Berner letter: Church and state
Editorial cartoon from March 16: Ted Cruz “preferable to an unqualified charlatan bully.” One may wish to take President Carter’s assessment seriously in this case. He stated that at least Donald Trump is malleable. Cruz is not. I don’t think either is acceptable, however, Sen. Cruz’s evangelical theology is not compatible with the concept of separation of church and state. As an adherent to Dominionism, which believes that Christians should take dominion over seven aspects of culture — family, religion, education, media, entertainment, business and government. Cruz’s worldview is shaped by his father, Rafael. Another unacceptable concept entrenched in this theology is that God wants a transfer of wealth to Christians.
The founding fathers of the United States were products of the Age of Enlightenment. I’m pretty sure they did not formulate their ideas for the principles upon which this nation was conceived with the notion that one group of people should have “dominion” over others and their individual beliefs. More realistically, the German philosopher Immanuel Kant summed up the era’s motto “Dare to know. Have courage to use your own reason.”
Al Berner, Boise
This story was originally published April 2, 2016 at 11:58 PM with the headline "Berner letter: Church and state."