The scene: Late on a weekday afternoon at the Auburn-Lewiston YMCA weight room. Some radio station plays classic rock … nostalgia to some, “old music” to others. Perhaps 20 or so guys and a few women, teens to 60 or so are working out in shorts, tanks and T’s.

The YMCA is something of a “leveler,” being a bastion of equality. In spite of the “C” word in the organization’s name, Christians, Jews, pagans, Muslims all intermingle, focusing on issues of fitness rather than faith. In this great, old building, a CMMC surgeon might be sweating on a stair-stepper beside a local attorney on a recumbent bike, or a recovering drug addict on a rowing machine, or a high-schooler intent on a 300-pound bench press. The mood is low-key and informal. There is time for conversation with others, and the friendly exchange ranges randomly into politics, weather, families, food, sex … but rarely religion.

I am chatting between sets with D. (not his real initial). Now, I have known D. for maybe 10 or 12 years, and we have something of a lighthearted, mutually respectful relationship – he being politically conservative, I liberal.

D. is a well-known, well-respected figure in the Twin Cities area with ties to government and education. At the Y, he would be fondly termed a talker rather than a serious lifter. Chatting about national news, he casually drops into the conversation: “…after all, this country was founded on Christian values.”

A comment like that is capable of making me drop a pair of 50-pound dumbbells.

“What Christian values do you mean, D.?” I ask, keeping the tone light.

“Well, thou shalt not kill?” he offers.

Now, D. is an educated man, and though conservative, I would not before have termed him narrow-minded. Maybe he is joking to get a rise out of me? A glance, a smile, raised eyebrows and his response indicates he is not.

So, the dilemma. Where does one take this conversation? To ignore it would mean tacit agreement. To let that statement hang in midair is unacceptable.

“D., Jewish people might be offended to hear Thou shalt not kill’ is a Christian value.” (Perhaps explaining that the dictate is from the Old Testament, extant generations before Christ, would be too detailed for cross-cable machine banter. Best let alone Native American slaughter, as well.)

A third lifter, Mike, interjects: “Well, it says One nation under God’ in the Constitution.” Ohhh, boy, workout interrupted.

“No, there is no mention of God in the Constitution,” I say.

“Well, maybe it’s the Declaration of Independence, I don’t know.”

“Houston, we have a problem,” I think.

D. fills the momentary pause with: “Remember, the founders of this country were Christian.”

“Thomas Jefferson?” I ask.

“Well, Thomas Jefferson wasn’t well liked anyway,” he responds. I begin to seriously doubt the man’s intelligence, surely his knowledge of American history.

End of scene, lights fade to black.

Last November’s elections have helped make everyday life something of a conversational mine field. Those who do not view casual acquaintance as an opportunity to witness their personal beliefs wonder how to react to others who choose to freely profess their zeal.

When fact is sacrificed to fervor, the situation becomes even more awkward. Does one correct misstatements about our Founding Fathers? Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine, James Madison, Abraham Lincoln unequivocally separated themselves and this country’s origins from Christianity. Thirty-one signers of the Constitution were non-Christians. Does one pull a notebook of quotes out of gym shorts in response to revisionist history?

While “In God We Trust” may appear on our currency, it no more makes this country Christian than the all-seeing eye and pyramid also depicted there make this country Freemason.

Unquestionably, this country was founded on values shared by many doctrines, including Christianity, but it is not clear to me what purpose is served in expressing some superior historical placement of one’s religion.

This is not the mere profession of someone’s faith. It is the denial of the faith of others, and the contribution of other faiths to American values. Nothing is gained by a claim of religious exclusivity, and much is lost. The greatest loss is the loss of the greatest value in America, the freedom which everyone seeks. The freedom to find one’s own path, whether it be the stair-stepper, the rowing machine, the stationary bike or just to be a couch potato. What is lost is the freedom to live in peace.

Lew Alessio has been a speaker for seven years with Maine SpeakOut, a division of Community Counseling of Portland. The organization addresses issues of discrimination in Maine.

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