Was America founded as a Christian nation?

In our church prayer meeting this morning, our pastor prayed that school shootings like the Parkland Florida happened because we "removed God from our schools and were a Christian nation, and are trying to erase the Creator".

I was remembering my email conversation with a friend after our trip to Washington DC last August. I put my responses down here.

In the Capitol (where Congress meets), the ceiling of the dome is painted.
The painting in the Cupola is called the Apotheosis of Washington where it depicts him as God in heaven... here it is. https://goo.gl/images/pfcL6d

We saw the original Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, Capitol Hill , money being printed at the mint, and some of the museums. We visited the Air and Space Museum, and saw the Hope Diamond in the museum of natural history. But we could explore them for only a few hours each. We watched the president's Marine Corps band play a concert at the lawns of the Washington Monument in the night. On our way back we visited Gettysburg and retraced some of the battle through the battlefields. We are still driving back home as we speak.
But my overall impression was that Washington was made into a god even the painting in the Cupola showed him as God and he had the capital named after him and in the Capitol Museum it clearly said that he was a Freemason and his Freemasonry geometry tools were used in the measuring of the laying of the capitol. These were displayed. Also I had read before that our currency has Freemasonry in it in the pyramid and Eye and I had dismissed them as conspiracy theories. Not anymore. This did not seem like a very Christian Nation to me when I saw it. There was no mention of Jesus or even God and as far as I could see there was only glorification of the founding fathers and I said this even when we entered the country 20 years ago; the founding fathers are  revered as the prophets and the Constitution is the Bible. I wonder if America is inventing its own religion called Americanism. It sounds crazy to even think it. Also they're rewriting history. Civil War retelling glorified the Union as morally good and the Confederates as evil. But it has been argued by theologians that the Bible does not prohibit slavery and the Confederates were fighting sincerely for their cause. The capital tour guide told us that they will be removing all the Confederate statues in the capital. The Confederate states are pushing for their removal.


Through the years, I have heard sermons in American churches of how godly the founding fathers were.

However when I saw for myself, I was shocked and I wonder if American Christians are in denial.
I find it sinister that the Washington monument is a Freemason symbol and also no other building is allowed to be taller than it. Even a secular webpage has this to say.

"While the idea that the obelisk is a representation of the phallus may be a story that seems stranger than fiction, when you think of Washington as the founding father of the United States, and the obelisk being a representation of fatherhood/patriarchy, it makes a lot of sense. Moreover, Washington was a Master Freemason, which in their terminology deems him as a “living stone” who became the cornerstone of American civilization. All the stars seem to align and the dots connect as to why the Washington monument was erected (no pun intended) in his honour."
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2015/06/18/the-surprising-hidden-meaning-of-the-washington-monument/

It becomes absolutely clear when there is no mention of Jesus at all in the shrines of America - that the "in God we trust" refers to a general god - just like Brahman, or Zeus or Buddha or Allah.

On my mother's side of the family, they were devout and strong Christians.
But on my father's side, my father's father was a Hindu and a freemason.
My father recalls, as a boy, seeing him in his robes.
I found this article about freemasonry being a religion.

http://www.padfield.com/1993/lodge.html

Book Review - Even In Our Darkness by Jack Deere

I am usually not this enthusiastic about a book. But this book has consumed me the past week.

video review here https://youtu.be/iumbl-NV2qw

(Note:
A) I spent many hours consuming and reviewing this book as a tribute to Jack Deere, and also I think as a father myself,
I was mourning the suicide of his son.

B) I originally rated it 5 stars but lowered it to 3 stars for this reason:
Three weeks after I read the digital book as part of the so-called "launch team" whose purpose was to generate social media publicity for the book, I have no desire to read it again.
Too much pain and too little teaching that I can refer to to help me with my life. The editors in their well-meaning ignorance removed Jack's "how-tos, illustrations, teaching". Now all that is left is the story.

C) It seems to me that the publisher (Zondervan) formed launch teams whose purpose was to generate 5-star reviews.
When 5-star reviews are created before they are released to the public, then there are few negative reviews and
it generates lots of book sales. When I posted an honest but somewhat unflattering review below, I was removed from the
launch team without any explanation. As a Christian, I felt used by these other Christians.
(I purchased two printed copies. I received one free signed copy - see attached photo)
----

Question: Can we escape our generational curses?
Numbers 14. But he does not excuse the guilty. He lays the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations.’
Ezekiel 18:20 The one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child.
1. This is a book about generational curses.
I do not know if even Jack Deere realizes it since he does not mention it in the book.
I used to wonder about the two contradictory Bible verses above. After reading his book, now I understand what they mean.
We are doomed to repeat the sinful patterns of our parents and grandparents.
When we are friends with God, we can mitigate or even remove completely, the curse resulting from repeating their patterns.
Jack’s father was callous and in his selfish pursuit of his career, he neglected his family.
Jack’s mother and her father did not have any love for Jack and were physically cruel to him.
They were also sexually promiscuous.
The teenage Jack resolves to put it all behind him because Christ makes us a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17).
However it is not so easy. He repeats his father’s patterns of callousness and to his son and wife.
I think there was a failure of communication and involvement with his son,
which is not fully brought out in the book.
The book is a journey of the suicide of Jack’s father, the conflict with cessationist Dallas Seminary,
the suicide of Jack’s son, and the childhood sexual abuse and addictions of his wife.

2. Growing up, he thinks that romantic love (“The Kiss”) will rescue him from his pit - this is the salvation that the secular world preaches.
Just like a girl dreams of a knight in shining armor who will sweep her off her feet and rescue her from her dragons.

3. During the downward spiral of his parent’s marriage and his father’s unraveling, they visit a church.
Some men from the church come and visit once, and then move on since his father does not join their church.
This is an indictment of the American church system.
Tragically there was no one in the church system who would come around and befriend an unbeliever couple - Jack's parents.
Either you join their club, or they move on.
Seeker sensitive megachurches are no different. They seem more 'accepting' of unbelievers and are modern.
However, they just want our money - the 10% tithe of our incomes. "Give to God through us", they exclaim.

4. This book is revolutionary in a spiritual way. With his earlier books,
Jack was revolutionary for embracing and propagating Charismatic Theology as a professor of the cessationist Dallas Seminary.
Why is this book revolutionary? In the secular universe, achievement and success in life is the measure of the life of a man or woman.
In the Christian universe, your measure of sinlessness is the measure of your spiritual worth.
I have never seen a pastor confess a real sin unless it was from the distant past.
The only time pastors and christian leaders confess a real sin is when they are found out,
caught and about to be punished. I don’t know if Jack Deere has confessed his major sins in this book but they are for sure,
sins to some degree.
It is no longer fashionable to wear one's Sunday Best to church. Nowadays preachers wear untucked shirts, and jeans to the pulpit.
However they still wear their Sunday Best in terms of the image or brand they convey.
Confessing your real sins will get you terminated or lowered in spiritual status.
Likewise with the congregation - 'their sins go underground'.

5. This book is remarkable for a third reason.
This book is remarkable in that ordinary people can relate to things in it. I know that I can identify with some of the things in the book.
I would say that all memoirs or autobiographies are written for the author’s glory (though few will admit to it).
For the reader to admire and adore the author’s achievements or strength of person. “Wow!”.
Christian memoirs are written to show how God chose the author “anointed” and partnered with him or her to achieve some great purpose.
Reader thinks, “Wow! This person was special”
I was suspicious when I started reading the book. But Jack Deere’s book genuinely seems to have been written to give God the glory.
The unseen wind of God moving in his circumstances was God’s hand on Deere’s life.
God’s hand is in the spotlight, not Jack Deere. The reader feels closer to God.
The reader thinks, “Wow, how great is our God! He can be accessible to me and his hand can be on my life too”. The book fulfills its purpose.

6. There is something missing in the book and if I could ask Deere one question:
I did not see even one mention of the correction, spanking, punishment of the believer by God.
Where does it fit into Jack’s theology? I wonder if growing up, he felt only punishment and no love from his mother, father and grandfather,
so that his book is all about the love of God, and none of the correction.

7. On a positive note, what I find great about this book is that it tells us that God is accessible to all of us.
We do not need to be great men or pastors or theologians like Jack was.
This book is also a warning from another's mistakes - we must parent with our presence

8. There is a warning for those of us who are parents.
As I see it, Jack did not give Scott his presence.
Scott is molested by a church worker in John Wimber’s church - Wimber was the founder of the Vineyard/Jesus movement!
(It is a strange thing to read of the power of God manifest in their church, yet such sin).
Parenting with your presence involves sacrifice.
I don't know why, but it appears that the Duartes were more Scott's parents than Jack was.
Scott lived with them for over an year and they paid for his college.
Jack Deere's involvement with his son seems to have been limited to hunting in Montana.
Why not schoolwork or learning a trade together or living with him?
It is easy to diagnose from a distance (and may seem unfair) and to comment on other's lives.
But I am thankful that Jack Deere has laid out his life for us to learn from.
If anything, it makes me resolve to parent with my presence.

9. If I have a criticism of the book;
The picture I have in mind of a jagged piece of wood with saw cuts and chisel holes.
Abrasive peaks and shadowy depths. The original book was like this.
Then his journalist son edited it and it became like someone who pours glue on the piece of wood.
When it dries, the sharp edges become smooth, the valleys are filled. It is polished.
And we have lost our view of the roughness and true persona of the author.
Important request to Zondervan (publisher of Even In Our Darkness):
In author Jack Deere's interview to Publisher's Weekly, (Feb 13, 2018), "[Deere] had trouble just telling the story. He wanted to add lessons and how-tos and applications to his tale. Deere’s journalist son Stephen and Zondervan editor John Sloan helped edit out the teaching and stick to the story, Deere said."
The teaching that you removed, is important to Christians.
We want to understand what the Bible teaches on the topics the book wrestles with.
The Holy Spirit, Suffering, God's Will, God's Power. Deere is a theologian and will have plenty to teach on these.
Can you please repackage the parts that you edited out, into an appendix of Question and Answer format? If it is too late to add to the print copy, then please make the appendix available as a bonus download from the book's website.
Otherwise the book reads like a well written newspaper article - a gripping read, but without teaching that we can use in our lives, becomes forgettable after a few weeks. .

10. Almost no mention of Jack's mother after he was 15 even though he stayed at home while attending TCU in Ft. Worth.
It is almost as if chunks were edited out. His mother bought a 3 bedroom house but we later read that he was in a mobile home.
What happened in between?

11. The clash between charismatic and cessationist theology cost Jack Deere his job, his church, and his friends.
Why doesn't God speak more clearly or divinely to people telling them the correct interpretation of a passage of scripture?
From my geography book as a child,
a cartoon diagram of the earth with 4 persons standing at opposite diameters, N,S,W,E each of them thinks they are up.
When we were newlyweds in India, an elder from our church,
Alex Kurian, a PhD graduate of Dallas Seminary invited us to tea in Bangalore.
I asked him my question, and he could not answer adequately.
A Jewish acquaintance scornfully remarked to me (when I shared the gospel) that Christianity has split into 3,000 religions.

12. Gun lovers may not like this, but a gun has so much destructive power and so easy to pull the trigger. If the Deere family did not own guns perhaps they would not have had double tragedies. I read that suicide and adultery travels down generations. It may be good for the Deere family to have a pact to get rid of their guns for the sake of their kids and grandkids, nephews and nieces, so that killing oneself with a gun will not be an easy option.