what is the purpose of the establishment clause? to give citizens the right to form religious groups to stop government from supporting one religion to give government power to choose a state religion to stop citizens from practicing religion in public
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Your Right to Religious Freedom
Getting an education isn't just about books and grades -- we're also learning how to participate fully in the life of this nation. (Because one day we are going to be in charge!)
YOUR RIGHT TO RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
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Getting an education isn't just about books and grades -- we're also learning how to participate fully in the life of this nation. (Because one day we are going to be in charge!)But in order to really participate, we need to know our rights -- otherwise we may lose them. The highest law in our land is the U.S. Constitution, which has some amendments, known as the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights guarantees that the government can never deprive people in the U.S. of certain fundamental rights including the right to freedom of religion and to free speech and the due process of law. Many federal and state laws give us additional rights, too.
The Bill of Rights applies to young people as well as adults. And what I'm going to do right here is tell you about RELIGIOUS FREEDOM.
WHAT IS RELIGIOUS FREEDOM EXACTLY?
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution says that everyone in the United States has the right to practice his or her own religion, or no religion at all.
Our country's founders -- who were of different religious backgrounds themselves -- knew the best way to protect religious liberty was to keep the government out of religion. So they created the First Amendment -- to guarantee the separation of church and state. This fundamental freedom is a major reason why the U.S. has managed to avoid a lot of the religious conflicts that have torn so many other nations apart.
The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment prohibits government from encouraging or promoting ("establishing") religion in any way. That's why we don't have an official religion of the United States. This means that the government may not give financial support to any religion. That's why many school voucher programs violate the Establishment Clause -- because they give taxpayers' money to schools that promote religion.
The Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment gives you the right to worship or not as you choose. The government can't penalize you because of your religious beliefs.
HOW DO YOU KNOW THE GOVERNMENT IS "ESTABLISHING RELIGION"?
In 1971, the Supreme Court decided Lemon v. Kurtzman which created three tests for determining whether a particular government act or policy unconstitutionally promotes religion.
The Lemon test says that in order to be constitutional, a policy must:
Have a non-religious purpose;
Not end up promoting or favoring any set of religious beliefs; and
Not overly involve the government with religion.
IS IT CONSTITUTIONAL TO TEACH RELIGION IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS?
No. The public schools are run by the government. Therefore, they must obey the First Amendment. This means that while they can teach about the influences of religion in history, literature, and philosophy -- they can't promote religious beliefs or practices as part of the curriculum. Since private and parochial schools aren't run by the government, the First Amendment doesn't apply to them.
Also, students can be excused from some school activities if they conflict with their religious beliefs.
CAN MY TEACHER START THE DAY OR A MEETING WITH PRAYER?
No. Prayers, scriptural readings, and loudspeaker devotionals violate the First Amendment because they promote religion. This is true even if the prayer is "non-denominational" (not of any particular religion.) Moments of silence might be unconstitutional -- it depends on whether or not the real reason they're being held is to encourage prayer.
CAN MY SCHOOL HAVE PRAYERS AT GRADUATION?
No. In 1992, the Supreme Court decided in Lee v. Weisman that graduation prayers are unconstitutional in public schools. Think about it: graduation prayers would give non-believers or kids of other faiths the feeling that their participation in prayer is required. It doesn't matter who leads the prayer -- a minister, a priest, a rabbi, whoever, or whether the prayer is non-denominational -- some kids would feel left out.
Student-led prayer is unconstitutional too. Just because a student or group of students leads the prayer, the graduation ceremony is still a school-sponsored event, right?
You can choose to have a private alternative event that includes prayer, like a baccalaureate. It just can't be sponsored by the school. Student, parent or church groups can organize it -- but it still must be held off of school grounds.
WHAT IF WE PUT IT TO A VOTE?
That doesn't change anything. In the United States, each individual has certain fundamental freedoms -- including freedom of religion. These can't be taken away, even by "majority rule."
Think about your friends who have different faiths or no religious beliefs at all. They'd still feel excluded from their own graduation exercises. Or worse, they'd feel like the school thought your religion was better than theirs. Put the shoe on the other foot for a second and think about how that would make you feel!
IS IT EVER OK TO PRAY IN SCHOOL?
Sure. Individual students have the right to pray whenever they want to, as long as they don't disrupt classroom instruction or other educational activities -- or try to force others to pray along with them. If a school official has told you that you can't pray at all during the school day, your right to exercise your religion is being violated. Contact your local ACLU for help.
Establishment Clause
Establishment Clause
Establishment Clause Primary tabs
The First Amendment's Establishment Clause prohibits the government from making any law “respecting an establishment of religion.” This clause not only forbids the government from establishing an official religion, but also prohibits government actions that unduly favor one religion over another. It also prohibits the government from unduly preferring religion over non-religion, or non-religion over religion.
Although some government action implicating religion is permissible, and indeed unavoidable, it is not clear just how much the Establishment Clause tolerates. In the past, the Supreme Court has permitted religious invocations to open legislative session, public funds to be used for private religious school bussing and textbooks, and university funds to be used to print and publish student religious groups' publications. Conversely, the Court has ruled against some overtly religious displays at courthouses, state funding supplementing teacher salaries at religious schools, and some overly religious holiday decorations on public land.
One point of contention regarding the Establishment Clause is how to frame government actions that implicate religion. Framing questions often arise in the context of permanent religious monuments on public land. Although it is reasonably clear that cities cannot install new religious monuments, there is fierce debate over whether existing monuments should be removed. When the Supreme Court recently considered this issue in Van Orden v. Perry, 545 U.S. 677 (2005), and McCreary County v. ACLU, 545 U.S. 844 (2005), it did not articulate a clear general standard for deciding these types of cases. The Court revisited this issue in Salazar v. Buono (08-472), a case which considered the constitutionality of a large white Christian cross erected by members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars on federal land in the Mojave Desert. While five justices concluded that a federal judge erred in barring a congressionally ordered land transfer which would place the memorial on private land, there was no majority reasoning as to why. Three Justices held that the goal of avoiding governmental endorsement of religion does not require the destruction of religious symbols in the private realm, while Justice Scalia and Justice Thomas concluded that the plaintiff lacked standing to bring this complaint.
wex ACADEMIC TOPICS legal history CIVICS the Constitution government wex articles Keywords First Amendment constitutional law constitution U.S. CONSTITUTION freedom of religion
RELIGION AND THE CONSTITUTION
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Your Rights: Freedom of Religion Pre
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Your Rights: Freedom of Religion Pre-Test
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In the American colonies, which document called for religious freedom?
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A. The Mayflower Compact
B. The US Constitution
C. The Bill of Rights
D. The Virginia Declaration of Rights
{Unknown; not A.}
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The establishment clause would prevent
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A. a church from being built in a Jewish area
B. the mayor's office from displaying a cross
C. a citizen from placing a religious scene in a business
D. the president from having a Christmas party at home
{Correct Answer-B.}
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Terms in this set (10)
In the American colonies, which document called for religious freedom?
A. The Mayflower Compact
B. The US Constitution
C. The Bill of Rights
D. The Virginia Declaration of Rights
{Unknown; not A.}
The establishment clause would prevent
A. a church from being built in a Jewish area
B. the mayor's office from displaying a cross
C. a citizen from placing a religious scene in a business
D. the president from having a Christmas party at home
{Correct Answer-B.}
Senator Quintero donates money to his local church from his personal checking account. Senator Kleinman donates money from a federally funded account to her church.
Based on this scenario, which senator is in violation of the establishment clause?
A. They are both in violation because government officials are not allowed to donate to one religion
B. Senator Quintero is in violation because he donated a large amount of money to the church.
C. Senator Kleinman is in violation because she took the money from a federally funded account.
D. Neither senator is in violation because they have the right to donate to any religious group.
{Correct Answer-C.}
What does separation of church and state mean?
A. Churches cannot make laws that violate state laws.
B. The government cannot make laws based on religion.
C. Churches are built a certain distance from state buildings.
D. The government has to make separate laws for churches.
{Correct Answer-B.}
A student is praying alone in his public school cafeteria before lunch. This activity is acceptable according to the establishment clause because...
A. prayer is not allowed in government places.
B. other students might feel pressured to pray.
C. the school is not asking the student to pray.
D. daily prayer is held at some public schools.
{Correct Answer-C.}
In Engel v. Vitale, why did the courts rule that prayer in schools was unconstitutional?
A. The prayer took time away from instruction.
B. The prayer was considered a religious activity.
C. The prayer promoted one religion.
D. The prayer was required in the school.
{Inferred Answer-B.}
[C. is incorrect]
An activity passes the "Lemon Test" if it is
A. not secular, biased, or entangled.
B. secular, biased, and free of entanglement.
C. secular, neutral, and free of entanglement.
D. not secular, neutral, or free of entanglement.
{Correct Answer-C.}
Which scenario is allowed under the free-exercise clause?
A. A parent leads a prayer in a public park.
B. A teacher gives out crosses at school.
C. A doctor charges religious patients less money.
D. A worker places a menorah in the lobby at city hall
{Correct Answer-A.}
What is the purpose of the establishment clause?
A. to give citizens the right to form religious groups
B. to stop government from supporting one religion
C. to give government power to choose a state religion
D. to stop citizens from practicing religion in public
{Correct Answer-B.}
A principal who leads a prayer at a graduation violates the First Amendment's
A. establishment clause.
B. freedom of religion clause.
C. free-exercise clause.
D. lemon test clause.
{Unknown Answer; not B.}
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