ABSTRACT
As discussed in Chapter 2, the framers of the Constitution (and of the First Amendment) held differing views on the proper relationship between religion and government in the new republic. While there was virtually unanimous consensus that there should be no official national church, the founders diverged on just how far separation of church and state should go beyond that. Religious liberty was written into the United States Constitution from the beginning, with Article Six, which prohibits requiring religious qualifications for holding public office. It was substantially augmented with the adoption of the Bill of Rights in 1791. The First Amendment limits the national government’s power to intervene in religious affairs, requiring that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” The freedoms of speech, of the press, and of peaceful assembly guaranteed in the First Amendment also contribute to religious freedom.
