... 1994). The church claims God is the reason we exist, and this gives the church cause for exerting unnecessary moral control over society. All societies must have a set of rules, or laws, by which they are governed, to prevent anarchy. We must have some form of government, but our laws must come from the people up, not from God down. The government provides necessary control over society; morals should be left to the individual. The church has always failed to realize this. To suppress individuality is to suppress freedom, and never in our nation's short history was the power of the church and the suppression of freedom more evident than during the era of slavery. Had the church detached itself from slavery, sl! aves could have been freed without a civil war. (Barnes, 1969). There was not enough power outside the church to sustain the institution of slavery. Scotland, ...

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