Posted on 08/22/2010 4:03:43 PM PDT by DBCJR
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;..."
(Excerpt) Read more at usconstitution.net ...
While the legislative function has been bureaucratized into the executive branch, thus extending legislative powers to the executive branch, how does the Supreme Court and appellate courts justify extending this power over religious expression of the faith of our forefathers? One of these days they will have the stonecutters out to remove faith-filled words from various buildings in Washington, DC, including the Supreme Court.
No where in the Constitution are the words “seperation of church and state”.
Maybe you can help me on this one. I have been reading the Constitution and have not seen any text regarding “separation of church and State”. I have always wondered where this is the law of the land specifically stated in the Constitution.
Have a good one.
Where did we even grant congress (or the executive!) the power to regulate religious matters?
Ask any liberal or socialist; it’s “Freedom From Religion” /sarc
Majority opinion, "wall of separation" baloney by Hugo Black, Klansman, anti-semite, anti-Catholic bigot appointed by Leftist god, FDR.
There is only one way to reign it in.
And that's not going to happen.
America -- a great idea, didn't last.
To messers. Nehemiah Dodge, Ephraim Robbins, & Stephen S. Nelson, a committee of the Danbury Baptist association in the state of Connecticut.
Gentlemen
The affectionate sentiments of esteem and approbation which you are so good as to express towards me, on behalf of the Danbury Baptist association, give me the highest satisfaction. my duties dictate a faithful and zealous pursuit of the interests of my constituents, & in proportion as they are persuaded of my fidelity to those duties, the discharge of them becomes more and more pleasing.
Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should "make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties.
I reciprocate your kind prayers for the protection & blessing of the common father and creator of man, and tender you for yourselves & your religious association, assurances of my high respect & esteem.
Th Jefferson
Jan. 1. 1802.
Thanks...
The 1st Amendment basically stopped this Government from creating a “state” religion and banning other religions practices..
The 1st Amendment basically stopped this Government from creating a “state” religion and banning other religions practices..
My understanding is that there are so many precedents, so much legislation has been passed under the ruberic "separation of church and state" that it has become considered a part of the Establishment Clause, regardless it is specifically and obviously not.
Yep. The problem I have been seeing is Obama using the Ground Zero Iman as an Ambassador to the Middle East. Isn’t he bypassing the State Department in this effort? So far, Zero has been on the wrong side 30 pct of the time.
The phrase is no where in the Constitution. It is a doctrinal derivation that is currently treated as Constitution.
Thomas Jefferson referred to a wall of separation. Later, the Supreme Court used the phrase to determine that law superseded religious conviction:
Reynolds v. United States, 98 U.S. 145 (1878), was a Supreme Court of the United States case that held that religious duty was not a suitable defense to a criminal indictment. George Reynolds was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, charged with bigamy under the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act after marrying Amelia Jane Schofield while still married to Mary Ann Tuddenham in Utah Territory.
The “Separation of Church and State” metaphor blurs the distinction between a doctrinal religion and a denominational religion. This places the doctrinal religion we have embraced in the same basket as an organized denominational religion with potential to merge with the state. The documentary evidence of the doctrinal Christian religion origin of this nation is voluminous.
The Supreme Court thoroughly studied this issue, and in 1892 gave what is known as the Trinity Decision. In that decision the Supreme Court declared, “this is a Christian nation.” John Quincy Adams said, “The highest glory of the American Revolution was, it connected in one indissoluble bond, the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity.” The founders were definitely Christian for the most part. At least 90 to 95 percentage of them were practicing, Trinitarian Christians.
This and the additional supporting evidence below show conclusively that the concern that motivated the framers to include the establishment clause in the constitution was definitely not fear of the doctrinal religion of Christian Theism. It was understood that Christian Theism was the default state doctrinal religion. As opposed to being something to fear, it was something believed to be vital to the success of our government. Consequently, the framers feared a state denominational religion not a state doctrinal religion! Some additional evidences that indicate Christian Theism was the national doctrinal religion are listed below:
Emblazoned over the Speaker of the House in the US Capitol are the words “In God We Trust.”
The Supreme Court building built in the 1930’s has carvings of Moses and the Ten Commandments.
God is mentioned in stone all over Washington D.C., on its monuments and buildings.
As a nation, we have celebrated Christmas to commemorate the Savior’s birth for centuries.
Oaths in courtrooms have invoked God from the beginning.
The founding fathers often quoted the Bible in their writings.
Every president that has given an inaugural address has mentioned God in that speech.
Prayers have been said at the swearing in of each president.
Each president was sworn in on the Bible, saying the words, “So help me God.”
Our national anthem mentions God.
The liberty bell has a Bible verse engraved on it.
The original constitution of all 50 states mentions God.
Chaplains have been in the public payroll from the very beginning.
Our nations birth certificate, the Declaration of Independence, mentions God four times.
The Bible was used as a textbook in the schools.
We didn’t. That is my point. The First Amendment has been totally misinterpreted as it pertains to religion.
See my lengthy post on this thread. Jefferson referred to the “wall of separation”. It re-surfaced as a concept in the Reynolds decision of 1878 and has had the effect of law since, one might argue, in SPITE of the First Amendment.
That provision was put in place to KEEP GOVERNMENT OUT OF RELIGION, not to KEEP RELIGION OUT OF GOVERNMENT”.
I do not know how people or the courts are able to see it any other way.
Check post number 9 on this thread...I think he put a link to the letter on it.
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