Separation of Church and State (overall) seems like a good thing. How might it be a positive force as another branch of government? How could it interact with the current branches to make us stronger?
Let’s take it as a given there could not and would not be a State religion. Let’s also take it as a given that there could be a lot of problems with a fourth branch of government as well, and that can be brought into the discussion later. Let’s start with how religion might be a positive force.
(This is meant to be a fun, thoughtful topic intended to invoke imagination yet without being silly. It is NOT a proposal to add religion to government, only a discussion on how it might work…kind of a pie-in-the-sky issue–simply something different to think about/discuss.)
Anytime without exception you start putting religion into the government you get tyranny. Its what led many christians to flee christian tyranny in Europe and come to the what would become the United States. Its why there is such tyranny now in Islamic countries because they don’t have a separation of church and state.
Perhaps a religious branch of government would see fit to promoting govt intervention that would align with the ideals of religions. For example, humanitarian aid, poverty programs, correcting injustices, limiting war, human-rights abuses abroad.
Perhaps a cabinet level position? A Morality Advisor?
One aspect that comes to mind is if Congress is playing political games with the Executive Branch and won’t pass needed legislation, then the Religious branch could step in and either force Congress to take action under the threat of taking action itself.
If Congress and the President government are too occupied in its political games, the fourth branch could force their hands based on humanitarian issues.
Perhaps the religious branch of government would see fit in removing any government intervention that is not working (for example government not being able to handle the homeless problem is some of our major cities) and putting it into the hands of non-government agencies on a local level.
I think religion as a branch of government would have to have slightly more teeth than an Advisory position. Something more in line of having the power to take action when the other three branches fail to take actions–or the actions they are taking are clearly failing. Perhaps starting with a warning that if they cannot fix what is broken, then an override goes into effect after a certain length of time.
Yet it appears that all government–even with no religion–reaches this same point on its own. At least when it does, if religion is not involved in that government, it has clean hands. One example of this is with the Fall of the Roman Empire when the Church seemed the only organization able to take over.
Government. L.A. is a good example, people on the streets trying to help the homeless wish they had even a quarter of the money government keeps throwing at the problem to no effect.
What is stopping the government from channeling money already taken from taxpayers to the agencies that have shown they are more effective? Oh…the government…
