Is America's Christian foundation at odds with the Jeffersonian notion of separation of church and state?

Uhhh...how's about you ask the question accurately? Is the Jeffersonian notion of separation of church and state at odds with America's Christian foundation? Yep.

I'd put life before the Supreme Court's fabricated mandate up against today's man-as-god society. The Supreme Court transformed the non-establishment clause into separation of church and state.

Last time I checked the Intranut, there were no websites for The Church of America, as established and promulgated by the US Feds. The Church of England and that Popey character were the sources of their concerns about the government establishing a compulsory church. Not government being structured with the understanding that if there is no God, then there is no right or wrong. (Legal and illegal are different than right and wrong, by the way. I can't believe how many people don't get that).

Here's an expert on the subject:
"'In Democracy in America, written in 1835 Alexis de Tocqueville observed that Europeans practiced religion from a 'barren traditionary faith which seems to vegetate in the soul rather than to live,' but Americans 'combine the notions of Christianity and liberty so intimately that it is impossible to make them conceive of one without the other.' America disproved the canard from the French Revolution holding that religion and freedom were incompatible. To the contrary, de Tocqueville said: 'There are certain populations in Europe whose belief is only equaled by heir ignorance and debasement; while in America, one of the freest and most enlightened nations in the world, the people fulfill with fervor all the outward duties of religion." De Tocqueville pronounced religion 'the foremost of the political institutions' in America. He said there exists no country in the world ' where the Christian religion retains a greater influence over the souls of men than in America.' As a result, 'while the law permits the Americans to do what they please, religion prevents them from conceiving, and forbids them to commit, what is rash or unjust.'"
-Ann Coulter - Treason, pages 288-289.

Look at the question again. It's as if Jefferson's idea was the proven reality instead of the other way around.

Joe

I couldn't agree more with Joe. The entire idea of separation of church and state has been perverted from its original purpose -- to actually protect the CHURCH rather than the government. I'll admit that perhaps I am a bit biased because I am a Christian, but my Christianity does not follow the Pope. It consists of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and a commitment to live as He did, loving other people and refusing to compromise on what is truly important.
I do not follow the Pope, and I do not follow anything but the Bible. Christianity is not philosophically unsound, it is Christians who are. While we're forgiven, we're not perfect and we're certainly not prone to agreeing with each other all the time.
Joe's last sentence says it all: history has obviously proven that America is a Christian nation. So why is separation of church and state becoming such a huge issue? Because Christianity has suddenly become a victim of America's policy of tolerance because tolerance is completely contradictory to its foundations. (Love, however, is not.) The problem does not lie with Christianity (although many Christians go about talking about their beliefs the absolutely wrong way); it lies with a nation that has begun to seriously deviate from its founding principles, and a democracy that does that is destined to eventually fail. We may not see it. Our children are a different matter.

Why do you think that you would not be following the Bible if you were to follow the Pope's teachings? Does he dissuade persons from having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ?

No, but I seriously believe that oftentimes Catholics put too much emphasis on things like the sacraments and then the relationship with Jesus becomes secondary. There's just too much ritualism involved and I think that Catholicism would be better off getting back to its roots -- the basics of a relationship with Jesus.
I also believe that I don't have to go to a priest to confess my sins. The Bible says that there is only one mediator between God and man, and that is Jesus Christ.