I've been trying to recall if any time in history when religion and government have been interwoven, either with a state-sponsored religion or a theocratic form of government, creating a successful form of government. I define "successful" as having a government which protects its citizens from violence and promotes basic human freedoms, enabling them to live together in peace.

It seems to me that, in every case, the joining of religion and the state has led to repression and control, either by making a religion of the governmental leaders' beliefs or persons, or by intertwining religious foundations with civic institutions. Eventually, the polity is destroyed or tears itself apart, at the cost of many lives of its citizens.

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it--Santayana.