The religious right often tries to rewrite early American history to fit their views of a theocratic state and support their denial of the support from the founding fathers for separation of church and state. I just saw this quote at Pharyngula which really puts things in perspective:
[I]n 1776 perhaps 15 percent of all colonists were regular churchgoers.
[Forrest G. Woods, The Arrogance of Faith: Christianity and Race in America from the Colonial Era to the Twentieth Century (Knopf, 1990, p. 247)]
(The quotes change randomly so you might not get this one at the link but, since you’ve now read this quote, getting a different one might be preferable).
