[Avodah] half shekel

[Zev Sero]

Micha Berger wrote:

> Many years, around this time of year, I would point out a problem with
> the US $1 bill. On the back of the bill are the two faces of the seal
> of President of the US. The obverse of the seal is the eye-and-pyramid,
> an old Masonic symbol, chosen by Washington (a Mason). The all seeing
> eye represents a Deistic model of god. A well designed universe, the
> pyramid, with the eye disonnected fromit.

Washington was not a Deist.  His religious views were basically Unitarian
(though officially he was an Anglican, and would attend church semi-
regularly).  He definitely believed in Providence, i.e. a God who actively
intervened in history, and to Whom it was appropriate to pray.  Thomas
Paine was probably the only Deist among the founders of the USA.


> Quite easily arguable to be AZ.

How is Deism arguably AZ?  It's arguable whether there's a meaningful
distinction between it and atheism, but AZ?


-- 
Zev Sero               Something has gone seriously awry with this Court's
zev at sero.name          interpretation of the Constitution.
                       	                          - Clarence Thomas