The Separation of Church and State
There is no "official religion" of America. One of the reasons we fought for independence from England was to have freedom of religion, which can occur only when there is no "state church" as there has been in England. In many countries throughout history, church and state had been either linked or actually merged. England has recognized the Church of England as their official religion for centuries. Our founding fathers braved the sea to escape religious persecution. If the concept of Separation of Church and State existed then, it's intent was to prevent the Government from controlling religion. Keep in mind that England controlled the Church. Early Colonists were promoting religious freedom. They didn’t come that far just to let their faith become corrupted again by the Government.
The founding fathers included Deists, Christians, theists in general, agnostics and atheists. America is not a Christian nation, but rather a nation full of Christians. Christians have been the majority in America since the beginning.
But what if Hindus became the majority? Would these Christians push so hard to have the government dictating what the "official religion" is? What if Muslims become the majority, and they start acting the same way some of these Christians act? What if America becomes a "Muslim nation"?
Is that impossible? Certainly not.
The phrase, "separation of church and state" does NOT appear in the First Amendment, nor does it appear anywhere else in the US Constitution. In 1802 President Thomas Jefferson, in a letter to the Danbury Baptist Association of Connecticut, asserted that the establishment and free exercise of religion clauses of the First Amendment created "a wall of separation between Church and State."
That metaphor has since been invoked repeatedly by the Supreme Court in describing its church-state jurisprudence. But the phrase per se is not found in the Constitution. All the First Amendment says concerning Government and Religion is: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion."
Understanding the historical context helps us understand this line in the First Amendment of the Constitution. The Founding Fathers declared independence from England, for a number of reasons. One of those reasons was for "freedom of religion." England had a "state church" - an official religion (i.e., the "Church of England"). The Founding Fathers wanted to worship God as *they* saw fit, without the government telling them what to do and how to do it. That's one reason why we have the First Amendment. The First Amendment’s intent was to prevent the Government from controlling religion (The Bill of Rights exists to prevent the government from becoming too big, too powerful, and oppressive).
So government CANNOT push a religion on the people, nor can government enforce any particular religious practices. This is a proper understanding of "Separation of Church and State." There is no "state church," and there never will be, unless the Constitution is discarded. Citizens of the United States are free to worship (or not worship) as they see fit.
I think some people nowadays have taken the "separation of Church and State" idea a bit too far. I remember when Joe Lieberman was talking about "God" every time he gave a speech. Some groups criticized him for it, and I think wrongly. Likewise, President Bush talks about his faith openly. He, too, has been criticized. But discussing or mentioning spiritual matters is not necessarily a violation of the First Amendment. If Joe Lieberman had become our Vice-President, we would not have been forced to become Jewish.
I think government should encourage discussion of spiritual and religious matters. Government represents the people, and most people adhere to a religion and many consider themselves to be very spiritual. Government, without enforcing any particular practice or showing favoritism to any particular religion or belief system, should encourage dialogue between Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Atheists, Agnostics, et al. The First Amendment does not forbid a healthy exchange of ideas and thoughts about religion and spirituality. Nor does anything in the Constitution prohibit the display of religious items or decorations in public offices or on buildings. In fact, I attended a public college that has a beautiful display that includes a statue of the Buddha. The government should promote peace and tolerance between these different groups. And people shouldn't be afraid when a politician says a prayer or mentions "God" in a speech.
The phrase, "separation of church and state" does NOT appear in the First Amendment, nor does it appear anywhere else in the US Constitution. In 1802 President Thomas Jefferson, in a letter to the Danbury Baptist Association of Connecticut, asserted that the establishment and free exercise of religion clauses of the First Amendment created "a wall of separation between Church and State."
That metaphor has since been invoked repeatedly by the Supreme Court in describing its church-state jurisprudence. But the phrase per se is not found in the Constitution. All the First Amendment says concerning Government and Religion is: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion."
Understanding the historical context helps us understand this line in the First Amendment of the US Constitution. The Founding Fathers declared independence from England, for a number of reasons. One of those reasons was for "freedom of religion." England had a "state church" - an official religion (i.e., the "Church of England"). The Founding Fathers wanted to worship God as *they* saw fit, without the government telling them what to do and how to do it. That's one reason why we have the First Amendment.
So government CANNOT push a religion on the people, nor can government enforce any particular religious practices. This is a proper understanding of "separation of Church and State." There is no "state church," and there never will be, unless the Constitution is discarded. Citizens of the United States are free to worship (or not worship) as they see fit.
I think some people nowadays have taken the "separation of Church and State" idea a bit too far. I remember when Joe Lieberman was talking about "God" every time he gave a speech. Some groups criticized him for it, and I think wrongly. Likewise, President Bush talks about his faith openly. He, too, has been criticized. But discussing or mentioning spiritual matters is not necessarily a violation of the First Amendment. If Joe Lieberman had become our Vice-President, we would not have been forced to become Jewish. Furthermore, had that been a statue of Jesus on display at the public college I attended, the ACLU would have acted like the world was ending; but the fact that intolerance of Christianity is behind the majority of the “separation of church and state” debate is no secret.
I think government should encourage discussion of spiritual and religious matters. Government represents the people, and many people consider themselves to be very spiritual. I think government, without enforcing any particular practice or showing favoritism to any particular religion or belief system, should encourage dialogue between Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Atheists, Agnostics, et al. And people shouldn't be afraid when a politician says a prayer or mentions "God" in a speech.
The First Amendment’s intent was to prevent the Government from controlling religion (The Bill of Rights exists to prevent the government from becoming too big, too powerful, and oppressive).
In many countries throughout history, church and state had been either linked or actually merged. England has recognized the Church of England as their official religion for centuries. Our founding fathers braved the sea to escape religious persecution. If the concept of Separation of Church and State existed then, it's intent was to prevent the Government from controlling religion. Keep in mind that England controlled the Church. Early Colonists were promoting religious freedom. They didn’t come that far just to let their faith become corrupted again by the Government.
Another thing: "God" and/or "spirituality" is not the church! Separating the CHURCH from the state is NOT equivalent to separating all forms of SPIRITUALITY from government and politics. The First Amendment does not forbid a healthy exchange of ideas and thoughts about religion and spirituality.
In fact, a theistic worldview serves as the philosophic justification for the beginning of our country.
The Declaration of Independence, the document which presents the philosophic justification for our independence from England, includes the following:
"WHEN, in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. – We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness…WE, THEREFORE, the Representatives of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name…solemnly publish and declare, that these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be FREE AND INDEPENDENT STATES…And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor."
And this was written by Jefferson, who was arguably the most secular of all the Founding Fathers. Jefferson never abandoned his deism.
I say all this not to try to promote the United States as a "Christian nation" (it's not, and it never was really: the United States has been at most a “nation full of Christians”). I say this because, again, I think government should encourage healthy dialogue about religion, spirituality, and God. I think this would encourage people to ask, "What is the truth?" It would also help people examine why they believe as they do, and what is the philosophic justification for their beliefs. People vote based on their beliefs. Getting people to think about those beliefs is a good thing.
|
|
|