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Madison Nolen
AP Government
August 1 2016

By continuing to base their laws around Judeo-Christian values, America is dooming

itself to continue living in an outdated ignorance that has no place in the twenty first century. The
idea of a separation of church and state is great in theory, but our original lawmakers took little
consideration when actually creating our laws. At a time when the church was so heavily
influential on daily life, it's hard not to see how it could have been incorporated in our laws
without much notice. However, with time we have come to outgrow these ideals and their
religious influences are all too noticeable when they affect us in the current age.
America should discontinue their usage of Judeo-Christian values in their lawmaking for
many reasons, the most prominent being that these "values" are often rooted in intolerance and
ignorance. Many of our controversial laws, which have gathered much attention in these past few
years, are based on these religious values almost exclusively. For example, the LGBT+
movement and their struggle for equal rights in America took many years for them to overcome
due to laws based on these values. Looking at it objectively, there is no reason why America
would not allow a same-sex couple to marry; it doesn't hurt or hinder any of our rights as
citizens, it brings more love into the world, and the constitution itself guarantees us the right to
the pursuit of happiness. So why was this so illegal, so criminalized, for so long? Because the
bible said so. Because the values that were present at the time the laws were written were heavily
based on what the Bible said, and we continued to follow them blindly, rather than considering
the feelings and rights of living, breathing human beings. No one should have to worry about

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being persecuted for being in a loving, consenting relationship, but for a long time in America,
they did, thanks to these so-called values.
Another reason these laws and values are so heavily outdated is because they have chosen
to take only the "good" parts of their doctrine for usage. Everybody knows Leviticus 18:22: "A
man shall not lie with another man as he does a woman", and they will defend it to the death. But
they often don't consider Leviticus 11:12: "Whatever has no fins nor scales in the water is an
abomination to you." or Duetronomy 22:11, "Do not wear clothes of wool and linen woven
together." or Duetronomy 22:29 "[in the case of rape]he shall pay her father fifty shekels of
silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as
long as he lives." Yet eating seafood, or wearing blended fabrics, or marrying your rapist, are not
laws that are/were in place or enforced. So, how as a country can we say we are doing what the
Bible says, when in actuality, many are hiding behind a bible verse to disguise their ignorance.
Lastly, when considering these laws, we must remember that despite all their
inconsistencies, the main reason they should be amended is because they no longer reflect the
beliefs of a huge portion of the US. Why must we keep ourselves from evolving, understanding,
and progressing further by holding ourself back with these ideals? As a country, we could
achieve so much more if we chose to think critically, chose to challenge these outdated ideas, and
if we chose change. Maybe one day, our children in American will grow up knowing good, just,
accepting laws, and not have to live with hateful doctrine being shoved down their throats at
every turn, even in their laws.
Overall, it is best for us as a country to discontinue the use of these Judeo-Christian values.
Long ago, maybe they had their moments of value, but we have outgrown them, choosing instead

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to look at things from a logical point of view, rather than a biblical one, and it is time that our
laws grow to match our ideals, rather than those of a bunch of dead old white men.

Bibliography
Holy Bible, King James Version