[In response to Obama's comment that the U.S. is not a Christian nation.]
In the US Constitution:
Signatory section where it is dated and says "Seventeenth Day of September in the year of our lord, one thousand seven hundred eight seven".
67 comments
"Year of our Lord" was another way of saying "A.D." Sheesh, really if that is the best proof you can come up with, then you are likely wrong.
Echoing the other sentiment on this thread: Seriously is that the best you've got?
"Signatory section where it is dated and says 'Seventeenth Day of September in the year of our lord, one thousand seven hundred eight seven'. "
Yeah. Wanna guess why that is?
I'll tell you: because they were--and we are--using the Gregorian calendar, which it was decided year 1 would be the year of Jesus's birth.
All the years before that alleged birth are known as "B.C." which means, "Before Christ."
All the years including and after 1 are known as "A.D." Do you know what "A.D." stands for? "Anno Domini," which is medieval Latin for "In the year of (the/our) Lord." [taken from Wikipedia]
"In the year of our Lord" is no different from "AD."
The fact that they used the English translation of the Latin does not, in any way, indicate that this, or any country, was "founded on Christianity."
The ONLY thing it has EVER meant is that we use the Gregorian calendar as our basis of keeping track of the days and years.
Come on guys, they said 'our lord'. that obviously means this nation was founded by and for christians . Dont give me any of your crap about that treaty signed by our 2nd president, one of the founding fathers, and unanimously approved by the senate stating we are not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion. This respected legal scholar explains why that doesn't count:
truechristiansfortheocracy.org/ourconstitutionalrighttofagdrag/
"Which was a Monday. Named after the moon. Hence, the US is a muslim nation."
Good thing it wasn't a Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday!
So what! If you were living in Saudia Arabia you would date things by the year of the Hejirah. That would not mean that you are a Muslim.
Besides, the Treaty of Tripoli, Article 11 and the First Amendment to the constitution make it abundantly clear that the US is not founded on religion. - any religion.
I'll say it... *sigh*
TREATY OF TRIPOLI BITCH!
Signatory section where it is dated and says "Seventeenth Day of September in the year of our lord, one thousand seven hundred eight seven"
Isn't that the exact same thing it says on the date of the Treaty of Tripoli, Which points out that fact that "The United States is not in any sense founded upon the christian religion"?
Fuck, by that reasoning it would need to read "Seventeenth Day of September in the year of our lord Jesus Christ , one thousand seven hundred eight seven" now wouldn't it? How else can you be sure it's not a reference to "our lord Satan", "our lord Mohammed", or "our lord Spizzlefuck"? Oh yeah... You can't.
Drink a beer, take a pill, do something that will help you get the fuck over the fact that you are wrong. This is truly the most piss poor attempt I've ever seen. It's kind of like trying to lasso a calf with a smoke ring.
Maybe not. My fundie eldest brother has used this same argument with me.
Ok guys, he has us cornered, I guess we should go get our bibles now. Or rather, y'all should. I'm Norwegian, so I'm excused, state religion be damned.
So if I say "God knows why," Thank God," or Goddammit," by your logic I'm no longer an atheist because I invoked the name of God.
@ Paschal Wagner
I was actually thinking about that myself last night. Shouldn't the fundies be refusing to use the names of the days and months that reference 'pagan' gods?
Monday - moon
Someone should start trolling the fundy sites to suggest these days/months are eeeevil and need to be renamed.
@Lilith
Hate to nitpick, but Saturday was named for Surtr. Also, Tuesday was named for Tyr, thereby completing the Norseness of weekday names.
The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
@Agnostic Antagonist
Saturday was never named for Surtr. It is the only weekday that didn't get a real Old English name. It is really named after Saturn. In Norway we call it laurdag < ON laugardagr. It translates to "bathing day". Whatever you may think of the vikings, they actually washed. The English names of the weekdays were never Norse as such, they were Old English, as you can easily see from the form Wednesday, which must be derived from OE Woden rather than from ON Odinn. And yes, I love to nitpick.
I gotta love what Jullian4jc had to say...
To: Obama
Read the Constitution!!!
He did. That's why he said what he said.
Although the next poster who calls himself Savior actually states the obvious.
The Constitution never once mentions Christianity or Christ.
The Declaration does honor the Creator as the source of our inalienable rights, though. Was that what you're thinking of?
I wonder how long that poster will be there?
@ Paschal Wagner: BALLA DA LI DI LA, BALLA DA LA DA LI...
Year of Our Lord = Anno Domini (which is literally Latin for "year of the master"). They were restrained by vocabulary.
I'm sure everyone else has pointed out that that was the manner of writing dates out at the time. . . and that "our lord" could be Quetzalcoatl, Ra, Thor, Zeus, Shiva, etc.
Clearly, this was why Article VI of the Constitution ends with the words: "no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, under the United States."
@Lilith - weekday names et all people,
You know, that is one thing that has always bothered me, in English we use Pagan (and mostly Germanic/Nordic) names for the days of the week - yet in the german language specifically, they do not. Sure, they have Sun-Day and Moon-Day, but then they have Mid-Week, not Woden's Day, etc...
You know, sounds like something fun to throw at yahoo answers and see if there is any good fodder... be back later.
@Painful: If it helps any, us Scandinavians have (mostly) the same basic set-up as you. Sun day, Moon day, Tyr's day, Odin's day, Thor's day (Germans have "Day of Thunder", which translates to pretty much "Thor"), Frey's day and Washing day. Maybe Saturn was a popular viking-age detergent?
@Zeus Almighty: "But the word "January" -- taken from the name of the Roman god Janus -- is in the Constitution ... so obviously the U.S. was established as a pagan nation!"
And a two-faced one at that!
Sorry, folks, I couldn't resist the temptation. Get thee behind me, er, Pluto.
"in the year of our lord"
You'd think that when the founding fathers translated the Latin for you, you wouldn't FUCK IT UP.
Septem is seventh in Latin. How come it's the NINTH month, then?
Saturday in Sweden, and most of the other Nordic countries, is Washing Day, no gods or goddesses at all, just hard work, for women, mostly. So that we could spend Sunday (the Sun's day, a very pagan day) sitting on chairs, doing nothing, whatsoever...
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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