Blasphemy: How the Religious Right is Hijacking the Declaration of Independence Rating :
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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful.
Though he misses the forest for the trees, this is still a fascinating nature walk
By Scott Bresinger
Alan Dershowitz, celebrity lawyer and frequent cable news talking head, has in "Blasphemy" used his estimable legal skills to create a necessary answer to the Christian right (the so-called "religious right" in this country is almost entirely Christian, and Protestant at that), who have lately taken to claiming one of the nation's founding documents to be implicitly, if not overtly, Christian in nature. This, of course, is the legal front of their overall "wedge" strategy to finally make fundamentalism the law of the land. Needless to say, this would endanger the liberties (and maybe even the lives) of the vast majority of Americans, no matter their belief system, or lack thereof. Although in length (less than 200 pages) and often in tone, Mr. Dershowitz clearly intended this book as a broadside, he also wants to ask broader legal questions and examine the "morality" that should be inherent in a secular nation. In the end, he may be misinterpreting the overall strategy of his opponents, but this is still a worthwhile and thought-provoking read.
In the first section, he examines the history and creation of the Declaration of Independence, gathering in impressive yet concise detail, the evidence that the Founding Fathers, in particular Thomas Jefferson, clearly intended a radical break from British law, to the extent that America would refuse to establish itself as Church-based. They were Deists, who while perhaps believing in some sort of deity, didn't accept the Christian version at all. The wording of the Declaration, with its references to a "Creator" or "Nature's God," was in fact a way to avoid using specifically Christian iconography. This was eventually crystalized in the Constitution, which acknowleged no divine authority at all.
In the second section, Dershowitz examines the words and actions of the Christian right itself. In his view, they intend to re-establish America as a kind of democratic theocracy, where minority faiths are technically allowed, but effectively voiceless. Unfortunately, he focuses too much on Alan Keyes, who although a persistent advocate of faith-based government, is essentially not a major threat in terms of power or influece. Important players in the movement, such as James Dobson, Tim LaHaye and Paul Weyrich are barely even mentioned, much less examined. Although Mr. Dershowitz has a clear grasp of many of their legal arguments, this oversight is a troubling harbinger of his overall understanding of the movement itself (for a more comprehensive journalistic approach, read Michelle Goldberg's Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism).
It's in the final section of the book where Mr. Dershowitz attempts to contribute his own ideas to the debate. He looks at the language of the Declaration from a legal standpoint and asks critical questions about phrases like "Nature's God" and "Natural," as opposed to "Positive" law. He even goes so far as to critcize the founders themselves for not realizing the full implications of their words. He also goes back to a newspaper column he wrote in 1984 called "The Ten Commandments for Politicians," which laid out some suggestions for how candidates should address issues of faith. Many of these seem eerily prescient, considering the tone of the current campaign for president: "Do not publicly proclaim your religious devotion, affiliation or practices, or attack those of your opponents;" "Do not surround your political campaign with religious trappings or symbols;" "Do not seek the support of religious leaders who impose religious obligations on members of their faith to support or oppose particular candidates." Here, Dershowitz could be talking to or about anyone from Barack Obama to John McCain; Hillary Clinton to Rudolph Giuliani.
The problem I have with the book is that for all his legal acumen, Dershowitz finally fails to realize that the Christian Right doesn't actually care about the Declaration; they certainly have no interest in the "godless" Constitution. They just want to re-format their ideas to make them stand in court, whether they be local districts to possibly the Supreme Court itself (Justice Scalia can certainly be counted as one of their friends, even if he is Catholic). Frankly, it's almost comforting that they wish to stage only a legal coup, as opposed to something more physically demonstrative. Dershowitz's comeback, therefore, is designed with the courts in mind. Any counter-tactic he can offer will only be legal as well. The root question of how a pluralistic democracy can deal with anti-democratic fundamentalist ideologies is somewhat foreign to him, and his book suffers as a result. Nevertheless, this is still worth your time, given its size and considered within its scope.
29 of 38 people found the following review helpful.
Freedom from religion
By Joshua Dunn
The thoroughly ad hominem rant by FBRobertson completely misses the point. Dershowitz is not attacking Christians, but the encroachment of religious belief on a secular democracy. The Christian circles that Robertson claims to travel in may not champion a theocracy, but many other Christians do. Dershowitz points out the Bush administration's creation of an Office of Community and Faith-based initiatives--a federal program designed to give millions of dollars to mostly Christian organizations. Their abstinence only approach to sex ed was dangerously ineffective where so much money was spent and to such little effect. Intelligent Design proponents are attempting to inject their beliefs in the science classroom in places such as Dover, PA and Kansas. And graduates from a 4th tier school like Regent Law get top job in the Justice Dept a la Monica Goodling. Competance and experience clearly have taken a backseat to cronyism and religious considerations.
This persecuation mentality would be funny if it wasn't so hypocritical. Christians love to pretend they are under attack in this country. If anything, the opposite is true--secular values are being erroded by theistic beliefs. FBRobertson seems to believe that Christians are morally superior to anyone else. Read some research by born-again sociologist George Barna that shows believers are no better off. Indeed, more secularized nations have lower rates of socially undesirable characteristics.
Robertson's review quickly devolves into a pro-religious diatribe that accuses humanists and agnostics of bitterness and hatred after, ironically enough, falsely accusing authors like Harris and Dawkins of wanting to send Christians to concentration camps...espescially shameful considering Dershowitz's judaism.
Dershowitz's elegant prose shows the dangers of imposing a narrow view of morality. Our secular laws are based on the human principle of justice for all. Religious neutrality offends no one and protects everyone.
14 of 18 people found the following review helpful.Why Can't Everyone Just Get long Together?
By Frederick S. Goethel
Alan Dershowitz has written a short, yet powerful book detailing the attempted hijacking of the American form of government (secular) by the Religious Right. That this is happening is hardly debatable, however the question remains as to how it's being accomplished and why people are obviously falling prey to incorrect historical statements.
Dershowitz starts by evaluating the writings of the author and a number of signers of the Declaration of Independence to point out what their world view was at the time the document was created. Were they Christians, or not? Did they believe they were creating a country that was Christian in origin or secular? By examining the writings of Jefferson, Adams, Paine and others, he comes to the conclusion that they were deists with no intention of forming a "Christian" nation.
The second section deals with the way the Religious Right is attempting to prove that the founders, were in fact, creating a Christian nation and then proceeds to debunk their arguments and point out the trickery being used to try to convince the public of the appropriateness of their views.
The third section is a discussion of "Nature's Law", what it means and whether it is applicable or not.
While I found the book to be excellent, it is written in a ponderous and verbose style (the author is however a lawyer, so this should be expected), making it more difficult to read than is needed. That, however, is his style of writing and just means the reader needs to more time when reading the book. The only other complaint (if you wish to call it that) is the failure by the author to explain why the Religious Right is trying to take control of the country and turn it into a Christian Nation. He nibbled at the edges, but never really fully gave his opinion on this important part of the debate.
I fully enjoyed the book, will keep it in my bookcase and read it again shortly. I think much knowledge can be gained from reading this book and it should be read by every voter before the next election. It would also be a wonderful addition to a reading club for discussion.
Product Description
In Blasphemy: How the Religious Right is Hijacking the Declaration of Independence, author Alan Dershowitz proves that no relation exists between the Declaration of Independence’s “Creator and “Nature’s God,” on the one hand, and the Judeo-Christian God of the Old and New Testaments, on the other hand. Learn about the religious right’s goal to Christianize America by using the Declaration of Independence and arguing that this document proves that the United States was founded on Biblical law. Understand everything from the argument to the documentation that Dershowitz uses to disprove this historical distortion.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #666783 in Books
- Published on: 2008-06-16
- Original language:English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 7.99" h x5.20" w x.55" l,.52 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 208 pages
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