To the editor:

There has been much discourse in the Public Forum regarding religion and government. Many have stated that we are a “Christian nation.” Former Gov. Huckabee, who won the Kansas Republican caucus and may well be their vice presidential nominee, has stated, “What we need to do is amend the Constitution so it’s in God’s standards.”

I suggest some folks need to brush up on their history. Let’s let the founding fathers speak for themselves:

“… the government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion.” – Treaty of Tripoli, ratified by President John Adams

“Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst.” – Thomas Paine

“: our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions, any more than our opinions in physics or geometry” – Thomas Jefferson

“: religion and Government will both exist in greater purity, the less they are mixed together.” – James Madison

“The divinity of Jesus is made a convenient cover for absurdity.” – John Adams

“The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason.” – Benjamin Franklin

To the religious Right: Express your beliefs but don’t put words in the mouths of Adams, Jefferson, Franklin, et al. America was founded on religious freedom, not Christianity.

Doug Burger,

Lawrence