Why do some many people think there is a law that demands the separation of church and state?

Question

The first amendment says that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." There is nothing in the Constitution that specifically says that there is a wall of separation between religion and government. It is not unconstitutional to say God in the pledge, to swear on the bible in court, or to have religious national holidays. Are people really this ignorant or do they make things up to push their anti-religion views?

Answer 1

The original thoughts on this were that the government of england had established the church of england , thus they wanted freedom of religion....

the idea was to keep government out of religion, not religion out of government....

Contrary to what many people say, all the early political figures at least gave lip service to Christianity..

So.. freedom of religion is free to be any kind of Christian you want...all the other religions( Muslim, hindu,Buddhist, and probably hebrew) were heathens....

Tolerance was something Baptists and Methodists reserved for Presbyterians...

Answer 2

People aren't ignorant so much as they are stupid. They listen to MSM and believe whatever they hear. God forbid they read the actual Constitution.

Answer 3

More information here and I don't know anyone that believes those things are unconstitutional that you give examples of.  

Most of the people I know that argue for 'secularism' are those responding to radicals on the right that want and have rewritten history in such a way as to say America is a christian nation, founded on christianity.  I guess the difference in what you suggest people think and what I've heard is that one knows history, one does not.  I guess I just don't keep ignorant company.

Answer 4

There...is...no..."god". GOI.

Answer 5

It is simply a phrase, coined at the time, to describe the relationship between the anti-establishment clause and the free exercise clause.  as to religious holidays, the constitution would seem to prohibit prefering one religion (or one group of religions) over others.  That may be why the winter holiday is designated as December 25, and if christians ever change the date of their celebration to some date based in reality, then it will still be december 25.   BTW, congress did indeed adopt as the "official" pledge the version with the reference to god.  Some courts have held that the adoption itself is not improper, but to require children to recite it, or to use a government school to teach that belief in god is better than not believing, violates the establishment clause.  Likewise, using government to promote atheism is unconstitutional.  The establishment clause in general leads to the conclusion that religion is a private matter and no business of the government.

Answer 6

separation of church and state is a good thing

You would prefer America becomes a Muslim country?

Answer 7

They don't realize it will never be separate. They have and always will be intertwined. It doesn't matter what laws they pass.  

Answer 8

You are right there is no law, except the Supreme Court Dictators whose ruling becomes the same as law unless acted upon by congress, or the refusal of the government to submit to the ruling. Such as when the California Federal Judge ruled the pledge unconstitutional, and congress stood on the steps of the capital and said the pledge in protest. The words Separation of Church and State is actually found in a letter from Thomas Jefferson to a pastor. a letter written while he himself attended church in the capital senate chambers. This compounded by the fact we allow the education system to teach our children to be ignorant of what the laws, and their rights really are.

Answer 9

You are correct that there is no such law. The framers of the Constitution, having just gotten their independence from a nation (Great Britain) that had a state-established religion (Church of England) and required its citizens to pay taxes to support that religion, wanted to make sure that wouldn't happen here and so created the First Amendment. They would be appalled today, I believe, to see how it has been misconstrued to be used against the very freedom of religion that they fought to secure.

Blame the misconstruction on what should be an obscure letter written in 1802 by Thomas Jefferson to the Danbury Baptist Association. The Danbury Baptists were a religious minority in Connecticut, and they complained that in their state, the religious liberties they enjoyed were not seen as immutable rights, but as privileges granted by the legislature. Jefferson's reply did not address their concerns about problems with state establishment of religion - only of establishment on the national level. The letter contains the phrase "wall of separation between church and state," which led to the short-hand for the Establishment Clause that people use and abuse today: "Separation of church and state." I imagine Jefferson today would wish he could rewrite that letter to make his meaning more clear to the fanatics who have abused his phrasing ever since.

Answer 10

Nope, you are wrong.

The phrase in question is simply shorthand for a more complex topic.

I have written this here many times, so use the search engine for more detail, but in a nutshell the issue is this:

the Establishment clause has always been interpreted to mean that unless support was exactly equal for all and no religion at all in every conceivable circumstance, a standard clearly impossible to measure let alone meet, any difference is tantamount to Congress favoring one group over at least one other, and hence is an "Establishment"

I hope you get it. With an open mind, it is not really a difficult concept.

With a closed mind, you will never get it.

How you think about the issue from now on will tell you in your heart of hearts the state of your mind.

Good luck on that! I am rooting for you!

Answer 11

john c's right but I still think it's a right thing to do and have in this country. THIS country was founded on judeo christian values beliefs.

I beleive so I dont think there is anything wrong with it.

Answer 12

"There is nothing in the Constitution that specifically says that there is a wall of separation between religion and government."

When the state endorses a particular Religion it is inhibiting the exercise of other religions. It is abundantly clear what the founders had in mind by including that statement in the constitution. America was built by people who were oppressed by England and the Anglican church.  

Answer 13

Ummmm I guess we think there is a law because we bother to read about how our judicial system works.....the constitution doesn't say that it's illegal for priests to abuse young children but that doesn't make it unconstitutional when they are arrested.

So let me ask you - are YOU really this ignorant or do YOU make things up to push your religious views?

Answer 14

Many see the use of the name "God" in any governmental sense as "respecting" a single given religion. In that view, it would violate the first amendment.

I know that the pledge is not a law in itself. If it becomes a "requirement" it then has the force of law. So far, that has not happened because the first amendment specifically prohibits that type of action.