The Personal Website of Mark W. Dawson

One Nation under God, Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for All

Having entered the seventh decade of my life today, I have witnessed and experienced many changes in America. As a child of the fifties, an adolescent of the sixties, and a young adult of the seventies, I have lived through tumultuous times. The tumultuous times of the Civil Rights movement, the Vietnam War, Watergate, and the Stagflation of the late seventies shaped my youth, while the bitter partisan divides of the 21st century have molded my perspective. From the patriotic nationalism and national economy of the fifties and sixties to the internationalistic viewpoint and global economy of this century, America has been transformed.

One of the greatest and quietest transformations has been the religiosity of Americans. As America entered the middle of the 20th century, it became less Protestant Christian religious and more secular. Other religions, such as Catholic Christianity, Judaism, Islamism, Buddhism, and Hinduism, became more acceptable and mainstream in America. Belief in science and technology increased, often accompanied by a decrease in religiosity. In many ways, this was good for America and Americans, but in other ways, it has presented problems.

Americans became more tolerant and accepting of other religions and peoples, and Civil Rights for all Americans became mainstream and de rigueur. Barriers of Racism and Bigotry, Sexism, Anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, Xenophobia, Homophobia, etc., became unacceptable and outlawed. America was transforming itself to be more inclusive of all peoples and open to opportunities for all to succeed on their own merits. While this process is still ongoing and not fully achieved, however, America is a much better country at the start of the 21st century than it was at the start of the 20th century.

However, while this was happening, traditional morals and ethics were declining, and relativism in morals and ethics, along with less judgmentalism of behavior increased. Americans became more self-centered and professed to be spiritual rather than religious, as I discussed in my article on “ Religiosity”. As such, our society has become more permissive and less cohesive on what is proper and improper behavior. This has led to an increase in criminal conduct, unethical behavior, and immorality in America, as well as a decrease in civility, as I have outlined in my Article on " A Civil Society". This transformation has also led to “ Systemic Family, Education, and Faith Problems" in America, which are the root causes for much of the current unrest that grips America.

The Judeo-Christian Ten Commandments are a solid basis for living a moral and ethical life. However, there is much misinterpretation and misunderstanding of these commandments. Misinterpretations that are often due to the numerous translation faults and the different meanings of the words throughout history. My Article, “ The Ten Commandments”, is a rewrite of these Ten Commandments in modern English in an attempt to help clear up these misinterpretations, in which I provided my pithy comments on these rewrites.

I am a firm believer that science is the best way of explaining the physical properties and physical laws of the universe. I also am a firm believer that God created our universe and established its physical properties and physical laws, and I see no conflict between the views of Science and Religion. My Article, “ Science versus Religion”, explains why I believe this to be true.

Science cannot prove nor disprove the existence of God, as God is outside the realm of science. I believe in science to answer scientific questions, And I believe in God to answer the questions that science cannot answer. There are questions that can be asked that science is incapable of answering. Those questions are best left to philosophers, ethicists and moralists, and theologians. Scientists are free to believe or not believe in God, as are all peoples, but scientists cannot prove or disprove the existence of God. To utilize science to answer the question of God is a misuse of science. All parties should recognize that the question of God is indeterminable and resides in the realm of belief. No party has a definitive answer to the question of God. Let us debate the question of God in an intelligent and respectful manner, and if we cannot agree, simply agree to disagree. But each party should not claim the truth of their beliefs as the truth may never be known.

Consequently, becoming more religious does not mean becoming less scientific. We need both religion and science to advance humankind in science and technology and to direct society in recognizing Natural Law and establishing Natural and Legal Rights for the governance of society. However, not all religions can provide for the advancement of humankind. History has shown that the Christian religion has the best record of advancing mankind. In the fields of Government and Economics, Women and Children, Education, Charity, Medicine and Science, Slavery, The Arts, and Just War Theory, Christendom has been the primary motivator in the advancement of humankind.

Wars, Oppressions, Slavery, Injustice, Degradations, Thefts, Murders, Rapes, Disease, Poverty, and other harsh living conditions were the lot of the common man. With the advent and establishment of Christianity, this all began to change. In no other part of the world, except Christendom, was there any hope of change for the betterment of the common man. Christianity changed all that by its theology of the individual worth and dignity of all people. Human rights were established as a gift from God, or as the Declaration of Independence stated:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”

In no other part of the world except Christendom was this tenet of the individual worth and dignity of all people recognized as integral to the individual human being. Christianity was responsible for bringing these truths to light and establishing them as a basic tenet for all persons. This tenet changes the world for the better. The journey took two millennia to get us to where we are today, with several false starts, wrong turns, dead ends, and occasional retreats before much progress were made. While the Jewish religion had this basic tenet (mostly for Jewish males), the Jewish people were localized to a section of the Mideast and never spread this tenet to other peoples. And while there were many Jews that contributed to the advancement of humankind, many of the Jews who did so were under the umbrella of a Christian society. Christianity, on the other hand, spread this tenet of the individual worth and dignity of all people throughout the Mideast and Europe and converted pagan people to their religion and its tenets, thus civilizing the people in those regions in which Christendom spread.

But Christendom has declined in America, along with the decline in the individual worth and dignity of all persons. This decline occurred with the rise of Political Correctness, Activists and Activism, Adjective Justice, Virtue Signaling, Cancel Culture, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Doxing, Wokeness, Identity Politics, Equity and Equality, the Greater Good versus the Common Good in today's American society. While it is not necessary to become a Christian to believe in the individual worth and dignity of all persons, it is necessary to practice what you preach in your dealing with all persons. You must be cognizant of all your words and deeds and the " Natural, Human, and Civil Rights" of individuals before you speak and take actions that could infringe upon these rights. A true Christian does this automatically as their tenets require them to do so. Christendom is not a religion of governance but a way of life, and it is up to individual Christians to practice what they preach. Those that look to the government to implement Christian values are looking in the wrong place, as they must gaze into a mirror to find the right place to look. Therefore, be not dependent on the government to change the hearts and minds of those that do not practice Christian values of the worth and dignity of each person. And remember that " The Law is Not All" in your dealings with other persons.

America needs a reaffirmation of our Christian values, along with our " American Ideals and Ideas", as well as a recommitment to " Freedoms, Liberties, Equalities, and Equal Justice for All" for us to remain “one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all”.