Every Other Monday, by John Kasich: on Government Reform

John Kasich: Bible study group swelled during 1992 House banking scandal

From time to time, our numbers would swell, such as when there was a scandal brewing in town and elected officials were scrambling for whatever good-luck charms they could stuff into their pockets. During the 1992 banking scandal, for example, when it was revealed that the House of Representatives had allowed members to overdraw their House checking accounts without penalty, we had 30 or 40 members trying to join our group, and I had to laugh, because, of course, you can't just go through the motions of reconnecting with God and expect it to make a whole lot of difference in your life right away. You need to work at it, with a trusting spirit. You need to carve out some time for reflection and prayer.

John Kasich: Separating church and state is goofy misinterpretation

One of my Bible study members wondered if that type of thinking was behind our apparent attempt to separate matters of church and state. For the longest time, this has been one of my pet peeves, because I've always thought it was one of the goofiest misinterpretations of our founding fathers' intentions. Our founders didn't say that government should be somehow separate from religion, or that religion was in any way unconstitutional or un-American. In fact, up until the late 19th century, there were state-sponsored churches in this country. The men who drafted the Constitution were in no way frightened or put off by religion. They were just careful to ensure that our government should not force people to believe a certain way or put any kind of stamp on their faith, so it's funny to me how the impulse behind it has been co-opted over the years.