In the charter of Yale College, adopted in 1701, it is stated that
the institution was established to fit youth "for Publick employment in
Church & Civil State." The two are supplementary, and neither can exist
effectively without the other. This has been so clear that historically
they were generally organically connected, but it has been found in modern
times that their separation results in the greater efficiency of each,
without the constant friction which the old arrangement created. The State
provides law, order, administration, justice; the Church provides a
philosophy of life, ethical standards, spiritual ideals and inspiration;
while both—supplementing the basic influence of the family—have an
important part to play in the field of education. We shall consider in the
next section the historical significance of the American solution of the
Church–State problem in relation to previous attempts. Here it is
sufficient to point out that one of the truly great gains in America has
been through the guaranteeing of religious freedom.
The New York Supreme Court, in a well known case, said of the
principle of religious freedom that it "has always been regarded by the
American people as the very heart beat of its national life."'" This would
be difficult to maintain in a democracy without constitutional separation
of Church and State. Professor Francis Lieber (1800-72), one of the ablest
of American constitutional authorities, wrote nearly a century ago: "It
belongs to American liberty to separate entirely from the political
government the institution which has for its object the support and
diffusion of religion." 71
It seems well that we should make clear at the outset of this study
our conviction that the significance of American religious freedom is in
this entire separation of political and religious functions. The separation
and our freedom are intimately related; but this does not prevent a
sympathetic mutual relation between the two, as long as the word "Church"
is interpreted sufficiently broadly to include all organized religious
groups which recognize the law of the land. It is this complete legal
separation between the two "powers" in the State and in all its
subdivisions, as well as the friendly feeling existing between them, and
the large amount of co-operation among the various religious denominations,
that make the American situation unique in history. And yet it has received
too little attention abroad, and its constitutional basis, especially that
provided by the Bill of Rights and its broadening by the Fourteenth
Amendment, is inadequately recognized at home. An example of the former is
that the twenty-eight volumes of the Encyclopedia Britannica, if the index
is complete and if a reading of the articles most nearly bearing on the
subject is a fair test, scarcely mention the constitutional basis of
religious freedom in the United States—one of the nation's major
contributions to the world. Similarly, the leading English writers on the
general subject of the development of guarantees of freedom of thought and
its expression, such as Lecky, Bury, and Acton, give slight attention to
the subject. And this relative indifference to the great significance of
America's religious freedom based on constitutional guarantees is
characteristic of many other writers on American history and government
from abroad. But fortunately Luzzati, Ruffini, and other Italian publicists
show themselves conscious of America's unique contribution, as do also some
French and English publicists, notably James Bryce (1838-1922). He not only
has admirable chapters in The American Commonwealth on "The Churches and
the Clergy" and the "Influence of Religion," but also deals with the whole
subject in an adequate way on the basis of conditions half a century ago,
calling attention to the constitutional foundations. One paragraph shows
clearly his views on the significance of Church-State separation in this
country.
In examining the National Government and the State Governments we
have never once had occasion to advert to any ecclesiastical body or
question, because with such matters government has in the United States
absolutely nothing to do.... There is no Established Church. All religious
bodies are absolutely equal before the law, and unrecognized by the law,
except as voluntary associations of private citizens.72
1. Miami Military Institute v. Leg (129 Misc. 481, 220 N.Y.S. 799, 81o),
quoted by Zollmann, Carl, American Church Law, p. 17.
2. Lieber, Francis C., Liberty and Self Government (Philadelphia, 1852), X,
99. A new ed. of this important volume was published in 1874.
3. Bryce, op. cit., II, 554•
Church and State in the United States,Vol 1. Anson Phelps Stokes, Harper
& Brothers N Y, (1950) p 34-35
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You are invited to check out the following:
The Rise of the Theocratic States of America
http://members.tripod.com/~candst/theocracy.htm
American Theocrats - Past and Present
http://members.tripod.com/~candst/theocrats.htm
The Constitutional Principle: Separation of Church and State
http://members.tripod.com/~candst/index.html
[and to join the discussion group for the above site and/or Separation of
Church and State in general, listed below]
HRSepCnS · Hampton Roads [Virginia] SepChurch&State
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HRSepCnS/
[Its not just Hampton Roads folks who are members, there are members from
all over the US and a couple from overseas as well]
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.. . . You can't understand a phrase such as "Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of religion" by syllogistic reasoning. Words
take their meaning from social as well as textual contexts, which is why "a
page of history is worth a volume of logic." New York Trust Co. v. Eisner,
256 U.S. 345, 349, 41 S.Ct. 506, 507, 65 L.Ed. 963 (1921) (Holmes, J.).
Sherman v. Community Consol. Dist. 21, 980 F.2d 437, 445 (7th Cir. 1992)
.. . .
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USAF LT. COL (Ret) Buffman (Glen P. Goffin) wrote
"You pilot always into an unknown future;
facts are your only clue. Get the facts!"
That philosophy 'snipit' helped to get me, and my crew, through a good
many combat missions and far too many scary, inflight, emergencies.
It has also played a significant role in helping me to expose the
plethora of radical Christian propaganda and lies that we find at
almost every media turn.
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THE CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLE:
SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE
http://members.tripod.com/~candst/index.html
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