Official Review: Your Church, My State by Glen Aaron

[Mailis]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Your Church, My State" by Glen Aaron.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Your Church, My State by Glen Aaron is a complicated body of work. It opposes religion and walks the reader through all historical accounts where religion has infringed itself on political and judicial practices, using its heavy influence and restricting freedoms it sees as a danger to the church values and unquestionable authority.

At the start of the book, I was confused. I thought that as foreigner maybe some things were clear to all Americans, that I as an outsider, was not aware of. Why is proving or disproving the fact that America was founded on Christian beliefs important? What clarity or reasoning does this conclusion provide in our present-day context? What does it change? Or explain?

But the more I read, the clearer the authors objective became. He thinks that as brilliant as separation of church and state was, the First Amendment has still not convinced religious sects that it is a good idea, so America is still constantly pulled in two directions. So, it is important for everyone to acknowledge that Christian fundamentalist organizations have never accepted that the United States Constitution ignores the word god, prohibits religious tests, and relinquishes any authority to establish a religion, guaranteeing citizens the right to individual conscience and thought.

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars because the amount of work it must have taken to gather all this information and to create this cohesive unity is astonishing. The book is chock-full of referred texts, court cases, overall legislative information and accounts of important developments throughout American history starting from the very beginning of the nation. It was compiled systematically and with care and I didn’t spot any grammatical errors. For history buffs and educated people who like to know more about the issue, this book is golden.

I think a fair warning is also justified here, that this book might be something that a truly religious person might not like. For example, science and religion are shown in such contrast, where it is quite clear that religion is something intangible and fictitious aggressively forced upon people whilst having its own agenda to deliver. Science is the search for truth without motivated conclusion, whereas religion is thought of as the defense of myth with a motivated conclusion. As I am an atheist I agree with the author on many points. And I appreciated his aim to be completely honest, as he shortly even highlights the benefits that religion can offer for society and communities. But in the end, it is a fair warning and comprehensive lesson in book form, to look at the clashing of political and religious undercurrents with more open eyes.

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Your Church, My State
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Like Mailis's review? Post a comment saying so!

[kandscreeley]

I don't agree with the author. I don't think you can have true and compete separation of church and state. I'm glad you enjoyed this one, but I'm passing.

[Michgal 32]

The church and the state cannot be separated in my opinion. Glad you enjoyed the book though.