Where does it say this in the Constitution "Separation of church and state."?

Question

This is what the First Admendment says:
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.

Speration of church and state is not even in our constituion. Why do some many people say it is?

Answer 1

The concept of the separation of church and state comes from a letter by Thomas Jefferson in a to the Danbury Baptist Association. He stated that there was a wall separating church and state matters. This has been quoted many times as the reason we can not display the 10 Commandments on government property, or a Nivity scene anywhere near a government building, etc. However, the one item that many of these references fail to take note, is what Jefferson was asked to comment upon by the Association. They wrote:

"Our sentiments are uniformly on the side of religious
liberty--that religion is at all times and places a matter
between God and individuals--that no man ought to suffer in name, person, or effects on account of his religious opinions--that the legitimate power of civil government extends no further than to punish the man who works ill to his neighbors; But, sir, our constitution of government is not specific. "

In short they were asking "Does the Constitution allow personal, religious freedom?" (i.e. no man ought to suffer..) They wanted to make certain that the State could not come to them and force them do to something that went against their beliefs. In his answer, Jefferson ws stating that the "wall of separation" meant that the government was not allow to interfer with them. He never meant to imply that the wall should keep religious ideals out of government!

The problem exists in since the ACLU has used the term in the wrong manner. Jefferson whould condemn the present interpretation of his letter, a document that he struggled to write.

Answer 2

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is a part of the United States Bill of Rights. It prohibits the federal legislature from making laws that establish religion (the "Establishment Clause") or prohibit free exercise of religion (the "Free Exercise Clause"), laws that infringe the freedom of speech, infringe the freedom of the press, limit the right to assemble peaceably, or limit the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Although the First Amendment only explicitly prohibits the named rights from being abridged by laws made by Congress, the courts have interpreted it as applying more broadly. As the first sentence in the body of the Constitution reserves all law-making ("legislative") authority to Congress, the courts have held that the First Amendment's terms also extend to the executive and judicial branches. Additionally, in the 20th century the Supreme Court has held that the Due Process clause of the 1868 Fourteenth Amendment "incorporates" the limitations of the First Amendment to also restrict the states.

The statement that 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. Thomas Jefferson wrote that the First Amendment erected a wall of separation between the church and the state and James Madison stated it drew a line. It is Thomas Jefferson's statement that sticks with us still today. It is commonly interpreted that government should not establish, support, or involve itself in any religion.

Answer 3

The ohrase seperaton of church and state does not appear in the constitution..

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constitution/amendment01/

Look at the annotations.. It is the job of the Supreme Court to clarify what parts of the constitution mean .. In many letters and other documents it has been upheld that religion and government should be seperate entities..

The term seperation of church and state became popular after a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to Danbury Baptist Church.. refered to the First Amendment as "a wall of seperation" between church and start..

The term Seperation of Church and state was adopted by many to refer to what part of The First Aendment does....

If you read carefully you will see that the First Amendment does exactly that It builds a wall between religious power and government power so the government can not declare or create a state religion.. It also ensures other freedoms and creates a safeguard for public peace and safety..

When The Constitution reads:

1. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion..

It means the government can not create nor endorse a religion as a government.. The government can not force citizens to conform to a certain religion..

2. Or prohibit the free exercise there of..

It means the government has no right to stop a citizen from practicing thier chosen religion..

3. Or abridging the freedom of speech

This means the govenment can't tell it's citizens what they can and can't say..

4. or of the press..

This means the covernment can not control the press..

5. or the right of the people to peaceably assemble

This is the safeguard.. It means should any of the above rights lead to public disorder the government has the right to stop the assembly and disperse the people for the safety of the citizenry.. This doesn't not mean they can tell a citizen they can not assemble in future just to clear out now for the public safety..

6. And to petition the government for redress of grievances..

This means citizens have the right to file suit in court should they belief the government was wrong in telling them to clear our etc. In enforcing the peaceable assembly clause..

Answer 4

Separation of church and state was actually quoted by Thomas Jefferson in a letter to the Danbury Baptist Association. He was quoted as saying that the amendment to the constitution will be "Like a wall of separation between church and state"

The amendment itself actually says
"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."

See sources below for more info

Answer 5

"The absence of this phrase does not mean that it is an invalid concept or that it cannot be used as a legal or judicial principle.

There are any number of important legal concepts which do not appear in the Constitution with the exact phrasing people tend to use. For example, nowhere in the Constitution will you find words like "right to privacy" or even "right to a fair trial." Does this mean that no American citizen has a right to privacy or a fair trial? Does this mean that no judge should ever invoke these rights when reaching a decision?

Of course not - the absence of these specific words does not mean that there is also an absence of these ideas. The right to a fair trial, for example, is necessitated by what is in the text because what we do find simply makes no moral or legal sense otherwise. What the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution actually says is:

Similarly, courts have found that the principle of a "religious liberty" exists behind in the First Amendment, even if those words are not actually there:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...
The point of such an amendment is twofold. First, it ensures that religious beliefs - private or organized - are removed from attempted government control. This is the reason why the government cannot tell either you or your church what to believe or to teach. Second, it ensures that the government does not get involved with enforcing, mandating, or promoting particular religious doctrines. This is what happens when the government "establishes" a church - and because doing so created so many problems in Europe, the authors of the Constitution wanted to try and prevent the same from happening here.

Can anyone deny that the First Amendment guarantees the principle of religious liberty, even though those words do not appear there? Similarly, the First Amendment guarantees the principle of the separation of church and state - by implication, because separating church and state is what allows religious liberty to exist."

Answer 6

Your wife is a teacher with a passionate interest in the subject yet she has never read the First Amendment or ANY of the US Supreme Court cases dealing with the First Amendment? No wonder you guys complain about education. Big Papi, judging from the responses, most people agree with me that you and your wife seem ignorant about the US Constitution and the US Supreme Court. I stand by my answer. Wow. You seem to have all the answers. If you and she are so convinced she is right, then why doesn't she violate the district policy and make these arguments in front of a judge or a school board, instead of strangers on a computer. If it is as clear as you say, there should be no problem.

Answer 7

Where does it say "separation of powers?" Where does the word "trinity" appear in the Bible. If you look at the first two clauses in the first amendment, the idea of separation of church and state is clearly there. Congress cannot establish a religion -- meaning congress cannot do anything that favors one religion over another or even the practice of religion over the non-practice of religion. So, congress cannot establish a church or engage in any action in which religion is supported. However, it also cannot (unreasonably) restrict the free exercise of religion. These two clauses clearly are intended to keep the church out of the state and the state out of the church. So, while the words "separation of church and state" do not appear in the Constitution, the concept represented by those words is clearly there.

Answer 8

The words themselves aren't there, but what exactly did you think that, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" means?... It'd be pretty hard to say even such a mundane thing as putting the 10 commandments in a courtroom wouldn't respect a religion.

Answer 9

Its not in the Constitution, or the Bill of Rights or the Declaration of Independence. The phrase was used by Jefferson in a private letter to a group of Baptists. The purpose of the letter was to assure the Baptists that the Government would not establish a state religion, in other words the government would not interfere with a persons right to worship in whatever denomination he or she chose or the right of a person to not worship God at all if they so chose.
It was not intended to mean that a person of faith could not practice their faith in government or any public office. The first amendment was intended to protect ones right to freely exercise their religion. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, OR PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF...."

It seems to me that PROHIBITING someone from praying in a public place such as a school graduation ceremony, or reading a Bible in school, or openly expressing ones faith anywhere is unconstitutional.

So many people think the phrase "separation of church and state" is in our government documents because they simply listen to the media and don't read and research to search out the truth.

It may be of interest to know that Jefferson also signed the enabling act for Ohio to become a state in April of 1802. This act stated in part...."religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind..."

Jeferson also wrote in 1781.. "God who gave us life gave us liberty."

In November of 1820 Jefferson wrote..."I hold the precepts of Jesus as delivered by Himself, to be the most pure, benevolent and sublime which have ever been preached to man..."

These are clearly not the words of a man who believes faith has no place in public life.

Answer 10

The first ammendment explains the separation of church and state. It basically gives people the right to worship as they wish, while the government will take no part or side in it. Some of the colonies may have been founded by radical christian sects, but the Constitution and Bill of Rights specifically prevent any church or faith from ruling, or creating an official religion.

To further clarify the subject, there is the Treaty of Tripoli. In article 11, it states very clearly: "As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion..." This treaty was written by a military chaplain, who believed in secular government; and was signed by both Presidents Washington and Adams, before being ratified by Congress.