“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof….” Amendment I, U.S. Constitution.
Where in that sentence do you see a separation of Church and State like the Democrats want? Only Congress is prohibited from establishing a religion, not any other governmental entity. Second only Congress is prohibited from interfering with the free exercise of YOUR religion. (But since YOU have the right to freely exercise your religion at the Federal level, no other lower government entity can take that right away from you. Lower governmental entities can GIVE you MORE rights but they can’t take any away.)
This is a “one way” separation. The government can’t interfere with your religion at all. That includes telling you that you can’t show your religion (e.g. exercise it) any way you want. Here is how Jefferson put it (remember that he wrote the words of the First Amendment):
Document 58
Thomas Jefferson to Danbury Baptist Association
1 Jan. 1802 Writings 16:281
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 legislative 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 separation between Church and State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties.
The Founders’ Constitution
Volume 5, Amendment I (Religion), Document 58
http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/amendI_religions58.html
The University of Chicago Press
For those who skipped Logic in college, let me introduce you to a new concept. You can’t invert a logical truth and necessarily have a logical truth. If A, then B does not equal if B, then A. For example, you will agree that all men are mortal. However the inverse is not true that all mortal beings are men. Some mortal beings are women. Everyone that has intentionally flown an airplane into American buildings is a man of Arab descent. But is is an error to say that all men of Arab descent have flown (or want to fly) airplanes into American buildings. That is a logical error. Democrats, however, make this logical error whenever it suits them. If it is true that the Goverment can’t mess with religion it is not necessarily true that religion can mess with Government.
The Democratic concept of separation of Church and State is just such a logical error. Just because the State is to stay out of religion does not mean that religion should stay out of the government. Just because 5 people in Washington have decided to agree to make a logical error in interpreting the Constitution does not make it right. Read the words of the Consitution again slowly and carefully.
Democrats don’t like religion by and large because God imposes defined boundaries of behavior. Democrats like to make up the rules as they go along. God gets in the way. But being anti-God is not very popular. So Democrats have to say they are fighting for your Constitutional Rights when they prohibit you from praying in school or otherwise exercising your freedom of religion. Follow that logic? Me neither.
Thanks to Tack Cornelius (one of the smartest men I know) for providing the Jefferson quote above.