Thank you, Fr Reese, for parsing Romney's speech and for joining the growing ranks of religious leaders actively speaking out for the constitutional rights of non-believers.

This is very gratifying.

Please also be sure to mention us atheists in your personal conversations with believers. They need to be reminded of our rights - and someone like you can do it, without being accused of being strident.

Dear Fr. Reese,

Well thought out point by point.

You conclusion that:

"Demonizing opponents as Christian fascists or religion haters does not help American society."

Is particularly on point. We have much of both on these blogs, and the sooner we grow past them, the better.

Bravo to Father Reese for making some intelligent distinctions vis a vis Mitt Romney's remarks on religion in the American public square. I know: Mr. Romney had a major goal in his speech, to win the votes of the Christian right. Reese was so right in pointing out that Candidate Romney was going too far, and he could have well cited the imposition of Sharia laws in Muslim states as an example of what could go wrong if we followed his views about the role of religion in America. There is something inherently right and even (ummm) holy and reverent and respectful about our insisting on no "religion test" in American politics.