Confronting The Final Frontier: Is America Ready For An Atheist President?

[Panich52]

Americans United

Confronting The Final Frontier: Is America Ready For An Atheist President?

Colonial-era Baptist minister John Leland was a devout Christian, but he was no bigot.

In an essay titled “The Virginia Chronicle” (1790), Leland attacked antiquated laws in the Old Dominion that limited public office to certain types of Christians.

“If a man merits the confidence of his neighbors in Virginia,” observed Leland, “let him worship one God, twenty Gods or no God. Be he Jew, Turk, Pagan, or Infidel, he is eligible to any office in the state.”

At the time the U.S. Constitution was written, delegate Charles Pinckney of South Carolina championed a provision barring all manner of “religious tests” for federal office. The language can be found at the very end of Article VI.

That’s all well and good, but statements from clerics and even provisions in the Constitution can’t stop people from imposing their own kind of unofficial religious test – and for a long time they did.

... there’s one group that remains the subject of great skepticism among many voters: atheists.

For a long time, a majority of Americans told pollsters they would not support an atheist candidate for president – even if they liked his or her views. That’s how strong the prejudice was.

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https://au.org/blogs/wall-of-separation/confronting-the-final-frontier-is-america-ready-for-an-atheist-president



••
Atheists have been reviled longer than any other minority. Enlightenment is slowly dawning on the West, but theocrats still dominate political discourse -- only 1 of GOP presidential candidates doesn't stress his ties to Christianity (sorry, Carla, but you'll never really be in running). They even dominate SCOTUS.

I'm one atheist who yearns for the chance for an atheist, hell, even agnostic, to enter national politics and open the discussion on how the founders' vision of a truly secular republic has been disregarded for 240 years.

[cantbeserious]

1. Never Happen In My Lifetime

eom

[olddots]

4. how old are you ?

[cantbeserious]

7. 58

eom

[oberliner]

16. It could very well happen in 2016

Sanders is an atheist.

Ethnically Jewish, but observantly irreligious.

[cantbeserious]

18. Sanders Says He Is Jewish When Asked

eom

[oberliner]

21. Jewish people are often atheists

I know he has said he is proud of his Jewish heritage, but he has always explicitly said that he is not religious.

[dsc]

19. Has he said he is an atheist

I recall that there was only one of them in Congress for several years and it wasn't him.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/19/atheists-in-congress_n_3944108.html

Yeah, there isn't a single admitted atheist currently in Congress.

For purposes of demonstration, however, the cat can represent former Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.), who left Congress in 2012 as its only avowed atheist. Much like the flying feline, he fell a bit short of his mark after having his legs taken out from under him by another Democrat, thanks to California's "top-two" primary election system.

A few months after retiring, former Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) also announced his nonbeliever status, a declaration he made more than 25 years after coming out as the first openly gay member of Congress.

That Frank felt more comfortable going public with his sexuality in 1987 than he did with his secular beliefs at any point during his House career says a lot about the stigma surrounding atheism in electoral politics. In 2011, Herb Silverman of the Secular Coalition of America told the Guardian that his group was aware of 27 members of Congress other than Stark "that have no belief in God." It's unclear who they were, or are, but none of them -- perhaps except Frank -- have since decided to speak out.

[oberliner]

23. Not sure he has spoken directly to that question but he has said that he is not at all religious

I think it would be great for him to go public with being an atheist or an agnostic if he is either of those - which I get the sense that he is.

[cantbeserious]

24. Sanders Is Not Mentioned In The Link Provided

eom

[dsc]

25. that was kind of my point

but no reporters are perfect so I asked.

[Orrex]

2. Many people identify religious belief as the only legitimate moral foundation

Honestly, I can't see an atheist winning the Whitehouse for at least many decades.

Unless you all want to vote for me--I'd totally kick ass as our first atheist president.

[Major Nikon]

22. Nothing like getting your morals from an instruction book on how to sell your daughters into slavery

[Faux pas]

3. I cringe every time some

politician goes on and on about god, 'christianity', how religious rights should trump human rights. I'm ready for a an atheist country.

[SamKnause]

5. I am ready for an Atheist Cannabis smoking country !!!!

I am sick of the religious scammers and frauds.

I am sick of the Separation of Church and State

being trampled on and ignored.

I am sick of the war on Cannabis.

[Faux pas]

10. There you go

SamKnause, that works for me! Lucky for me, I live in Oregon!

[SamKnause]

12. Unlucky for me

that I live in Ohio.

I still manage to get 'by'.

[Faux pas]

13. LOL

I do feel for you, ohio is one bass akward state. Glad you found a way to 'get by'. Wink wink.

[Panich52]

14. I'd settle for the atheist gov't we're supposed to have

[Faux pas]

38. Me too for sure.

[MineralMan]

6. We have probably already had atheist Presidents.

Perhaps none who were opening without belief, but I suspect some of our Presidents were essentially non-believers. Franklin Pierce, for example, chose to "affirm" his oath of office, rather than swear. He was apparently not an openly religious person. Was he an atheist? Who can say, really?

Others may have merely given lip-service to religious belief, since the nation is largely made up of people who profess some religious belief. It's certainly politic to appear to have a religious belief for politicians, so I can imagine some saying something to give the impression of religious belief, while not actually having any.

Could a person who declared him or herself an atheist get elected? Not right now, I think. Maybe never. But what beliefs or lack of beliefs a person really has is difficult to say. I have had a couple Christian ministers tell me that they actually did not believe that any deities actually exit, but that religion plays an important role in society, so religion is necessary.

So, yes, I suspect that we have had Presidents who were atheists, but not openly so.

[Orrex]

9. You're quite probably correct, revealing the article's real question:

"Is America Ready for an Openly Atheist President?"

And you also answered it quite handily: "Not right now, I think. Maybe never."

Sad but true.

[Panich52]

34. Among our first several presidents, most were no more than deists -- a fact that

RW Christian religionists won't let themselves acknowledge

[craigmatic]

8. We've already had one at some point just not an out of the closet one.

[Turin_C3PO]

11. Maybe my experience is an outlier

but I know many people, most of whom are moderate or conservative on the political scale, who don't seem to give a shit one way or another about religion or Christianity. I wouldn't call them atheists but I would call them secular "don't give a shit" ha ha. The thing is I bet they identify as Christian if telephoned by pollsters.

I live in SW New Mexico FYI.

[JanMichael]

15. It probably is. I am a "don't care" agnostic (or atheist depending on who is doing the labeling).

I just don't care or even think about god gods or fairies. I have known many Atheist, atheist, Agnostic, agnostic, people and almost all but one considered themselves a liberal or lefty. One considered himself a republican but soft at that.

[Panich52]

35. Does seem as if there's something inherently fascist or tyrannical about religion or those who hold

most closely to its authoritarianism. In my path to atheism, that characteristic was one of the first 'warning signs.'

[Turin_C3PO]

39. We have a lot of Catholics here

who are basically only culturally Catholic and will entertain the thought of their being no God or a different type of Deity than what the church teaches. Politically, most people here are moderate-conservative Democrats. I've known a few MRA douchebags who are atheist, though I doubt most atheists would claim those assholes lol.

[oberliner]

17. We will find out when Bernie Sanders get the nomination

I believe he counts himself among the growing number of Jewish atheists.

[Major Nikon]

26. I don't think he has ever identified as atheist

He just says he isn't "particularly religious."

His official press package from his site lists...

Religion: Jewish

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/download/press-package

[oberliner]

27. Yeah I think I may have overstated

My sense is that he is secular, but it is probably too far to say he is an atheist.

Though I would reiterate that it is quite common to be a Jewish atheist.

[Major Nikon]

33. It's fair to say he is irreligious

As far as I'm concerned that's just as good as being an atheist. I'm suspect of any politician who wears their beliefs on their sleeve, which includes Obama.

[underthematrix]

28. I believe you're wrong

[oberliner]

29. Yes, I attempted to backtrack above

Not particularly religious - but not necessarily an atheist.

[melman]

20. No

Sadly an atheist can't be elected in the US. Not yet anyway.

[kydo]

32. Technically, yes they can

There is nothing that says the President must believe in God or gods. They just have to be a natural US citizen, over a certain age and win an election. Some times if you are rich enough you can cheat and have the Supreme Court appoint you.

Now if you are an atheist (agnostic, pagan, satanic etc aka anything not Christian), people might not vote for you. Its more the person isn't very electable rather then they can't be elected.

One day that will change .... Just saying.

[melman]

37. Uh

Okay. People won't vote for you is obviously what I meant.

[BlueStreak]

30. DOn't you mean OPENLY atheist President?

Most people don't really believe in holy ghosts, talking snakes, afterlife, and all the rest of that garbage. It is just a lot easier to go along with it - especially for a politician.

[Agnosticsherbet]

31. Lincoln never went to church as was called atheist

He did not claim to be on.

I don't know if the county would elect an open Atheist. If one were elected, the South and bible belt states would be lost. A route to enough electoral votes would be very difficult.

[kelliekat44]

36. Judging by the behaviors of some past Presidents, one or more may have already held office.

Just because you don't say you are an atheist doesn't mean you're not. Just because one says they believe in God or a God doesn't mean you do.