POINT: Candidates’ commitment to religious freedom is what matters

Much has been written about the religious beliefs of presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, as well as candidates up and down the ballot.

In a country whose Constitution demands the separation of church and state as the shield that protects religious freedom for all Americans, the questions that voters should be asking are: Are the candidates committed to our foundational promise of church-state separation, the American original that is the cornerstone of religious freedom? Have the candidates committed to representing all of their constituents, not just those who share their religious beliefs? Are the candidates likely to abuse the power of their office to impose their personal religious beliefs on others?

There are too many unfortunate examples of public officials attempting to enshrine their religious beliefs into law for voters to take these questions lightly. Take Missouri, for example, where Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the National Women’s Law Center are suing to block a total abortion ban as a violation of church-state separation. Missouri legislators wrote into the law banning abortion that “Almighty God is the author of life.” They spoke repeatedly about their personal religious beliefs as they debated the bill.

As our 13 Christian, Jewish and Unitarian Universalist faith leader plaintiffs have made clear, Missourians, like people nationwide, have diverse religious beliefs that inform diverse views about abortion. In a country that promises religious freedom, everyone must be free to make decisions about their own bodies based on their beliefs. Abortion bans like Missouri’s violate that promise.

In February, Alabama Supreme Court justices inserted theological beliefs about the origin of life in a decision that imperiled the ability of Alabamians to have children through in vitro fertilization. The chief justice’s opinion went even further, and repeatedly referenced God and his religious beliefs, and he even quoted from the Bible to justify his decision. These justifications have no place in court decisions.

Lawmakers nationwide are attempting to insert their Christian Nationalist views — the false claim that America was founded for White Christians and that our laws must continue to secure their privilege — into our public schools. This includes religiously motivated book bans; laws requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom and the Bible to be taught in every public school (AU and allies are suing to stop both in Louisiana and Oklahoma, respectively); and placing unqualified chaplains as counselors in public schools, just to name a few examples.

These efforts undermine the right of families to decide if, when and how children engage with religion. Students who are religious or racial minorities, nonreligious, LGBTQ+ or belong to other often-marginalized communities are especially harmed by these Christian Nationalist efforts. But Christians who do not subscribe to the government-favored version of Christianity are harmed, too. In fact, all of our cases above feature Christian clergy plaintiffs who do not want the government to misuse or misrepresent their faith and care deeply about their neighbors’ religious freedom.

There is a powerful antidote to this scourge of religious extremism: church-state separation. Church-state separation prevents Christian Nationalists from imposing their narrow beliefs on the rest of us. It protects everyone’s freedom to live as themselves and believe as they choose. Church-state separation is ever more critical with our country’s increasing religious diversity and the religious “nones” now representing nearly a third of the population.

It’s not the religion of our elected officials that matters. What matters is that they uphold our country’s and every state’s promise of religious freedom and protect everyone’s right to believe as they choose, so long as they don’t harm others.

Many are feeling despair as they watch religious extremists occupy public offices everywhere, from the federal government to our local school boards. We must remember that they have neither the majority of Americans nor core American values on their side.

It’s past time for a national recommitment to separate church and state. We must join together across our differences and insist that our elected officials uphold this foundational principle that protects all of us. Our freedoms, our equality and our democracy depend on it.