Separation of Church and State

Separation of Church and State

In the news recently, many people opined that President-elect Trump was breaching the wall of separation of church and state by saying Merry Christmas. Here is a brief history quiz.

In which document is the phrase "separation of church and state" found?

A. The constitution
B. One of the amendments to the constitution
C. The Bill of Rights
D. None of the above

If you answered either a, b or c, you were wrong. The correct answer is d. The 1st amendment states... "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF..."

The origin of the phrase is from a letter that Thomas Jefferson wrote to Nehemiah Dodge, Ephraim Robbins and Stephen S. Nelson of the Danbury Baptist Association in Connecticut on Jan. 1, 1802. Here is the quote within its original context.

"Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his god, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should "make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof", thus building a wall of eternal separation between Church and State."

Some liberals and even some judges want you to FALSELY believe that this separation is a two-way street! It is not, nor has it ever been. Our Founding Fathers wanted to ensure that government would not get involved in any way, shape or form in the private religious affairs of its citizens while maintaining the fact that people of faith HAVE EVERY RIGHT to involve themselves AND their faith in EVERY aspect of government that they desire!