How many of you religion haters would agree with the following?

Question

"prohibiting the free exercise thereof " removed?

Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances

Answer 1

Nope. It's good as it is.

Answer 2

First anyone who starts off a question like this obviously has an agenda, it speaks volumes of the asker and not of the people who would answer here, whether they subscribe to religious beliefs or not.

Having said that, the rest of your question, had it been phrased respectfully, is actually a valid one for our times. I read your question as: "Does the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights of the Constitution adequately protect the rights of people to practice their religion, or does it overprotect religious vs. secular citizens or vice versa".

The founding fathers, Jefferson especially, felt that a government not beholden to the interests of any church would guarantee the strength of individual beliefs. This has born out to be a wise position given the numbers of religious people in the nation at this time.

However, it did not stop, for almost 150 years, government officials from enforcing their religious doctrine in the public sector (forced public school prayer, the formation of censorship boards to restrict free speech, covert religious tests for office etc.). Now with the President's Faith Based initiatives, he is violating the Constitution by forcing taxpayer money to go to religious institutions for the purposes of ministry.

The First amendment in my opinion does not go far enough to ensure a safe, equitable secular society where people of all religious faiths, including those without, can enjoy the freedoms our ideals promise.

It needs to be changed to explicitly call for the complete separation of church, as institution, in the affairs of government and the removal of government, as institution, from unjustly influencing a person's religious belief.

On the latter, I make an exception if the religious belief calls for the use force or fraud against any individual or institution.

I do NOT believe in the extinguishing of the individual or institutional exercise of religion. Institutional religion may have as much influence over its constituents as it likes. Individuals may pray in public or believe what they like.

Does this sound like a "religion hater" to you?

Freedom is not a privilege of the religious mind; it is a right of the human sprit.

Answer 3

I'm not American, so I couldn't care less about your constitution, or christianity.

However, I also live in a supposedly secular nation where our Prime Minister exhorts us to pray for rain, despite the outnumbering of practising christians being 2:1 by other faiths and atheists. I don't object to people being deluded and believing in a god or gods. I do object when they try to influence the legislature to enact laws that force religion down my throat and into everyday laws. religion, being a product of fantasy, has no place in the secular governing of a nation, especially when those supporting it are in the minority.

Answer 4

It should remain right where it is. I only wish the religious had the common decency and morality to stop trying to force us all to bend knee to their beliefs.

I think you should be free to worship Zeus, a rock, whatever and leave that guy over there free to not believe in anything and I will stay over here believing in my own thing

Answer 5

That's one of the most important amendments... you don't change something the Founding Fathers obviously thought was important enough to make an amendment about.

Answer 6

How about a new ammendment?
"Congress shall do all in its power to discourage the practice of religion, particlarly those religions that are stupid and embarrassing, including but not limited to: excessive taxation, ridicule, mockery, and forced listening to the albums of Limp Bizket."

Answer 7

I have no problem with freedom of religion.

Now take In God We Trust off the money, or replace with "In God, Allah, Thor, Odin, Shiva, Zeus, Jupiter, Ra, Bill Odenkirk or none of the above We Trust"

Answer 8

No, I'm happy with the First Amendment as it is currently written.

Answer 9

No, of course not. Please tell us of one instance of atheists protesting a church service or any church function that intruded into the general public. Now, let us tell you about all the annoying christian protests for everything from abortion clinics to disney movies. Now tell me who is encroaching onto areas where they have no business being a nuisance.
Yep, the retarded right wingers. Duh, it's called common sense, try it.

Answer 10

I like the way it is right now