I was listening today to an NPR podcast called Intelligence Squared, which is a debate program (and a rather nice one at that). Today's proposition is "Is America too damn religious?" I found myself heartily agreeing with arguments on both sides. However, an interesting point was raised that I had never considered. The separation of church and state is an important tenant of American society. In fact it was a key distinction between the US and England and the rest of Europe at the time of the country's founding. The US has never had a state church while many nations in Europe have. Yet Europe is well known for being post-Christian and secular, while Christianity is still prominent in American society. So it seems that a state-church connection is poisonous to that religion. Knowing this historical precedent, it is ironic that some Christians seek to increase the religiosity of our society by merging church with government.