Hrafnkell has posted here a few times over the past year and he has graciously taken time to write yet another. His first one was “Mythical America ….”, well worth going back and reading again (as are all his posts) especially in light of today’s contribution. Hraf has written about the Treaty of Tripoli because like understanding the origins of the statement, “separatioin of church & state”, we need to also understand why we hear the “Treaty of Tripoli” bountied about with increasing frequency…

The Treaty of Tripoli

By Hrafnkell Haraldsson

Christian conservatives like to argue that the United States is a Christian Nation, that it was founded upon Biblical Principles. The problem is, there just isn’t any evidence for it.

Yes, the colonies were settled by Christians, predominantly Protestants (who hated Jews and Catholics). But the descendents of those Christians – working with, not against secularists among the Founding Fathers – established a secular government.

And there is quite a bit of evidence for it.

There is no God and there is no Jesus in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Neither are there a Ten Commandments nor a Bible, let alone any sign of “Biblical principles.”

The Bill of Rights reaffirmed English common law.

As I recently argued elsewhere, National Day of Prayer: The Myth of a Christian America http://www.politicususa.com/en/national-prayer-day American law is based on English common law – as is the Bill of Rights – and English common law is influenced not by Old Testament Jewish Law but by Pagan Roman law. We are more a nation of the Twelve Tables than of the Ten Commandments.

English common law does limit governmental power. It does not legislate biblical principles.

Then there is the matter of the “infamous” Treaty of Tripoli.

Because of the modern insistence that America is a Christian Nation founded on Biblical Principles, it has become imperative that the Treaty of Tripoli be buried under a rug somewhere, or explained away as an aberration.

The Treaty of Tripoli is a commercial treaty with the Islamic state of Tripoli and is on that basis rather commonplace. It is also unique. Similar treaties concluded with Algiers and Tunis, for example, lack the equivalent of the Article 11 that makes the Treaty of Tripoli so important to us today:

As the government of the United States of America is not founded in any sense on the Christian religion – as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility of Musselmen [Muslims] – and as the said states have never entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.

There is nothing dishonest in the phrasing. The government of the United States was not founded upon Christian principles. As noted above, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights lack all reference to Jesus, the Bible, or the Ten Commandments. The Bill of Rights, as observed, are an assertion of English common law which has Pagan Roman influences but none from Israel, where not rights, but punishments, were the order of the day.

There is no denial here that the population of the United States was Christian – overwhelmingly so. But as should be quite clear, those Christians did not insist upon a Christian government. In fact, the 18^th century’s Evangelicals were quite opposed to the idea and found themselves siding with the “godless” Thomas Jefferson.

Critics of the Treaty of Tripoli and of Article 11 in particular, claim that the article is the product of one man, Joel Barlow, who negotiated not only this treaty but those mentioned above with Tunis and Algeria.

What seems to be ignored by these critics is that the treaty did not occur in a vacuum any more than did the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, or the Bill of Rights, all of which lack any claim to the American government being Christian in nature. It was not only Joel Barlow who saw the treaty; it was seen by many, and it was approved by the Senate and signed by the president.

Critics claim that Article 11 was not actually in the treaty because the only extant Arabic copy is lacking it. But what is of essential importance here is that in the English copy voted upon by the Senate, Article 11 did appear in the treaty – and in newspapers across the United States.

Nobody in the Senate complained or voiced any objection to it.  Not one person.

There was no storm of outrage from the public when it was published.

There was not a word of protest in 1797. Nor do conspiracy theories apply. We know from The Journal of the Executive Proceedings of the United States Senate that the treaty was read aloud to the members of the Senate. Copies were printed for the senators. There can be no doubt but that they knew what they were voting on.

The vote in favor of the treaty’s passage was unanimous.

The Treaty was negotiated while Washington was president. But it was submitted to the Senate by his successor, John Adams. John Adams was, as observes Steven Waldman, co-founder of Beliefnet.com, the “most overtly Christian” of the first four presidents. Yet Adams did not object to Article 11. He did not insist on its removal. He presented the Treaty to the Senate for approval because unlike many Christian conservatives today, he understood the Constitution and its intent.

The Senate, likewise, understood. They voted unanimously for the treaty’s passage. Adams signed it.

If the United States government was, as today’s Christian conservatives claim, founded upon Christian or “Judeo-Christian” principles, where was the outrage? Surely those men who established our government, being still among the living in 1797, should have been horrified to see their grand scheme undone.

The great lie of Christian myth in America is exposed for all to see not only in the signing of this treaty but in its public reception. There is no record of any marches of protests or fiery speeches of condemnation either in the halls of the Senate or in the streets or from the office of the chief executive, the protestant Christian president who put his signature on it.

As an aside, it should be observed that the treaty failed in its purpose. By 1800 the United States and Tripoli were at war. The agreement that superseded the original treaty lacked the contents of Article 11 but it did state that the United States has no established church. And it does not.

Because the Constitution says it cannot.

Now…does ANY of this matter to the “Christian Patriots” (their label – NOT mine) who write and send such vile threats and messages like the following? These are directed at us through Military Religious Freedom Foundation in particular. (Their spelling, spacing and grammar left in tact).

“Your organization is not a department of the U.S. Government and I condemn you guys pushing Franklin Graham out of the National Day of Prayer. In fact, your organization is anti-American and isn’t worth the pot that I would even piss in! But anyhow,,,piss on your organization.I’m creating an identical web-page to yours and am going to smear you guys on facebook and twitter.Good Luck. LOLMy Regards”

****
“Yes Christians believe the Bible and for your information, you and yourorganization are helping fulfill prophecy by condemning Christ and His followers. But,whether you believe or not, YOU are still going to burn in Hell!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!People like you are ushering in Islam for everyone. I bet youvoted for the pretender and chief, Obama the liar. Congratulations, you are anti-American,pro-evil, anti-Semitic, anti- Christian and just plain stupid. May God forgive you, for youknow not what you do I will stand for Jesus and lay my life down for His word, me and 38million other fanatics!”

It just never ceases to amaze me no matter how many of these come in, all written conveying the same message, that these people consider themselves “right with God”, lovers of Christ and defenders of America as a Christian Nation. It is very sad…

If…IF…people used their own minds and educated themselves this ridiculous and dangerous debate would not be happening. For instance, simply take a look at what Thomas Paine had to say about organized religion (I just posted it under the Header above for the web site). Yet, Glenn Beck rants, raves and rallies these “Christian Patriots” using Thomas Paine as a reference to convince them that we are a Christian Nation! Paine is turning in his grave.

Go to this web site for more very interesting reading. Many of us may remember a lot of this from our past educations, but ALL of us need a primer to remind us just what the realities are in order to arm us with the intelligence to fight their uniformed hate! I leave you with this quote from Thomas Paine…

“I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Roman church, by the Greek church, by the Turkish church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church.

All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit.” ~ Thomas Paine, “The Age of Reason” 1793

***Please note that I have posted two videos on the sidebar that are a MUST watch! They do an excellent job of introducing Christian Dominion Theology and why we fight so hard to stem the tide of this religious extremism. Please watch!***