Two longtime friends, both Canadian – one black, one white, and both men – explore what it looks like to adopt the mindset of an inclusive society. Instead of asking, ”How do we get there?”, Jake and Chris discuss what does it look like to act as if we’re there already.
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Two longtime friends, both Canadian – one black, one white, and both men – explore what it looks like to adopt the mindset of an inclusive society. Instead of asking, ”How do we get there?”, Jake and Chris discuss what does it look like to act as if we’re there already.
According to Pew Research, out of 199 countries and territories, “More than 80 countries favour a specific religion, either as an official, government-endorsed religion or by affording one religion preferential treatment over other faiths.” And while, "Islam is the most common government-endorsed faith, with 27 countries (including most in the Middle East-North Africa region) officially enshrining Islam as their state religion’, an additional “40 governments around the globe unofficially favour a particular religion, and in most cases the preferred faith is a branch of Christianity.”
So why is the United States of America, given the early influence of deeply religious groups such as the Pilgrims and Puritans, not a theocracy? And why, when petitioned by Christian clergy of all types, did the Founding Fathers completely reject the idea and in fact, worked to make sure the United States would not become ‘Christian’?
The answers lie in the English Civil War (actually, 3 distinct conflicts between 1642–1651). The civil war was primarily concerned with how the three Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland should be governed. However, a central feature of the Civil War was the conflict between Protestants (of multiple varieties) and the Catholics.
During this time, John Locke began writing about “the religious intolerance and bickering that was blighting England at the time.” His later writings, Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690) and Two Treatises of Government (also 1690) would become foundational for the Founding Fathers framework for government, the American Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States.
The Disorienting Dilemma
Two longtime friends, both Canadian – one black, one white, and both men – explore what it looks like to adopt the mindset of an inclusive society. Instead of asking, ”How do we get there?”, Jake and Chris discuss what does it look like to act as if we’re there already.
