’t think there ever has been or will be a “Christian” nation.
It’s easy to find un-Christlike behavior in any nation’s history past and present. This is unfortunately true for the United States as well - although I think there are also a great many examples of Christian values exhibited by many Americans past and present. Generosity, charity, sacrifice, and courage have (and still are) been lived out by our forefathers and many Americans who live today.
But by your “behavioral” definition, no nation, let alone the United States, could ever be a Christian nation - if Christian perfection is the determining criteria. As the scripture says, “All men have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
My second response is that that is not what people usually mean when they say that America is a Christian nation.
And, we also don’t mean that the United States is a Christan theocratic state (as Israel was in acient times)either. Neither do we mean that our Founding Fathers were all Christians, or perfect, sinless, saints.
No, what is meant when we say that America is a Christian nation is that our founding principles of equality, justice, and the rule of law are rooted in a Judeo-Christian world view. The most obvious example of this is in the Declaration of Independence:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
So, mlizzy and anti-utopian, while I understand what you are saying, I must disagree with your disagreement. The United States was and is founded upon Judeo-Christian principles and world-view. We don’t always live up to those principles, but we are founded upon them none the less.
I didn't say "behavior" makes this nation sick, I said "sanctification" of the behavior does.
It is a fact that this nation and the citizenry do not only commit sinful behavior, but ignore it, excuse it, condone it, encourage it, fund it, protect it, and profit from it. You cannot say a nation is founded on "Judeo-Christian" principals when it actively works against those principals. Furthermore, works of men like the DoI and Constitution are good documents, but they are not the documents used to determine who or what is Christ-like.