I am a Christian. My religious beliefs influence my political views.

My friend is an atheist. Her religious beliefs influence her political views.

Religious beliefs and political views inescapably intertwine. This would not be a problem, except that our political leaders are elected from only two major parties: Republicans and Democrats.

The exception to this rule is when a third-party candidate manages to get elected to a state office. (i.e. The Reform Party’s Jesse Ventura becoming Governor of Minnesota. Minnesotans have not elected a third-party candidate to a major office since Ventura. We learned that lesson the hard way.)

The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states:  Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.

Courts interpret this to mean two things:

No national religion may be established in the U.S.
The U.S. government may not give preferential treatment to one religion over another.

When all of our politicians come from only two political parties, and those parties espouse a particular belief in God, does that violate the Establishment Clause?

Political platforms are not laws enacted by Congress. However, as was repeatedly stated by both sides in the recent campaign, a politician’s religious views are integral to their political views.

So if all major politicians embrace God in their political platforms, does that not create a preference for one religion over another?

Would you feel the same way if politicians replaced “God” with “Allah” (Islam), “Deva” (Buddhism), or “Waheguru” (Sikhism)?