Unjust and undeserved: Study reveals dangerous religious persecution on the rise in America

America owes its character to Christianity, yet we are forgetting our roots.

Hostility against religion is growing, and it is dangerous, says a new survey on hostility against the faithful. Churches, military pastors as well as individuals face growing threats as the nation declines into amoral secularism.

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network)  - According to a new study, religious people, organizations that are religiously directed, including churches and private businesses, and even military chaplains are facing more hostility.

In its investigation, the First Liberty Institute compiled over 1,200 of religious persecution in America and concluded that "Quantitatively and qualitatively, the hostility is undeniable. And it is dangerous." That means not only are attacks on religious freedoms and religious people growing more frequent, but they are also becoming more intense, some to the point of physical danger.

While the United States was established as a secular nation, it was uniquely friendly to the plurality of religious beliefs that could be found across the former colonies. Christianity was dominant, so most of the founding fathers and documents were written with a Christian perspective.

So, while the United States was never a Christian nation, in a legal sense, it has always been amicable to the faith, and has protected its practice for over two centuries. There is no doubt that Christianity holds a special place in American history and it undeniably provides the moral framework for our Constitution, legal code, and society.

Christianity has been singled out as a target by the growing number of secularists who seek to confine Christianity to the private realm of the home and church alone. Public practice of the faith ought to be restricted, even banned, in their opinion.

That means no prayers at graduation, no participation by public officials in religious ceremonies, and the deletion of "In God We Trust," despite the phrase's official status as our current national motto. It goes further. Christians cannot stage displays of the faith on public property unless they also permit secularists to make a mockery of their faith in the same location. Christians engaged in business cannot follow their conscience as they work and must participate against their will in activities they sincerely believe sinful. And in some cases, Christians are to be openly mocked, ridiculed, their careers jeopardized, and even physically assaulted.

With thousands of cases documented in a 326-page report, Americans can no longer be complacent about religious freedom.

America has an undeniable Christian pedigree. It is part of what has made our nation exceptional. There is room for a plurality of faith, and people of all denominations may worship as their conscience dictates. Yet, while we are diverse, we are also unified in our commitment to a higher power and purpose for our lives and our country. We agree almost universally on what morals and rules we ought to live by, and it is no coincidence these rules are consistent with the basic tenets of the Christian faith.

Christians deserve protection, and it is just, and right, and truthful to acknowledge the special role faith, and in particular the Christian faith, has served in shaping our nation.

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