I keep seeing people's responses to questions, and this one continue's to pop up: "The constitution states there should be a "seperation of church and state."
I am just curious, how many people actually learned about this stuff in school, or it's just something they heard from the media or other people? I'm just wondering if the school systems are teaching this or if people are just repeating what they've heard?
In reality, that phrase is not stated in the Constitution...however, the concept it came from was phrased in the First Amendment.
Although the concept is commonly understood today, the government has never passed a law implementing the "separation of church and state." The First Amendment simply states:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
Over the years, however, the Supreme Court and lower federal courts have reinterpreted this amendment in many ways. This reinterpretation of the Constitution has in effect become the "law" supposedly dictating the "separation of church and state.
One should understand that "separation of church and state" is not actually a law. It is a doctrine, or a legal concept, that has been implemented by the various courts primarily over the last fifty years. If this concept, as originally understood, would have been applied with consistency over the years, America would certainly be a different country right now. Religious expression would flourish, and the courts would not be micromanaging the religious life of the American people.
The doctrine of "separation of church and state" has been used, and is being used, to effectively purge religion from the public square. The historical perspective on church/state issues reveals a much different story. The government was to accommodate the religious communities; religion and religious expression were to be encouraged.
This is why, for example, the first Congress asked President George Washington to issue a Thanksgiving Proclamation upon completion of the Bill of Rights. Today, that practice would be viewed as unconstitutional. It would violate the "separation of church and state."
As I understand it, this concept was meant to keep one religion from being forced upon all, not that it should be removed from our lives or history itself.
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