Obama: A shout-out to ‘nonbelievers’

During his inaugural address, Obama became the first president in history to acknowledge the presence of atheists in what he called America’s “patchwork heritage.”

President Barack Obama has “touched the untouchables,” said Steven Waldman in Beliefnet.com. During his inaugural address last week, Obama became the first president in history to acknowledge the presence of atheists in what he called America’s “patchwork heritage.” We are, Obama declared, “a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and nonbelievers.” Some Christian leaders were unsettled by the remark, saying that Obama was trying to “redefine” American culture and downplay our religious heritage. In fact, the inauguration ceremony was infused with religious references, and it’s absurd to accuse Obama of any animus toward religion. But by boldly asserting our national creed of religious diversity and tolerance, he reminded us that despite the claims of some zealots, the U.S. was not founded as a

“Christian nation.”

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