![]() Our nation’s founders disagreed about the exact meaning of “no establishment” under the First Amendment the argument continues to this day. But the government is prohibited from favoring one religious view over another or even favoring religion over nonreligion. Individual citizens are free to bring their religious convictions into the public arena. The establishment clause separates church from state, but not religion from politics or public life. Today, the establishment clause prohibits all levels of government from either advancing or inhibiting religion. Supreme Court applied the establishment clause to the states through the 14th Amendment. By 1833, all states had separated religion from government, providing protections for religious liberty in state constitutions. That meant the federal government could not favor one religion over another, or belief over nonbelief. When the First Amendment was adopted in 1791, the establishment clause applied only to the federal government. The phrase “separation of church and state” originated from Thomas Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptist Association.Īlthough the words “separation of church and state” do not appear in the First Amendment, the establishment clause was intended to separate church from state.The establishment clause prohibits the government from favoring one religious view over another or favoring religion over nonreligion.Although the words “separation of church and state” do not appear in the First Amendment, the establishment clause was intended to separate church from state.The First Amendment says nothing about “separation of church and state.” Where did this idea come from? Is it really part of the law? *Adapted from the Williamsburg Charter Summary of Principles. Our ideal of religious freedom demands that we engage in these crucial questions, thereby strengthening our democracy for everyone. Navigating a religiously diverse society also allows us to address the critical question "How do we live with each other’s deepest differences?” How do religious convictions and political freedom complement rather than threaten each other on a small planet in a pluralistic age? In a world in which bigotry, fanaticism, terrorism and the state control of religion are all too common responses to these questions, sustaining the justice and liberty of the American arrangement is an urgent moral task. A just society requires us to be respectful of this right, even for its smallest minorities and least popular communities. Religious freedom is not based on social usefulness and is not dependent on the shifting moods of majorities and governments. To safeguard the right to act upon one’s is to respect and uphold the right of individuals to think and act as free citizens. Religious liberty is founded on the inviolable dignity of every person. Navigating a religiously diverse society also allows us to address the critical question "How do we live with each other’s deepest differences?”.Protecting freedom of conscience and the right to act upon one’s religious tradition - or lack thereof - is to respect and uphold the right of individuals to think and act as free citizens. ![]() Why is religious freedom important to our society? ![]()
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