LETTER: At 250, U.S. not living up to ideals of a Christian nation

To Ozaukee Press:

Sorry, folks, but we are not a Christian nation. We were founded as a secular democratic republic by some educated men who understood the dangers of theocracy and other forms of autocracy.

A true Christian nation would not deny health care to anyone, would not demonize immigrants, denigrate homeless people, separate us into the worthy and unworthy, fire government workers without cause, kill boaters in the oceans, deny protection for those seeking asylum or send masked agents into neighborhoods.

Jesus Christ was not a Christian.  He was a Jewish reformer.

You can find his teachings on kindness in the Sermon on the Mount and its Eight Beatitudes. It can be helpful in life to have guiding principles, especially during voting season.

If Jesus’ teachings are too religious for you, then I suggest reading the Preamble to our Constitution. I imagine our Founding Fathers knew about the Beatitudes when they wrote the Preamble.

Living up to the teachings of Jesus and the aspirations in the Preamble would make us a nation with true Christian values.

We are about to celebrate our 250th anniversary; let’s make year 251 a new beginning.

John S. Strauss

Campton Hills, Ill.