The United States of America is a secular nation not founded upon the Christian religion

Pro did not offer direct rebuttals to any of my arguments from Round 2, so we must assume they are accepted as valid. Pro gives a long list of quotes. Unfortunately, these are not arguments because my opponent gave no analysis or explanation of them. Just listing a bunch of quotes (which are invariably pieced together from different places and taken out of context) provides raw information, but it does not form an argument by itself. Next, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Adams, and Thomas Paine were definitely NOT the authors of the Constitution. Influential? Perhaps. Authors? No. Thomas Jefferson was not even at the Constitutional Convention (he was in France), nor did he sign the document [1]. Thomas Paine was nowhere near the Constitutional Convention (he was in England), nor did he sign it [2]. John Adams was not there either - he was ambassador to Great Britain at the time [3]. James Madison was there, but he was only one out of 55 delegates. As such, Pro's argument citing these men as the "authors" of the Constitution is incorrect. John Rutledge, Edmund Randolph, Oliver Ellsworth, James Wilson, and Nathaniel Gorham actually drafted the Constitution [4]. In fact, since we are quoting the men who actually wrote it - Nathaniel Gorham believed that government officials should take the following oath of office: "I, __________, do declare, that I believe the Christian religion, and have a firm persuasion of its truth. " That was not merely a private personal opinion either - he actually wrote it into the Massachusetts State Constitution [5]. That is pretty strong evidence that Christianity played a large role in many of these men's thinking and opinions of government. But, I don't want this to turn into a contest of who can find the best founding father quote. For every secular quote my opponent finds, I can find an equal number of Christian themed ones. This will get us nowhere. No one person wrote the Constitution - there were 55 delegates who all contributed. It is speculative at best to claim one delegate definitely had more influence than another. (Note: This is not an attempt to avoid using founder quotes. If my opponent wishes to continue swapping quotes, I promise I have plenty of my own lined up and ready). Looking at the bigger picture, it's hard to claim that the Constitution definitively marks the foundation of America at all. America did not magically appear the moment the signers' ink dried. Just like setting up a country is a process, so too is founding one. The real question here is what began that process, what motivated it, and what influenced it? If we find the answers to those questions, we find what America was founded on. I also want to note that Pro's rules from Round 1 do not require me to prove America was founded EXCLUSIVELY on Christianity. America was certainly founded on a long list of things. If I can prove Christianity was on that list, then I win. There's no doubt that Christianity was on that list. Pro says that inspiration is different from basing a creation on something. I submit the two concepts are much more similar than they are different. Ask any musician or inventor what they "based" their creation on, and they will likely respond how they were "inspired" by something. Pro will need to explain why these two concepts are significantly different. Inspiration, motivation, and personal worldview all factor into the foundation of anything. Pro cannot realistically separate these concepts from each other. I will wrap it up by summarizing my arguments so far and see where my opponent takes this. 1. America's founding did not begin with the Constitution. It began the moment colonists arrived in 1607. 2. Many, even most, colonists were motivated to come to America because of Christianity. Almost every colony, as well as the interior territories destined to become states, were established because of Christianity (at least in part). With this in mind, it's no stretch to say America's foundation included a heavy dose of Christianity. 3. Christianity's influence is all over the Constitutional period. Symbols of Christianity were deliberately chosen to mark the new government's beginning. Washington could have sworn his oath on any book or no book at all, but he chose a Bible. Congress mandated a Christian church service for the whole government following the inauguration. Washington invoked God in two entire paragraphs during his inaugural speech. The list goes on and on. 4. Yes, the Constitution enforces the Separation of Church and State. But that doesn't automatically exclude Christianity from the list of founding principles. Citing the First Amendment simply means Christianity was not officially recognized, which I have no burden to disprove. Looking forward to the next round. [1] . http://www.biography.com... [2] . http://www.biography.com... [3] . http://www.biography.com... [4] . http://www.constitutionfacts.com... [5] . http://www.nhinet.org...