Did the Bible play a crucial role in the writing of the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, thus serving as the bedrock of American life?
The question arose anew after the American Bible Society announced that it is building a $60-million centre across from Independence Mall in Philadelphia, The Philadephia Inquirer reported.
According to the Society, the Faith & Liberty Discovery Center will be devoted to promoting the importance and influence of the Bible in American life across from Independence Mall.
It is in Philadelphia, the largest city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, where America's Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the Constitution in 1787.
The centre is scheduled to open in fall 2018. But even though the opening date is still more than a year away, the centre has already triggered a debate on the importance of the Bible in American life.
In a news conference on Wednesday, Roy Peterson, president and CEO of the American Bible Society, pointed out that America's founders relied heavily on the values and ideas in the Bible in drafting the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, according to the Inquirer.
"The framers were inspired by words of scripture," Peterson said, adding that to understand the DNA of America, "you need to know something about the Bible."
Daniel Dreisbach, an American University professor who is an expert on the Constitution, supported Peterson, saying the "Bible provided the basic building blocks of American civic life."
In apparent anticipation of an issue that critics could raise, he said a Bible centre near Independence Mall should not be seen as a violation of the principle of the separation of church and state.
"There's a distinction between education and proselytising," Dreisbach said.
However, not everyone is in conformity with their views.
Kermit Roosevelt, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a great-great-grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt, said he's not sure if it's historically accurate to say the nation's founders based their ideas on what's written in the Scripture.
"I don't think the U.S. Constitution reflects Christian ideals or doctrine. The Bible is not useful to interpret the Constitution," Roosevelt said.
He said the founders actually wanted religion not to get mixed with government.
Francis Graham Lee, an emeritus professor of political science at St. Joseph's University, shares Roosevelt's view
He clarified, however, that he's not against the building of the new Bible centre and is, in fact, supporting it since it will be "good for business" and attract tourists.
