The First Amendment

Perhaps the most misunderstood and misconstrued language in the Constitution is the first right enumerated in the First Amendment, dealing with the place of religion in the government. It would come as a surprise to many that the term "Separation of church and state" does not appear here. In fact, the first time this phrase appears in the public lexicon is in a 1947 Supreme Court decision, when Justice Hugo Black, an admirer of Thomas Jefferson, took a phrase from a letter that Jefferson wrote to the Baptist community of Danbury, CT completely out of context and in so doing set the stage for all of the insanity that has transpired since. Jefferson wrote the letter as a response to their congratulating him on his election to the Presidency, and used the opportunity to explain why he did not call for official days of thanksgiving or fast; he used the metaphor "Wall of separation between church and state" to explain his view that a person's faith was a personal relationship between that person and God and that it was inappropriate for the Government to mandate official religious displays.

Here is what the First Amendment does say: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof". According to Webster, the meaning of Establish as it applies here is "to set up; to found; to enact or decree by authority". In other words, the first part of the First Amendment prohibits a state religion. The Founding Fathers had good reason to fear such a thing; many of them or their ancestors had fled Europe precisely because the governments were religiously intolerant; the Anglican Church was the State religion of England. Note that the next phrase "or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" expressly states that Americans have the right to worship in the time, place, and manner that they choose.

Not only did the Founders not believe in "a wall of separation", they fervently believed that religion and morality were essential to the success of the Republic, and this theme is repeated over and over in their writings. A few examples:

"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." - John Adams

"To suppose that any form of government will secure liberty or hapiness without any virtue in the people is a chimerical idea." - James Madison (chimera - a creature of the imagination - Webster)

"Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters." - Benjamin Franklin

There are many more; indeed, the Declaration of Independence refers to "The Laws of Nature and of Nature's God", states that men are "endowed by their Creator" with unalienable rights, and concludes that "With a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor." Incidentally, many of the signers lost their lives and/or fortunes over the ensuing years. These were brave men who were standing up for what they believed in; without men such as these this country could not exist.

Nowhere in any of this do I find anything about removing "Under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance, the Ten Commandments from a courthouse wall, or voluntary prayer from a schoolroom. The key word is Voluntary - until you force participation (or force Muslims, Hebrews, or Atheists to recite Christian prayers) you are not violating the First Amendment.

The advent of secular progressive thought and the decay of virtue and morality, combined with illiteracy and the failure to educate the populace, will be the death of this country. Those who think this is an extreme position need to study the Roman Empire. "Those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it".