by Nick Gier, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy and Religion, University of Idaho Idaho State Journal, June 12, 2026 Neither Pagan nor Mohametan nor Jew ought to be excluded from the civil rights of the Commonwealth. —Thomas Jefferson citing English philosopher…
Strange Bedfellows: Deists and Baptists Insist on Church/State Separation
Nick Gier, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Religion, University of Idaho Our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions, any more than our opinions in physics or geometry. —Thomas Jefferson, “A Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom” For two centuries,…
Let’s not forget our founding mothers
Nick Gier, Professor Emeritus, Philosophy and Religion, University of Idaho Men of sense in all ages abhor those customs which treat us only as the servants of your sex. – Abigail Adams to her husband, March 31, 1776 I cannot…
The Persecution of Quakers
SHAME ON OUR PURITAN FOREFATHERS by Nick Gier, Professor Emeritus, University of Idaho (ngier006∂gmail.com) I would carry fire in one hand and faggots in the other to burn all the Quakers in the world. –Boston preacher John Norton This is…
Celebrating America at 250
Religious Liberalism and the Founding Fathers (bit.ly/480vw9e) Strange Bedfellows: Deists and Baptists Insist on Church/State Separation Christian Nationalism and the Treaty of Tripoli (nfgier.com/christian-nationalism-and-the-treaty-of-tripoli) A Progressive View of the Declaration of Independence (nfgier.com/a-progressive-view-of-the-declaration-of-independence/ Deism is the Religion of the Declaration…
Christian Nationalism and the Treaty of Tripoli
by Nick Gier A shorter version was published in the Moscow-Pullman Daily News (March 26, 2026) Religion and government will both exist in greater purity the less they are mixed.—James Madison I would like to begin by quoting Article 11…
A Progressive View of the Declaration of Independence
by Nick Gier, Professor Emeritus, University of Idaho Sometime in 1975 I heard a guest on National Public Radio say that Theodore Roosevelt condemned Thomas Paine as “that dirty little atheist.” My curiosity was piqued because I assumed that the…
Abortion decision sets women’s rights back 50 years
“As a matter of constitutional text and history, Alito’s draft surely is unworthy of a majority vote.” — Aviam Soifer, dean of the Boston College Law School “This 17th-18th century understanding (of abortion) would mean upholding Roe.” — Holly Brewer, University of…
Abortion in Early America and Millennia Before
by Nick Gier Life begins in contemplation of law as soon asthe fetus is able to stir in the mother’s womb.—Sir William Blackstone, legal hero of Thomas Jefferson Today, I celebrate the 53rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, which allowed…