IT TAKES COURAGE TO SAY "NO" TO GOD

IT TAKES COURAGE TO SAY ‘NO’ TO GOD
By Dick Meister

California Congressman Pete Stark insists that he’s no hero. But he sure is
my hero. Imagine a politician who’ll actually say he doesn’t believe in God
– out loud and unapologetically – as Stark did recently.

There are other non-believers in political life, but they’re very quiet
about it. Republicans or Democrats, it's the same. Most invoke God and
religion repeatedly in hustling votes and often in justifying their
positions on secular issues, despite that constitutional business about
separating church from state.

President Bush pulls out all stops, stating boldly that God is – yes! – ON
OUR SIDE. You may recall his declaration that “our nation is chosen by God
and commissioned by history to be a model to the world.”

The Democrats’ version was perhaps best stated by Sen. Joseph Lieberman of
Connecticut. He proclaimed that “we need to renew the dedication of our
nation and ourselves to God and God’s purposes.”

I prefer Democrat Stark’s approach. He says he’s eager to work with the
Secular Coalition for America – an association of eight atheist and humanist
groups -- “to stop the promotion of narrow religious belief in science,
marriage contracts, the military and the provision of social services.”

It was a contest run by the coalition that led to Stark’s extraordinary
declaration of non-belief in March. He spoke up after being named by the two
winners of the contest that offered $1,000 to anyone who could identify the
“highest level atheist, agnostic, humanist or any other kind of nontheist
currently holding elected public office in the United States."

Stark is admittedly safer politically than others who may share his views.
His is a notably liberal congressional district in the San Francisco Bay
Area where he has easily won re-election to 18 straight terms. But he is in
a prominent position of leadership as chairman of the Health Subcommittee of
the powerful House Ways and Means Committee and can cite the overwhelmingly
favorable response he drew for acknowledging his atheism to those who might
want to follow his lead.

Stark says that fewer than 100 of the hundreds of people worldwide who have
contacted him have disagreed with his position – and even they have been
“polite and reasonable.” Typical of those who voiced support was an atheist
in Stark’s home district who commended him for “your courageous yet
commonsense stance that sets you above the religious pandering that goes on
in Washington.”

Courageous? No, said Stark: “It’s not courageous to make a simple statement
of personal beliefs. What is courageous is to stand up in Congress and say,
‘Let’s tax the rich and give the money to poor kids.’ Now that’s
courageous.”

Maybe identifying himself as an atheist wasn’t an act of courage for Stark.
But it certainly would be for many other politicians, given the polls
showing that the vast majority of Americans believe in God, heaven and hell
and the other religious myths that persist even into the 21st century and
want their political representatives to share their beliefs. Most say they
would not vote for avowed atheists, whatever their qualifications, but do
happily vote for candidates who are openly religious.

Thus most politicians eagerly seek the support of believers,
ritualistically, frequently and often hypocritically invoking God and rarely
even acknowledging the existence of non-believers. Too often, they base
their positions on abortion rights, gay rights and other important issues on
faith rather than reason, on the irrational certainty – or pretense – that
their beliefs are facts. Too often, they prevail. Too often, they impose
their beliefs on the minority that does not share them.

Suppose it were otherwise. Suppose they could be made to understand that
the First Amendment not only prohibits the government from favoring one
religion over another, but also prohibits the government from supporting the
religious over the non-religious. American political life would at last be
freed from the hobbling dogmas of religion.

Copyright © 2007 Dick Meister

Story ID:	1914
Written by:	Dick Meister (bio, link, contact, other stories)
Location:	Fremont CA USA
Year:	2007
Person:	Pete Stark