Returning to the ideas of John Locke and the Founders themselves,
Barbara A. McGraw examines the debate about the role of religion in
American public life and unravels the confounded rhetoric on all
sides. She reveals that no group has been standing on proper ground
and that all sides have misused terminology (religion/secular),
dichotomies (public/private), and concepts (separation of church and
state) in ways that have little relevance to the original intentions
of the Founders. She rediscovers a theology underlying the founding
documents of the nation that is neither anyone's particular religion
nor one requiring religion. Instead, it justifies freedom of
conscience for all and provides a two-tiered public forum—a civic
public forum and a conscientious public forum—for the debate itself
and the actions that debate inspires. America's Sacred Ground—this
theology and its public forum—determines the meaning of freedom and
the ways in which Americans can pursue "the good": good government,
good communities, good families, good relations between individuals,
and good individuals from a plurality of perspectives. By exploring
our past, McGraw answers the critical question, Who are we as a people
and what do we stand for?
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Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9780791486955
Publisert
2021
Utgiver
Vendor
Suny Press
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter