Difference between revisions of "Separation of church and state"
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| − | '''Separation of church and state''' is a very loose interpretation of part of the [[Establishment Clause]] of the [[United States Constitution]]. The section in question reads "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof....".<ref>[http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.billofrights.html#amendmenti 1st Amendment of the US Constitution]</ref> This phrase is commonly interpreted to mean that all issues regarding the [[Government]] and those regarding the [[Church]] be kept seperate. However, strict-constructionists insist that the constitution | + | '''Separation of church and state''' is a very loose interpretation of part of the [[Establishment Clause]] of the [[United States Constitution]]. The section in question reads "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof....".<ref>[http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.billofrights.html#amendmenti 1st Amendment of the US Constitution]</ref> This phrase is commonly interpreted to mean that all issues regarding the [[Government]] and those regarding the [[Church]] be kept seperate. However, strict-constructionists insist that the constitution must be interpreted verbatim. |
[[Thomas Jefferson]] first coined the phrase in 1801.<ref>[http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel06-2.html Religion and the Federal Government], ''LOC.gov''</ref>, in his letter to the Danbury Baptist Association<ref>[http://www.stephenjaygould.org/ctrl/dba_jefferson.html Letter from Thomas Jefferson to the DBA]</ref> | [[Thomas Jefferson]] first coined the phrase in 1801.<ref>[http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel06-2.html Religion and the Federal Government], ''LOC.gov''</ref>, in his letter to the Danbury Baptist Association<ref>[http://www.stephenjaygould.org/ctrl/dba_jefferson.html Letter from Thomas Jefferson to the DBA]</ref> | ||
Revision as of 22:25, March 23, 2007
Separation of church and state is a very loose interpretation of part of the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution. The section in question reads "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof....".[1] This phrase is commonly interpreted to mean that all issues regarding the Government and those regarding the Church be kept seperate. However, strict-constructionists insist that the constitution must be interpreted verbatim.
Thomas Jefferson first coined the phrase in 1801.[2], in his letter to the Danbury Baptist Association[3]
The Treaty of Tripoli, drafted during Washington's presidency and ratified by John Adams, states that "The government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion."[4] Many proponents of a Christian America point out that the treaty was superceded by the Treaty of Peace and Amity in 1805 (although the superceding of the treaty does not change John Adams' secular view of the United States).
The evidence that the reference to the Creator in the Declaration of Independence may equally refer to the Deist God rather than the Christian God is often ignored.
References
- ↑ 1st Amendment of the US Constitution
- ↑ Religion and the Federal Government, LOC.gov
- ↑ Letter from Thomas Jefferson to the DBA
- ↑ Treaty of Tripoli, Article 11. Ratified in 1796 and again in 1797.