Can Congress control any aspect of Religious Practices?

Question

For example, is there a right to smoke a "peace pipe", kill a chicken, have two wives, not embalm the dead, refuse to allow a relative a blood transfusion, etc?" How do they decide what's legal?

The first amendment says:
"Congress can make no law respecting the 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 differences."

Answer 1

Congress -- or states or cites -- cannot directly regulate religious practice -- but they can pass generally applicable laws that might include religious practice. For example, a ban on smoking would cover both the average cigarette smoker and the peace pipe. And laws regulating keeping animals would apply whether the reasons were religious or not.

The analysis is whether the law targets a religious practice -- or whether it is truly neutral and independent of any religious practice.

Answer 2

Because of the seperation of church and state, the state can pass laws to protect the public, even if they conflict with religious beliefs. A church can petition the state to give them dispensation from the law, but is up to the state to decide. otherwise, people would be able to break any law they wanted, and then just cite religious reasons for doing so.

Answer 3

drugs, because it cause one person to hurt another person. also to protect human life and animal life.