Separation of church & state becoming separation of God & Country

In my life, which spans a little more than one half century, God and Country have always been virtually inseparable. There has also been the ongoing discussion about the separation of church and state which has run a course as passionately divergent as the convergence of God and Country have been promoted. America has always considered itself a Godly nation. We frequently invoke God's name in our national symbolism, our founding documents and as architectural elements in government buildings. Even our money proclaims our national reliance on God.

Of late, however, it seems the separation of church & state (institutions) and God & Country (entities) has been becoming increasingly cumbersome and troublesome. There is no doubt that the founders were men who not only believed in, but relied upon, divine providence in the formation of the United States. Separation was never an issue nor an intention on the part of these pioneering Americans. The institution of churches, regulated by the states was an aberration of their ideas for a new nation. The U.S. was not to be a theocracy nor was it to impinge upon religion. The two were expected to co-exist in harmony.

Somewhere in the last century, though, reliance upon a divine God has fallen from favor - not in theocratic terms, but in social terms. Though we still claim to be a Christian nation, we work feverishly to banish God from anything that is construed as being related to the apparatus of government despite the fact that God's role was viewed as central in the formation of our country. The end result has been that in addition to the division of state and church, we are now witness to a division of God from our country. How long will God favor us while we persist in banning Him from the public, American arena?

I suppose, although it was never envisioned by the founders, that a separation of the institutions of church and government may be beneficial, how can we ever assume that the forced departure of God from our country can be without detrimental consequences?