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I don't want God wiped from the US. I don't want an athiestic society. I don't care if you believe in God, or Allah, or Ra or whoever. I don't care if you are Hindu, Christian, Shaman, Pagan, etc. On that same token, those of other faiths deserve the same respect that you expect.

Do you see the difference? It is religous freedom, not Christian freedom.

Atheism by definition is not a religion. It is the lack of religion. We do not have a supreme being, and contrary to popular belief, we do not worship ourselves or money.

God need not be expunged from history or politics. But it should not be forced down the throats of everyone who lives in this country.

I am not offended by "In God We Trust" being on our currency. Do I believe it belongs there? No. I am not fighting for its removal. I am not refusing to use money. I am not altering money so that I do not see it. I don't care, just as I was not offended by the existance of "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance (although I find it funny that many do not know how "under God" ended up in the Pledge, as it was not there originally, and the Pledge's author did not want it added).

I wonder if so many would be up in arms about the removal of the Ten Commandments monument (which, IMO is not a historical monument at all) if the monument was from a faith other than Christianity.

Religion is, by definition, a belief system. You do not need worship to have a belief system. Theism and Atheism are two poles, each of which can justifiably ask the other, "Prove to me there is/is not a God?"

The answer, in the end by both, will ultimately be, "I cannot prove/disprove the existence of God, but I can make an excellent case." From there FAITH takes over.

No difference. None whatsoever.

As far as respect goes, the nation was founded by people who believed in God, and many of them were Christian. They wrote the founding documents on the premise that man had inalienable rights granted to them by their creator.

After realizing this, the only logical thing for an atheist to do is go to a country where it isn't founded upon principles that depend so heavily upon the world view of a deist. The next choice is to do as you have, swallow the inconsistency and move on, so to speak.

Thank you for this post. I agree with it to a point, along with your statement, "I don't care if you believe in God, or Allah, or Ra or whoever."

For the record, I do care whether someone believes upon God, Allah, Ra or whoever. Since the resurrection occured, that is the proof that all men everywhere must repent in order to be saved. Because of the resurrection, I am evangelistic, and unashamedly so (Romans 1:16,17).

But I respect religious freedom, and the right for someone to tell me I'm wrong about my belief in Jesus Christ and to reject my message. Likewise, I believe that the right to pray and witness in schools is not a Christian right, but an American right. If a Muslim wants to share his faith, he should be free to do so. The same with a Hindu, a Taoist, or whoever else I could name.

I think it's terrible for someone to desecrate religious artifacts and symbols "in the name of God" or "in the name of Allah," simply because "it's not what I believe." That's offensive and disrespectful.

I have major doctrinal issues with another church in the area (I'm a pastor), and yet I'm reverent when I enter the church for a Ministerial Alliance meeting. I treat the pastor with respect. I would do the same in a synagogue or a mosque. I would never make fun of someone's faith, because it means something to them.

I'm glad that you have the freedom to be an atheist. I really am. The New Birth comes "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God (John 1:13). In other words, no one can force you, or attempt to try to force you, to become a Christian.

I truly hope that I haven't offended you in any way, and I apologize if some "Christian" in the past has tried to "force-feed" you the Gospel.

It goes back to freedom...the freedom to accept or reject the message.