Re: I Plead the 10th

It happens that Paul M. Cook formulated :
"Tony" <tony@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:ZsaTl.35931$ho7.32175@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Tom S. expressed precisely :
"Mickey" <Mickey@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:2evo15t5dbl2sngjvi3vhhpac7cd4en61v@xxxxxxxxxx
"Paul M. Cook" <pmcook@xxxxxxx> wrote:

"Tony" <tony@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message


There is no "separation of church and state" in the Constitution.

"Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion."
SOunds so vague, doesn't it?

No, it's very clear. It says Congress is prohibited from ESTABLISHING
a state religion. It says nothing about "separation of church and
state".

Same thing.

Not really. The entire design was to keep government out of church affairs. There could be no state religion, nor could the state prevent citizens from worshipping as they wish.


Words were used differently back then. An establishment of religion means a church, as in the Mormon Church, the Lutheran church, Islamic etc. Establishment as in organization. The writings of many of the FFs made it very clear they wanted the clergy out of politics in order to avoid the kind of co-mingling that kept Europe enslaved for centuries. Back them, you pissed off the church - you were dead meat. Literally. You worshipped how they told you to worship and you otherwise lived at their mercy.

They never took away the rights of a clergyman to vote. Nor did they take away their right to peacefully assemble and petition their government for redress.

The purpose was there would be no interference by government in your religious worship. There is no prohibition against using your religiously informed conscience (whatever religion you are) to make political decisions. As a matter of fact, if you are a true follower of your religion, you should do that. After all, the 'global warming' planet worshippers do it. They're trying to impose their religious views on all of us.

--
The Cigar Diary
http://www.cigardiary.com


.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Some stats for John
    ... John has been maintaining that churches and church attendance ... I have stated that religion teaches ... You have been advocating that attendance at houses of worship ... to 10% of children attend houses of worship of any sort. ...
    (rec.scouting.issues)
  • Re: Harry Potter And The Death Of God: The Series Is A Kind Of Anti-Gospel
    ... supernatural deity that religion worships that lacks reality. ... called GOD - but there is no reason to believe GOD is anything ... More likely it is a CLEAR sign that those are NOT true houses of worship ... with you to be considered a church? ...
    (alt.fan.harry-potter)
  • Re: Harry Potter And The Death Of God: The Series Is A Kind Of Anti-Gospel
    ... supernatural deity that religion worships that lacks reality. ... called GOD - but there is no reason to believe GOD is anything ... More likely it is a CLEAR sign that those are NOT true houses of worship ... with you to be considered a church? ...
    (alt.fan.harry-potter)
  • Re: Not just OT but also non-PC (Was Re: Fedup - 27 October)
    ... Catholics do not pray to saints in the same way as they pray to God. ... read as a stab against organised religion, ... deny that the RC church would like to do so if you'd let it? ... to _all_ religion and worship. ...
    (uk.media.radio.archers)
  • Re: Not just OT but also non-PC (Was Re: Fedup - 27 October)
    ... I'm an atheist because I don't "have" God. ... but to what extent this worship was "imposed" on individuals by ... And then there's the culture of that organised religion - witness the ... I'd like to think a church was something you belonged to ...
    (uk.media.radio.archers)