I am so tired of hearing people misquote the Constitution with regard to the "Separation of Church and State." This morning, I was watching another debate over removing the Ten Commandments from schools in Giles County, VA and heard the CNN anchor state that this was a First Amendment issue, dealing with the separation of Church and State. FALSE! On any other topic, the media would check the facts; but they seem ignorantly content with misquoting the First Amendment. The words "Separation of Church and State" DO NOT even appear in the First Amendment!
The words, "Separation of Church and State," were first used by Thomas Jefferson in his letter of response to the Danbury Baptist Association in 1802. The group was concerned that the government would breach its boundaries and try to interfere in religion. They wanted to keep the State out of the Church. President, Thomas Jefferson, responded, "...I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make 'no law respecting and establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between Church and State."
In its true context, the First Amendment is to protect the freedom of religion by keeping the State out of the Church. Even Wikipedia gets this one right, "...the amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an "establishment of religion," impeding the free exercise of religion, infringing on the freedom of speech," etc. The desire for a freedom of religion (without government interference) goes back to the Pilgrims, and is one of the premises upon which this country was founded.
So, why do we allow people to continually misquote and misuse the First Amendment? When will we demand that the First Amendment be properly interpreted? Evidence of the UNITY between Church and State is all over Washington, DC and woven deep into the fabric of our nation! Remember our national motto, "In God We Trust."
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