Would IN Lt Gov Micah Beckwith make Hester Prynne wear a letter?
IN Lt Gov Micah Beckwith is a self-avowed “‘Christian” nationalist.’” [FN189]
1) “‘Christian’ nationalist” does not mean a person who is a “Christian” & lives in America. 1/18

A 2024 study found “Christian nationalism” imposes Christianity through:
a) legislation;
b) force like the Jan 6 Insurrection; &
c) identity. [FN190]
A more direct description is provided by Sean Feucht, a preacher whose 2023 “Kingdom to the Capitol” tour stopped in Indy. [FN191] 2/18

Feucht says: “America should be governed according to biblical law for the benefit of believers.” [FN192] That runs afoul of the Constitution’s equal protection of the law [FN193] and both the establishment and the free exercise clauses regarding religion. [FN194] 3/18

2) Beckwith & religious oaths.
He wants IN to amend its constitution “‘to the way it was in the first 13 state constitutions, because there was a public declaration required, in Judeo-Christian orthodoxy, in order to hold office, because we are a Christian nation.’” [FN195] 4/18

3) As usual, Beckwith is wrong.
The first 13 States varied. Delaware’s 1st constitution (1776) required an oath to “God the Father”, “Jesus Christ His only Son”, and “the Holy Ghost” for any office [FN196] but forbade establishment of religion and clergy holding public office. [FN197] 5/18

Delaware’s 2nd constitution (1792) dropped “God,” JC, and the “Holy Ghost.” It protected “rights of conscience” and “religious worship.” It used a deist term, “Author of the universe,” [FN198] to describe a deity [FN199] & bans religious test for public office. [FN200] 6/18

To be eligible for office, Georgia required a man be “of the Protestant religion” [FN201] yet it also purported to protect the free exercise of religion [FN202] and banned “clergymen of any denomination” having a seat in the legislature. [FN203] 7/18

4) States’ constitutions are irrelevant to the U.S. Constitution.
A major dispute over national gov’t authority vs authority of States was at the center of most issues, and religion was no exception. The Framers did not want religion in the national gov’t.8/18

5) This was founded as a secular country.
The United States was founded as “the first wholly secular state.” [FN204] You can’t find “god” or Jesus is in the Constitution. The Framers wrote the Constitution that way. 9/18

There were self-righteous, hypocritical advocates for religion being thrust into everyday life in 1776 as there are today. That’s one reason that absence of a god or Jesus in the 1787 Constitution makes sense. Human beings aren’t all that different, either. Preachers and sex? 10/18

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter,” Hester Prynne is forced to wear an “A,” for the sin of adultery w/a minister who remained anonymous. Recent media coverage of Beckwith’s church & sins of the flesh suggests embroidery be expanded at least to the letter “P.” 11/18

Footnotes:
FN189. See, Niki Kelli, “Beckwith sermon, once again, draws the wrong kind of attention,” Capital Chronicle, 8/21/26, accessed 8/22/26. 12/18

FN190. Looked at Christian nationalism w/in 3 “main framings” w/survey of nearly 1500 Christians. See, Paul A Djupe and Brooklyn Walker, “Does Support for Christian Nationalism Hinge on How It’s Defined?” Religion in Public, 3/30/26, accessed 9/5/26. 13/18

FN191. In 2023, Beckwith posted on FB about Feucht: “Him and I are very similar and saw the assault happening in this nation on our freedoms, and specifically our religious freedoms...God is calling a generation of bold leaders to take back the ground that the devil has stolen.” 14/18

FN192. Joseph Hudek, “Jesus Christ Superspreader,” Rolling Stone, 10/12/20.
FN193. Const., Amend XIV, sec. 1.
FN194. Const., Amend I.
FN195. Sydney Byerly, “Lt Gov Beckwith Wants Indiana Candidates to Profess Belief in Judeo-Christian Orthodoxy,” Indiana Citizen, 7/30/26, accessed 9/3/26. 15/18

FN196. Delaware Constitution, 1776, Art. 22.
FN197. Id., Art. 29.
FN198. “Nature’s God,” “Creator,” “Supreme Judge of the World,” & “divine Providence” See, David Holmes, Prof. Religious Studies, College of William and Mary, “The Faiths of The Founding Fathers,” Oxford Univ Press, 2006, p. 65. 16/18

FN199. Delaware Constitution, 1792, Art. I, sec. 1.
FN200. Id., sec. 2. Oath is to the State constitution and to perform duties of office with fidelity. Delaware Constitution, Art. IX.
FN201. Georgia Constitution, Art. VI. 17/18

FN202. Id., Art. LVI.
FN203. Id., Art. LXII.
FN204. Joseph J. Ellis, “American Creation,” (2007), p. 8. 18/18