Within minutes of walking onto the Ohio House floor in January 2023, freshman Rep. Dani Isaacsohn encountered something unexpected – a proposed rule to require Christian prayer before sessions.
“That sent a message to those of us who are not Christian that the legislature was not open to us – was not welcoming to us,” Isaacsohn (D-Cincinnati_ said.
Another political newcomer, Rep. Anita Somani (D-Dublin), joined Isaacsohn and a handful of other non-Christian lawmakers in vehemently opposing the rule.
“I’m like, what’s happening? We're like – what did I get myself into?” Somani recalled.
The rule to require Christian prayer was proposed by Rep. Ron Ferguson (R-Wintersville) amid a battle for control of speakership of the House. It, along with another rule that would have allowed concealed carry in the house, which was never taken up.
Legislative sessions, however, long have and still do start with prayer. For the most part, the prayers are Christian, but lawmakers have invited leaders of other faiths to participate.
Rep. Munira Abdullahi (D-Columbus), the first Somali American woman elected to the house, invited the first Muslim faith leader to give a prayer in the 135th General Assembly in May 2023.
“The People’s House’ deserves to be reflective of Ohioans’ various beautiful cultures and religions,” Abdullahi wrote in a statement at the time.
Morals versus control
It’s hard to fault lawmakers – or voters, for that matter – for using their religious beliefs to inform their decisions.
But when it comes to the procedures and policies that pass through the Statehouse and local governments, where is the line between following your conscious and degrading the separation of church and state?
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“That is a very, very clear message voters and my constituents have given me, over the years is they don't want another's worldview or another's perceived, freedoms to infringe on their own,” said Rep. Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson).
For while, he was the only Jewish lawmaker in the House.
“It felt like being on defense a lot,” Weinstein said. “And I don't like being on defense.”
Weinstein was dismayed when sponsors of bills targeting critical race theory and diversity, equity and inclusion talked about “both sides of history,” including the Holocaust. He spoke out – but said it was “isolating.”
Then, in January 2022, protesters gathered in the road outside Weinstein’s house.
“So, we had, 35 trucks and 40 dudes with anti-Semitic flags, show up at my home on a Sunday afternoon and block my property. And it felt very targeted toward me being Jewish,” Weinstein said.
"Repair the world"
Then there’s Isaacsohn, who is the son of Jewish immigrants. He said his beliefs are “deeply intertwined” with his policymaking decisions.
“This concept – it's called tikkun olam in Hebrew. It means “repair the world.” And it basically is that we all have a responsibility to one another,” Isaacsohn said. “And you can interpret that however you want, but you can't ignore it.”
For Isaacsohn, tikkun olam is a guiding principle – but he’s a firm believer in the separation of church and state.
“I think it is one of the things that has made this country so durably successful. And I really do think we risk the foundations of truly what makes American society so special,” Isaacsohn said.
Isaacsohn, Weinstein and Rep. Beryl Brown Piccolantonio (D-Gahanna) make up the “small but mighty” Jewish Caucus in the house.
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The caucus is meant to serve as a voice for Ohio’s Jewish population, according to Weinstein. The trio of members, for example, threw their support behind the bipartisan CAMPUS Act. The Act established a uniform reporting system for hate incidents at higher education institutions and provided grants to improve safety and interfaith outreach, among other provisions.
“Every student deserves to live, study and grow in an environment where they feel safe and respected. This year has brought tremendous turmoil on our campuses, and we spent months listening to diverse student voices share their fears, frustrations, and wishes,” the caucus wrote in June when the act passed the Ohio House.
Religious diversity in the Statehouse
Jewish people make up just over 1% of Ohio’s population. With three of its 99 members being Jewish, the Ohio House is actually more Jewish than the state.
Muslims comprise about 1% of the state’s population, but the House has two Muslim lawmakers, Abdullahi and Rep. Ismail Mohamed (D-Columbus).
Even considering the state Senate’s 33 members, the Statehouse is – ever so slightly – more religiously diverse than the state itself.
In recent sessions, however, policymaking has been dominated by the conservative, and often Christian, majority.
A job like any other
Rep. Gary Click (R-Vickery) is also the pastor of Fremont Baptist Temple in Sandusky County.
Being a pastor is a job like any other, he said, and perhaps is even complimentary to holding an elected office.
“The thing that I think translates very well into my service in the General Assembly is the ability to listen to people and to meet people where they are,” Click said.
He said despite today’s common rhetoric, he doesn’t believe politics is about “winning or losing” – it’s about the welfare of everyone.
“But sometimes – you know, Ronald Reagan was really good at this – you have to help shape the culture. In other words, you know, you have to sell your ideas,” Click said. “Let people see why this is a good idea, but you have to build the support before you actually implement the policy.”
Click is pro-life. He’s has attached his name to policies like the Parent’s Bill of Rights, which some Democrats likened to Ohio’s version of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Click was also the primary sponsor of the Saving Adolescents from Experimentation, or SAFE, Act. It bans puberty blockers and hormone therapy for trans children under 18. After meeting with families and doctors, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a fellow Republican, vetoed that bill, but the legislature overrode the veto earlier this year.
Culture wars
Abortion and LGBTQ+ issues have become part of a culture war that often has Christianity at its center. Click, however, claims his support of those policies are about science, not religion.
“The science takes us back to there are men and that are women,” Click said. “It is really more of a religious belief to say that a girl's spirit is in a boy's body, or a boy's spirit is in a girl's body.”
Many Democrats disagree.
During the battle over the SAFE Act’s passage, Rep. Somani of Hilliard came to the defense of gender-affirming care. Somani, who is an OBGYN, noted that similar bills had died in earlier sessions after expert doctors and scientists testified that they caused harm.
Wearing heart-shaped rainbow earrings, she passionately testified during the session called to overturn the bill’s veto.
“A political and hateful agenda was pushed through. Why? Because of money given by radical Christian groups to push an agenda that does not help a single family,” Somani said. “Why? Because your Google search makes your knowledge equal to my 30 plus years in medicine.”
Extremism
Somani is a first-generation Indian immigrant and grew up Hindu. She still follows the teachings but does not actively go to temple.
“I think the thing about Hinduism, which is a little different than maybe other religions, is that it is it's a philosophy. It's a way of life. And you don't have to belong to a temple to practice your religion,” Somani said.
Along with Rep. Adam Mathews (R-Lebanon), Somani co-sponsored a bill to designate October as Hindu Heritage Month. She said the bill was an attempt to recognize the heritage of Ohio’s Indian population, many of whom live in her district.
But Somani takes a strong stance when it comes to upholding the separation of church and state and keeping religion out of education and healthcare.
She points to restrictions on women’s reproductive rights and challenges to vaccine requirements as the result of religion not as it should be but taken to an extreme.
“Religion extremism has impacted sort of how people push legislation and what they push,” Somani said. "Religion should be about acceptance and tolerance."
A Christian Nation?
Rep. Click agrees. He said no one should force a religion, including Christianity, on another. But he calls separation of church and state a “Christian” doctrine.
“And you find that typically in Christian nations, that's where people have the freedom of religion,” Click said. “And you find that typically in Christian nations, that's where people have the freedom of religion.”
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom keeps track of so-called countries of particular concern where religious freedom is questioned. It’s true that most of the more than a dozen countries on the list are not predominantly Christian, but several are, including Cuba, Nicaragua and Russia.
But more to the point – is America a Christian nation?
Click thinks it depends on how you define it. He said, for example, a Christian nation would not support abortion.
“But if we say, okay, what is our heritage and our foundation? Yes,” Click said.
He noted that we find “In God We Trust,” written on our money. At the Statehouse, a seal emblazoned on the West Plaza reads, “With God, All Things Are Possible.”
“On 9/11, I'll never forget that day when all the congressmen went out onto the steps of the Capitol building. Didn't matter if you were a Republican or if you were a Democrat, independent what you were, they all stood shoulder to shoulder,” Click said. “And what song did they sing? They sang ‘God Bless America.’ And in our times of deepest grief, we need God.”
Religion in America
Christianity is the dominant religion in the country. Around 70% of Americans say they’re Christian, according to a widely cited 2014 Religious Landscape Study from Pew Research Center.
Of those who reported being Christian, around 25% said they were Evangelical, 20% Catholic, just under 15% mainstream Protestant and 6.5% Black Protestant.
In Ohio, 73% of adults report being Christian. Of those, about 29% are Evangelical, 18% Catholic, 17% mainstream Protestant and 7% Black protestant. Ohio’s Christian breakdown generally aligns with other midwestern states.
Another Pew study from April 2024 looks at party identification among religious groups. It shows around 85% of white Evangelicals lean Republican. Protestants overall lean about 59% Republican and Catholics about 52% Republican.
Black protestants and Hispanic Catholics lean Democratic, at 84% and 60% respectively. About two-thirds of Jewish and Muslim voters said they align with Democrats. And about 70% of those who list themselves as unaffiliated, agnostics and atheists report being Democrats.
But how do those relationships look for actual voters?
Decisions and division
At the Hilliard Famer’s Market this summer, most folks didn’t want to talk about religion and politics. They said, “anything but that.”
But Chris Wilson, a Hilliard resident and professor of philosophy at Columbus State Community College, said he believes most government responsibilities have nothing to do with religion.
“There’s nothing in there, in the Ten Commandments, about ‘thou shall make a nice road here.’ So, a lot of politics is kind of secular in nature anyway,” Wilson said.
Danielle Sieh of Hilliard grew up Catholic but isn’t practicing. She is a Democrat and said religion doesn’t play a big part of her political decisions. Still, she doesn’t like conservative bills that are seemingly tied to religious beliefs. She called them, “scary.”
Another Hilliard resident didn’t want to give her name because religion and politics are so divisive. She’s a practicing Christian and said her beliefs do influence the way she votes, though mostly, she cares about candidates’ character.
“God says that man looks at the outside, but he looks at the heart. So that's what's important,” she said.
She added that religion and politics have become “very devise,” and that’s too bad.
“I wish it wasn’t that way. I have many, many, many friends who are not the same religion as me. And we can sit and agree on many, many things,” she said.
Religion at its best
Isaacsohn notes that religion isn't always divisive. The first two Passover Seders held at the Statehouse brought together bipartisan legislators from all different faiths and cultures.
And while Isaacsohn still sees antisemitism in American politics, he said he feels welcome in the Statehouse. He’s become good friends with lawmakers from different faiths, including Abdhullahi.
The two can respectfully agree to disagree, as they acknowledged in a November 2023 episode of WOSU’s All Sides with Anna Staver.
Isaacsohn spoke in support of a House resolution expressing unwavering support for Israel and condemning Hamas’ October attack. Abdullahi was one of the only representatives to speak against it.
“We made sure we had, you know, constant communication throughout, you know, the time before the vote and that we were having just good conversations, and on a page that we both know where we are and there's no surprises,” Abdullahi told Staver during the interview.
Isaacsohn said that sharing faith and building friendships is religion and faith “at its best.”
“It's that it's bringing out the best in people and bringing them together. And I have definitely experienced some of that in the legislature,” Isaacsohn said.
