[streetpreacher]

There were a few Catholics in there too, pal. And I've read how tolerant the "Protestant Christians" of the time were of Catholics (not very).

Oh, I agree. They weren't very tolerant of much of anything. But that just proves my point. Catholic influence on the founding of this nation was minimal at best. This was a nation founded by Protestants and on those principles.

[sinkspur]

This was a nation founded by Protestants and on those principles.

And those Protestants, wisely, did not set up religious litmus tests for citizenship or to hold public office.

And they did not restrict "religion" to Christian denominations.

[Torie]

This was a nation founded by Protestants and on those principles.

One strain of it, the post theocratic Calvinist strain, and prior to the emergence of fundamentalism, as it relates to the nexus of religion and the public square. That point of view remains the dominant one which prevails in the public square to this day.