“We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus : and non-believers.”

I’ll leave others to unpack President Obama’s entire inaugural address. I just wanted to note with appreciation that he acknowledged “non-believers.”

–Ann Bartow

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0 Responses to “We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus : and non-believers.”

  1. Eric says:

    That got my attention, and appreciation, too.

  2. ebuz says:

    Me too. I just wish we had a label that didn’t define us in the negative.

  3. Ann Bartow says:

    What would have been really cool is if he mentioned the Flying Spaghetti Monster! I agree, “non-believer” sounds kind of negative, I wonder if it came out of a focus group that found “atheist” problematic for some reason.

  4. bob coley jr says:

    “Those that believe as they wish” might not be as negative. STILL in all, we get the drift. We need all voices, what ever, to see equality and justice for all be a reality. Anyone can believe what they want, but the good of ALL is a specific truth, not a belief.

  5. frye86 says:

    We would never say, “non-whites” to refer to people of color or “non-men” and “non-heterosexuals” to refer to women and LGBTQ folks, respectively. I was glad to hear atheists even acknowleged, though the privilegeing of christianity throughout was a bit much–Dianne Feinstein saying “God bless America,” the use of bibles for the swearing-in, inviting two Christian reverends to speak,…

  6. Eric says:

    I actually don’t mind “non-believer” and even sort of prefer it to atheist (which is also a definition in the negative), because it seems fairly descriptive of my own views. Mostly, I just wish it weren’t necessary to explain or define my lack of any theological or “spiritual” orientation; but that’s a cross I’m learning to bear now that I live in the bible belt.