Continued from page 1
The inherent problem with atheists at
helm of government can be seen by recounting life under rule of French atheist Maximilien Robespierre. More than a century after Queen Elizabeth executed Catholics, and 200 years after Bloody Mary was being bloody, Robespierre was sending thousands to guillotine. The atheistic government of Joseph Stalin killed millions and Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge slaughtered hundreds of thousands.
Protestants, Catholics, Muslims and atheists have one thing in common: When any sectarian group controls government, people die. Yet that was norm of world history until 17th century.
A place at table
Perhaps most momentous day in American history was February 5, 1631 when a free-thinking British preacher named Roger Williams alit from a ship in Boston’s harbor. Williams purchased land from Indians and founded a community that became Rhode Island. Unlike other colonies, Rhode Island separated civil and ecclesiastical governments. No sect would control government. Rather, all would have a place at table.
Williams’ philosophy of religious liberty was perceived to be an invitation to disaster. But anticipated quarreling among sects never materialized. In fact, arrangement resulted in religious harmony. No religious institution felt threatened by any other, for all were free to believe (or not believe) as they pleased. There was no reason to burn your neighbors at stake for having too many holes in their sleeves.
And that takes us back to original question.
Why do Libertarians — Christians, atheists and other sectarians — manage to get along? The answer is simple. Like Williams, we understand principle of inclusion. Everyone has a place at table. And so, I can relish thought of being most religious guy in Libertarian Party without fear of Charlie sending me to gulag. Erstwhile, my Christian friends will continue to call me most libertarian guy in Baptist church.
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