Compare And Contrast The Separation Of Church And State The American Myth
Separation of Church and State - The American Myth
The first amendment of the American Constitution provides for a pluralist religious society and protection against laws that prohibit religious practices. However, numberless Supreme Court cases indicate that there are limits to the free exercise clause and throughout American history, religious practices seem to be limited to the acceptance of the practice under accepted social mores. Many religious observances have been prohibited by the courts that, if read literally, the first amendment should protect and allow. While the challenge of summarizing the effects of church-state relations in America is no small task, it is possible to identify many of the elements collected from history that advanced religious freedom in America. First, the American population consisted of a mix of religions, cultures, languages, and classes. Each religious group believed their ways were the right ways and they exhibited little toleration for others, making an agreement on one established church impossible. Second, what these groups did have in common was their search for freedom to practice their beliefs without persecution, their search for wealth, …show more content…
In Minersville School District v. Gobitis (1940), the Court upheld the constitutionality of a Pennsylvania regulation that permitted the expulsion of children for not saluting the flag or reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to it. However, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943), the Court reversed itself and overturned a West Virginia law that compelled public school children to salute the flag and recite the Pledge of Allegiance. The two decisions have come to be known as the Flag Salute cases. Their importance lay in the First Amendment issues that were raised and
The first amendment of the American Constitution provides for a pluralist religious society and protection against laws that prohibit religious practices. However, numberless Supreme Court cases indicate that there are limits to the free exercise clause and throughout American history, religious practices seem to be limited to the acceptance of the practice under accepted social mores. Many religious observances have been prohibited by the courts that, if read literally, the first amendment should protect and allow. While the challenge of summarizing the effects of church-state relations in America is no small task, it is possible to identify many of the elements collected from history that advanced religious freedom in America. First, the American population consisted of a mix of religions, cultures, languages, and classes. Each religious group believed their ways were the right ways and they exhibited little toleration for others, making an agreement on one established church impossible. Second, what these groups did have in common was their search for freedom to practice their beliefs without persecution, their search for wealth, …show more content…
In Minersville School District v. Gobitis (1940), the Court upheld the constitutionality of a Pennsylvania regulation that permitted the expulsion of children for not saluting the flag or reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to it. However, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette (1943), the Court reversed itself and overturned a West Virginia law that compelled public school children to salute the flag and recite the Pledge of Allegiance. The two decisions have come to be known as the Flag Salute cases. Their importance lay in the First Amendment issues that were raised and