We are certainly not a Christian nation in the sense that Iran is a Muslim nation or Israel is a Jewish nation.  There is no doubt that Judeo-Christian principles played some small role in our origins, but that doesn't mean we are a "Christian" nation.  Those who insist that we are a Christian nation are really foused on the morality of our nation, not its religious character.  Sadly, Christianity, at least as it is applied in the political arena, has been hijacked by individuals who are willing to disgrace the name of God by using it as a tool of politics and demagoguery. They are far more interested in maintaining moral control over the social institutions of our nation than they are in carrying out the true mission of Christ:  to care for the poor and preach the good news of salvation.

It's interesting that those very politicians who insist that we are a Christian nation almost never invoke the name of Jesus in their speeches.  They refer to "God," but never Christ.  I wonder why?

Feb 15, 2011 -- 4:37AM, Mostyn32 wrote:

Is the US a Christian nation? Most emphatically "No!" There is no such thing as a Christian nation (even including the Vatican, because the population of the Vatican does not depend on a birth rate!)

If Christian nations actually existed, there would be no homeless people, no people living in abject poverty, no domestic abuse issues, no persecution of minorities, no racism, no people eating food from dumpsters. There would be peace and harmony, neighbours would care for one another, the physically and mentally ill would be treated, and justice, mercy and compassion would be the hall marks of society.

That doesn't seem to square with Mark 14:

³Jesus was eating in Bethany at the home of Simon, who once had leprosy,  when a woman came in with a very expensive bottle of sweet-smelling perfume. After breaking it open, she poured the perfume on Jesus' head. ⁴This made some of the guests angry, and they complained, "Why such a waste? ⁵We could have sold this perfume for more than three hundred silver coins and given the money to the poor!" So they started saying cruel things to the woman.

    ⁶But Jesus said:

   Leave her alone! Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing for me. ⁷You will always have the poor with you. And whenever you want to, you can give to them. But you won't always have me here with you. ⁸She has done all she could by pouring perfume on my body to prepare it for burial. ⁹You may be sure that wherever the good news is told all over the world, people will remember what she has done. And they will tell others.