Embroidered tableclothes and pillow slips were cherished belongings. See the Sewing Machine to the right?
Some items that immigrants brought with them to America. They were not allowed to bring much with them so these items were precious to them.
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Ellis Island still haunts me. I cannot describe it.
I am posting some of it, anyway.
Before they were allowed tickets on a ship, they had to pay passage both to America and for their return, in case they were not accepted. Sometimes one or two members of a family were not accepted.
It was primarily the people who traveled Steerage on the Ships that had to go through Ellis Island. If you were First or Second Class, you could be easily processed in comfort on the Ship. The poor were the ones who were closely examined. They were trying to leave behind them stark poverty and oppression.
A Sample of some of the cards used for the Literacy test.
All different languages.
I had to laugh out loud when I saw this.
Because...
Each card used in the literacy test was a Bible Scripture!! Both old and new Testament. The scriptures are all different.
This one is Psalm 6:5,6,7 and written in Roumanian and English.
"For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?
I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim. I water my couch with my tears.
Mine eye is consumed because of grief."
We were, after all, a Christian Nation!
But, are we now a Christian Nation??
What do you think?
Do you want us to be a Christian Nation?
Leave a comment Yes or No.
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This comment is an add on - Dec. 8
Today's Verse:
...be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.
I did not realize the depth of comments I might get from the questions I asked at the end of my post. This is, after all , a sewing blog. But it also reflects me and who I am. Because of the scripture that is displayed on my little side widget today (printed above), I feel convicted to comment.
I am an evangelical Christian woman who believes the Bible is the word of God and 1 Timothy 2:3-6 "This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who wishes all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; who give himself a ransom for all"
I would like others to experience the love, mercy and grace of Jesus and come to know the perfect peace and joy that comes only from Him.
I know everyone does not believe what I believe.
And I am thankful to live in a country where I can tell people what I believe.
The comment at the end of the post was really about this country and how it was founded on Christian principles. It was founded on Christian principles. The Scripture based Literacy cards were not controversial at the time. God was a part of our country. You can visit the Church in Philadelphia where some of the important founding fathers of our country worshiped. You can not hear the word God or Jesus spoken on the tour of the Church because those words are not allowed (by law) to be spoken, even in the Church where they heard the word of God spoken weekly. I know this because I asked after the tour ended. To me that sounds like Censorship instead of freedom. The history books are being changed to take out the truth about our country. Denying that God influenced the lives of those who founded our country. Denying the Truth does not sound like freedom to me. It sounds like censorship. When I return to tour Ellis Island again, will the government have removed the display of the Scripture cards that were used for the Literacy test? It's a little scary , if you ask me.
A government does not make a nation Christian, the people do.
It is a choice, not a law.
I thank all of you who left a comment.
18 comments:
Dear Jeannie,
Thanks for the post. My mother and grandmother came through Ellis Island back in the 30's. Sadly, even though the majority of the nation is Christian, I don't think we are a Christian nation any longer. All our politicians and officials seem to be afraid to even use the word "God".
Yes,this country most definitely was founded on Christian principles!
YES! Our foundation was Christian, and it was a good foundation, even with the flaws. Why should we leave it?
YES YES YES YES YES YES YES Christian Nation!!!! wouldn't that be awesome
I believe very strongly in freedom of religion, which I think is really the principle our country was founded on (rather than being any one specific faith). Yes, Christianity was culturally favored, but that doesn't mean that other faiths were supposed to be excluded (Rhode Island was the first colony to welcome Jewish families, for example), and when they were, that was against American principles of freedom.
The Founding Fathers knew firsthand the dangers of government-established religion, and they wanted to avoid it. When government usurps our right to freedom of conscience--in any way--bad things happen. People get persecuted for their minority beliefs; in Europe there were wars over the Catholic vs. Protestant issue. Apathy sets in for the majority, as a government-sponsored religion becomes more of a social and civic duty than a matter of personal conviction, and doctrine gets watered down. Look at, for example, the Church of England, or the Scandinavian churches. Those are officially Christian countries, but the churches don't *do* anything; hardly anyone goes to church except for official rites of passage, and culturally speaking they are post-Christian nations and have been for nearly a century.
No, individual freedom of religion and conscience is far better and more important IMO than a government favoring a religion. A personally-chosen faith lasts; it cannot be imposed from outside.
Yes, I would like for us to be a christian nation.
I had to do some soul searching when I read your post due to my family background. So very true this country was founded with Christian beliefs. Under God, With Liberty For ALL. People came to this country for a better life with freedom of speech and religion.
My grand father's side of the family is Jewish and my grand mother's side is Christian. I have so much to say but I will say this in short. God lives on the inside of us through his son Jesus and the holy spirit that dwells within us that shows us how to live a Godly life and be kind to one another. No wonder this country is heading in a downward spiral, government has taken God out of everything and everywhere. Billy Graham's daughter said it on TV one day, if we keep on taking God out of this country then God will turn his back on us. The bible said it will get worse before the lord comes due to people turning their backs on him. Never have I seen it so bad as it is now to where we have to tip toe around as not to offend someone if we mention God or wear some Christian lapel pin.... For that matter a flag pin. They try to silence us when we say the pledge of allegiance or celebrate Christmas. Its coming so quickly to where we wont be able to put up a manger scene or a cross or menorah in our own home to honor family beliefs. This is why folks came to this country to be able to do so.
I so pray and wait for the lords soon return.
Absolutely! I want our nation to be a Christian nation. Without God we are doomed!
I do not think we are necessarily a Christian nation anymore. However, I believe that there are still many Christians in America. Even though I think it can be carried to extremes, I think the separation of church and state is one of the freedoms that has allowed the church to flourish. I would not want to government to come and and tell me that we could not worship freely. There are some things that are "right" that it would not necessarily be right to make into laws. And, of course, I would not want laws to be made that oppressed the right and duty of Christians to follow their faith. The problem is so complex....but if each of us gives our best to God, He knows how to use it to His glory. In the end, we are all individually accountable to God, regardless of what the government says or where we live.
I believe that we are a nation founded on religious freedom where all religions should not only be tolerated but accepted and respected. I am proud that our country (if not all its people) are respectful of all beliefs and doesn't favor any one religion over another. I believe that God wants us all to live in peace and harmony and that God loves us all equally (like any parent does). Jesus came to show us the way to 'love one another'. He didn't come to found a new religion. Afterall, he was a practicing Jew. He said that the most important 'commandment' was to love one another. I do not believe that He meant to only love those who believe the same way we do. So if this is a 'vote', I must vote "No". Religious freedom is too precious!
Our country was founded by the Pilgrims seeking religious freedom, the right to practice their personal beliefs without fear of recrimination. Our founding fathers established the country as one nation under God, not under Mohammed, Jesus Christ, or the Dali Lama. To day that we are a Christian Nation and even ask that question is very narrow minded in my opinion. Many have contributed to the greatness of this country including waves of Irish, Jewish, and Italian immigrants and so so many more. Today we have Somalians, Mexicans, Guatamalans , Viet Namese, all "yearning to be free" on our shores. They bring with them many varied faiths, strong faiths, as did those before them, faiths that are not necessarily Chistian. To believe that our founding forebears fought to create this country for an inclusive minority, at that time, is wrong. Why would we want a nation that only practiced one faith? That would exclude many who have contributed to this country's greatness. We are all God's children and need to learn tolerance and respect for all the differences among us, religious or otherwise. That is what our Bill of Rights is all about.
Jeannie,
I visited Ellis Island a few years ago....about 1oo years after my Pappy entered this wonderful country....at the age of 16, he traveled to America to apprentice with his uncle. I cannot wait to return to NYC to take my own children to Ellis Island. The Garment District was a bonus! Thanks for allowing me to relive that trip. God Bless America!
Absolutely YES! Don't get me started..... I really would love to see the demise of the ACLU for what they have done to Christianity in this country.
YES...I want us to be a Christian nation..we have turned our backs on what our country was founded upon. I want the American people to turn back to God and realize how blessed they are.
YES, YES, YES! This nation was founded on Christian principles with respect for God and each other. I also believe we should respect others' rights to not be a Christian if they so choose, BUT we should not be forced to give up our principles for the sake of theirs! It's become ridiculous that we can't even say the name of "God" in this once great nation wheb it contains the very same name in most of all the written documents in history by our founding fathers!
I appreciate your blog and your Christian views! Keep it up!
kathy.bruner at hotmail dot com
Interesting comments. As a non Christian, I'm struggling to find words that won't offend someone (mostly my sister). So, after typing and deleting at least 1000 words, I'm going to keep my mouth shut (for a change). Separation of church and state is an excellent idea and our founding fathers knew that. Is America a Christian nation? I don't care. Should it be? Nope.
"A government does not make a nation Christian, the people do.
It is a choice, not a law."
I second this. That is basically what I was thinking when I first read the post!
A Christian nation is one in which the the people, and in which the culture as a whole is Christian, not one in which the government declares it Christian and forces everyone to conform. When our nation WAS a Christian nation it was the former. I like the former. I wouldn't ever want it to be the latter. I do, however, want the right to BE a Christian . . . in public! Freedom of religion should not be freedom from any hint of religion, especially any hint of Christianity. We are Christians ~ may we please express ourselves just as freely as anyone else?
I do not have words to express my desire for religious freedom (which by it's nature has to be religious freedom for everyone, not just me) and the separation of church and state, along with my love for Christ and my commmitment to Christianity. They are in perfect harmony.
I think it is sad that everything is as un-Christian or even anti-Christian as it is. The state of our country is appalling. However, by saying that I am not in any way saying that I would want to take other people's freedom away to be secular, aithiest, or of any religion and to do so freely.
Okay, I've probably said enough! :-)
Thank you so much for your very personal tour of NY, especially Ellis Island. Your words and photos "brought this to life" for me and I shared it with several friends. Also, thank you for openly sharing your faith. You are an inspiration!
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