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By extolling freedom of religion in the schools, President Bill Clinton has raised the level of debate on the importance of religion to American life.[2] The time is ripe for a deeper dialogue on the contribution of religion to the welfare of the nation.
America has always been a religious country. Its first Christian inhabitants were only too anxious to explain what they were doing and why, explains historian Paul Johnson. In a way the first American settlers were like the ancient Israelites. They saw themselves as active agents of divine providence. [3] Today, he adds, it is generally accepted that more than half the American people still attend a place of worship over a weekend, an index of religious practice unequaled anywhere in the world, certainly in a great and populous nation. [4]