[Brian Kopp DPM]

we can then ask Jim to re-combine the Forums for the purpose of melding Religious Activism and Political Activism.

We can and should ask for that right now! Unfortunately, this is the crux of the matter. There is no thing as conservatism without religion, namely Christianity, in this country.

To separate the two is to sound the death knell for conservatism. To act as if they can be separated and still expect conservative principles to stand on their own is naive.

To actively separate them is antithetical to any true conservatism.

Any "Conservative" political movement in America must be animated by a continual reference to, and analysis of, the intersection between faith and politics.

"Conservatism" needs definition on a forum like this:

Main Entry: con·ser·va·tism
Pronunciation: k&n-'s&r-v&-"ti-z&m
Function: noun
Date: 1835
1 capitalized a : the principles and policies of a Conservative party b : the Conservative party
2 a : disposition in politics to preserve what is established b : a political philosophy based on tradition and social stability, stressing established institutions, and preferring gradual development to abrupt change
3 : the tendency to prefer an existing or traditional situation to change

Personally I believe that a political philosophy based on tradition and social stability, stressing established institutions in America is, by definition, based on Judeo-Christian tradition and social stability.

Therefore, I do not shy away from calling those self proclaimed conservatives here on FreeRepublic.com "A Conservative News Forum" back to the very roots of that "Conservatism, " namely Judeo-Christian principles and belief. Christianity is integral to the continuance of Conservatism in America and thus The Necessity for Christianity on Free Republic.

I would like to see an ongoing, charitable discussion and debate on the defintion of, and basis/roots of, the "Conservative" aspect of FreeRepublic.com "A Conservative News Forum."

And that can only happen when the two are not artificially segregated.

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

we can then ask Jim to re-combine the Forums for the purpose of melding Religious Activism and Political Activism. ~~ We can and should ask for that right now! Unfortunately, this is the crux of the matter. There is no thing as conservatism without religion, namely Christianity, in this country.

We can and should --- but American Christianity, is that Christianity known as Calvinism.

• "If the average American citizen were asked, who was the founder of America, the true author of our great Republic, he might be puzzled to answer. We can imagine his amazement at hearing the answer given to this question by the famous German historian, Ranke, one of the profoundest scholars of modern times. Says Ranke, 'John Calvin was the virtual founder of America.'"
• D'Aubigne, whose history of the Reformation is a classic, writes: "Calvin was the founder of the greatest of republics. The Pilgrims who left their country in the reign of James I, and landing on the barren soil of New England, founded populous and mighty colonies, were his sons, his direct and legitimate sons; and that American nation which we have seen growing so rapidly boasts as its father the humble Reformer on the shore of Lake Leman."
• Dr. E. W. Smith says, "These revolutionary principles of republican liberty and self-government, taught and embodied in the system of Calvin, were brought to America, and in this new land where they have borne so mighty a harvest were planted, by whose hands? — the hands of the Calvinists. The vital relation of Calvin and Calvinism to the founding of the free institutions of America, however strange in some ears the statement of Ranke may have sounded, is recognized and affirmed by historians of all lands and creeds."
• All this has been thoroughly understood and candidly acknowledged by such penetrating and philosophic historians as Bancroft, who far though he was from being Calvinistic in his own personal convictions, simply calls Calvin "the father of America," and adds: "He who will not honor the memory and respect the influence of Calvin knows but little of the origin of American liberty."

As the old "Jefferson Starship" rock-n-roll tune has it... "We built this City."

Calvinism conceived the very idea of such a thing as, "America". She is Our Baby. More than any other Creed, she is our charge, our responsibility, before the judgments of a Holy God. WE are responsible for this Ship of State. Her Sins will be held against OUR Presbytery, if we fail.

The very fact that you might disagree with this statement, elucidates the virtue of the Religion Forum.

[Jim Robinson]

The answer is no. I will not recombine the forums. I went way out of my way to separate them because I got tired of the constant abuse and headaches.

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

And for the record, again -- this is no mere Presbyterian Parochialism on my part. Let Rome attend to her Frenchmen; she claims that nation as her own. Let Rome attend to her Spaniards and her Italians; again, she claims their heritage as her children.

America is OUR National Baby. We CONCEIVED the very idea of, "America".

The Right Calvinist Attitude towards the nation of America is as a ferocious motherly Lion towards her beloved cub.
It is inconceivable to American Calvinists to discuss "American Politics" under any other conception.