Kevin

The one which is profoundly the case and has been for the last two generations is a proper understanding of freedom. From the understanding of freedom that most Americans understood at our founding, they would say that freedom is the right to do what we ought. which confers a moral obligation to community, a moral obligation to other.

In other words, not to be overly academic in this explanation, what it leads to is a civil society that is healthy, a civil society that has institutions like schools and professional associations, eventually media, obviously, all of which mitigate the differences that Americans have.

In other words, not to be overly academic in this explanation, what it leads to is a civil society that is healthy, a civil society that has institutions like schools and professional associations, eventually media, obviously, all of which mitigate the differences that Americans have.

What has happened, however, over the last two generations is a redefinition of freedom, which is unhealthy, which is the freedom to do whatever the heck we want. eliminating that and coming to refocus on freedom as what we ought to do gets us to aspire to something greater as Americans. And for some Americans who may not be overtly religious, that's simply the American dream, which is excellent.

What has happened, however, over the last two generations is a redefinition of freedom, which is unhealthy, which is the freedom to do whatever the heck we want. eliminating that and coming to refocus on freedom as what we ought to do gets us to aspire to something greater as Americans. And for some Americans who may not be overtly religious, that's simply the American dream, which is excellent.

But for others of us who are explicitly religious and acknowledge and respect the religious pluralism in our country, it really does create a healthier country because ultimately what you're doing is minimizing the role of government, particularly in government doing things that we as individuals, as families, as communities should be doing instead.

But for others of us who are explicitly religious and acknowledge and respect the religious pluralism in our country, it really does create a healthier country because ultimately what you're doing is minimizing the role of government, particularly in government doing things that we as individuals, as families, as communities should be doing instead.

with a zealous, ironclad commitment to religious liberty as exemplified in the law. And let's just be really blunt here. The ideology that has run roughshod over religious liberty is the radical left. We don't have an example in modern American history of those of us on the political right attacking the religious liberty of anyone.

with a zealous, ironclad commitment to religious liberty as exemplified in the law. And let's just be really blunt here. The ideology that has run roughshod over religious liberty is the radical left. We don't have an example in modern American history of those of us on the political right attacking the religious liberty of anyone.

In fact, the conservative justices on the Supreme Court have been just as zealous in protecting that of non-Christians as they are of Christians. So I have 100% confidence that that will continue to be the case for those of us who are politically conservative.

In fact, the conservative justices on the Supreme Court have been just as zealous in protecting that of non-Christians as they are of Christians. So I have 100% confidence that that will continue to be the case for those of us who are politically conservative.

But the second thing is, and in a lot of ways, it is the very thing that allows our lawmakers, our policymakers to keep this focus on religious liberty, that if we focus on living out whatever our religious tenets are, and not just in our individual lives, but very importantly, in our communities, that might be mass attendance for serious Catholics, it may be church attendance for people of other faith, that ultimately what's going to happen is that even people who don't go to church,

But the second thing is, and in a lot of ways, it is the very thing that allows our lawmakers, our policymakers to keep this focus on religious liberty, that if we focus on living out whatever our religious tenets are, and not just in our individual lives, but very importantly, in our communities, that might be mass attendance for serious Catholics, it may be church attendance for people of other faith, that ultimately what's going to happen is that even people who don't go to church,

who would say, you know, I'm not explicitly religious benefit because the institutions in society allow us to air these differences. And ultimately, the pluralism that has been present in the United States since our founding will reflourish. And it's going to be something that benefits everyone in society and really helps to sustain freedoms and rights across the board.

who would say, you know, I'm not explicitly religious benefit because the institutions in society allow us to air these differences. And ultimately, the pluralism that has been present in the United States since our founding will reflourish. And it's going to be something that benefits everyone in society and really helps to sustain freedoms and rights across the board.

That's right, and there's an irony there, right? At the very least, a strong correlation between two things. One, the attack on religious liberty, which, for example, we saw under the Biden and Obama administrations, and the decline in religiosity of Americans, broadly defined. So in other words, to the very heart of your point,

That's right, and there's an irony there, right? At the very least, a strong correlation between two things. One, the attack on religious liberty, which, for example, we saw under the Biden and Obama administrations, and the decline in religiosity of Americans, broadly defined. So in other words, to the very heart of your point,

If we either, because we are religious people, revitalize the practice of our beliefs, or if we're not religious, at least acknowledge that according to religious liberty and the pluralism of the country, that is the right of other Americans to do as they see fit. That actually is going to prevent the overreach of government in abrogating those religious liberty freedoms.

If we either, because we are religious people, revitalize the practice of our beliefs, or if we're not religious, at least acknowledge that according to religious liberty and the pluralism of the country, that is the right of other Americans to do as they see fit. That actually is going to prevent the overreach of government in abrogating those religious liberty freedoms.

Both in my career as a public policy leader and also as an American history professor, I've never encountered a more egregious misunderstanding about any important part of the United States than the separation of church and state.