Establishing the Boundaries of Religious and Ideological Freedom

The idea of separation of Church and State has been important to Baptists as long as there have been Baptists.  As a group that did not conform to the Catholic establishment or the Reformers during the Reformation, separatist groups such as the Baptists often suffered persecution at the hands of both sides.  As a result, Baptists, more than most have fought for religious freedom. The contours of the freedoms afforded us by our Constitution 220 years ago are now being challenged. It’s not that we want control, or the ability to force our faith on others. The nature of the faith itself says that we cannot do that.  But we also do not want the anti-religious ideology of the culture to be forced upon us or our children. These are the freedoms that we want, that we demand. These are the freedoms that we cannot surrender at any cost. They are fairly simple.

We demand the freedom to practice our faith.

What Baptists have always desired was the ability to worship and live according to the dictates of our own consciences and to be able to convince others of the truth in the free market of religious and social ideas. The rise of the radical left in the United States has increasingly infringed upon those rights which have been codified in the Constitution of the United States. For a record of the part Baptists played in the forming of the Bill of Rights, you may go here.

The practice of our faith then requires freedom of religion, freedom of association, and freedom of the press.  No reasonable religious practice should be outlawed or controlled.  Believers should be able to determine with whom and whom they will not assemble for worship or other religious functions.  Believers should be able to publish and distribute religious material as a public expression of their internally held beliefs and as a means of teaching and passing the faith from one generation to the next.

The practice of our faith requires that we be allowed to share with others if they will hear.

Religious leaders in the US today, especially Baptists, do not want to force others to live by our faith.  That type of conformity is no true faith at all and damages the cause of Christ. We want is the freedom to share our faith and convince others of what we know to be the truth.  Believing is a choice. It always has been and always will be.

Likewise, we do not want to be forced to affirm the behavior or choices of those who violate the truths of scripture. This concept works in two ways. True faith is a choice. Affirmation is also a choice. Why would anyone in our culture force us to lie or to celebrate something that we believe is biblically wrong? If there is no freedom in our country to disagree, there is no freedom at all. And freedom is more important than feelings. If someone needs my affirmation to make them feel “safe” then they have feelings that are so fragile that they will never feel “safe.”

The practice of our faith requires that parents have sole authority over the religious and moral education of their children.

Religious leaders also want to be able to lead their own families based upon the demands of their own consciences.  The state requires parents to take care of their children until they are 18 years old. Parents are responsible for a child’s behavior. If a child damages another person’s property, the parents are held responsible. Parents should have exclusive rights until their child reaches adulthood to guide their children in matters of faith. Because some parents abdicate their responsibilities as parents is no excuse for taking away the rights of all parents.

We do not demand the right to indoctrinate other people’s children. However, it should be the parents of those children who decide what religious instruction their children receive.

The present indoctrination program in the education system in the US is robbing parents of their responsibility to teach their own children such simple matters as right and wrong. Some parents have been duped into believing it is no longer their right or responsibility.

Teaching our children our biblical faith and morals is not optional. We are commanded to do this by the scripture we hold dear.

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4) 

And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. (Deuteronomy 6:6-7) 

This is an area where we cannot compromise. We cannot give up this ground as parents. We cannot allow the state to take away these rights and responsibilities. Several states, including Washington and California, are presently infringing on these rights of parents. If we do not take a stand regarding the souls of our own children, we will stand for nothing at all.

Of course, standing for and preserving parents’ rights accomplishes nothing if those same parents do not USE those rights to actually teach their children to love God with all their hearts.