Video: Original Bill of Rights, First 10 Amendments

When discussing saieratpon of church and state, it is critical to distinguish between the public square and government and to distinguish “individual” from government speech on religion. You are correct to note that the First Amendment does not remove religion from the public square far from it. Indeed, the First Amendment’s free exercise clause assures that each individual is free to exercise and express his or her religious views publicly as well as privately. And in practice there is religion aplenty in the public square; I see and hear it daily in the media, on the street, on the internet, etc. The Amendment constrains only the government not to promote or otherwise take steps toward establishment of religion. As government can only act through the individuals comprising its ranks, when those individuals are performing their official duties (e.g., public school teachers instructing students in class), they effectively are the government and thus should conduct themselves in accordance with the First Amendment’s constraints on government. When acting in their individual capacities, they are free to exercise their religi