A Wall of Separation Between Church and State

Jefferson

When Thomas Jefferson wrote his famous letter to the Danbury Baptist Association in 1802 he had no way of knowing that, 204 years later, it would serve as the short hand for the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Jefferson's phrase "a wall of separation between church and state" or the more modern "separation of church and state" has been often bandied about by individuals seeking to argue against religiously motivated actions on the part of the government and against the interference by religious institutions in the affairs of state.

Jefferson's words are usually employed in somewhat heated debates here on Newsvine, and the consequential rebuttal inevitably involves demanding that the Jeffersonian party produce evidence that these words appear in the Constitution - which they obviously do not.

This argument is fallacious and it is my intent to set it to rest once and for all for two reasons: first, that those choosing to invoke the "separation of church and state" might fully understand the historical and political significance of the phrase and secondly so that the those that might oppose it would find a more meaningful critique than the absence of those specific words in the Constitution.

I shall attempt to address the history of the phrase first, delving into Jefferson's "credentials" on the topic at hand, and elaborating on the implications of Jefferson's viewpoint. Jefferson strongly opposed the creation of a powerful centralized government. He was not, as many Americans think, a participant in the drafting of the Constitution as he was serving in the diplomatic corps in France at the time.

Jefferson's political affiliation reflected this reality - he helped found the Democratic-Republican party, the precursor to the modern Democratic Party, and generally regarded the Constitution as flawed for its lack of a bill of rights. His endeavors to secure these enumerated rights lead him to draft the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom and to support the Bill of Rights (which incorporates much of the language and ideology of the VSRF).

Given this reality, it is important to recognize Jefferson's opinions on the matters of Religious Freedom as those which most directly and most accurately reflect the intent of the authors of the Bill of Rights, and by extension the 1st Amendment.

But what does this mean? Jefferson's idea of a wall of separation has a stunning array of consequences, each important in its own right. Most important among them, however, are the two most obvious ones.

First - that the interference of the Government in matters of Faith is to be avoided at all costs.

The phrasing of the 1st Amendment would lead us to understand that Congress should not establish an official state religion, but a more insightful reading, taking into account Jefferson's own ideas on the issue, lends a much more restrictive reading. Government ought not make decisions of faith for us at all.

Second - that the interference of Religion in the affairs of Government is to be similarly avoided.

This is not to say that individuals voting for their Representatives ought not consider matters of faith when voting - but that religious institutions ought to stay out of politics as a rule. To a certain extent, this is observed at present. Churches which make overtly political statements risk their tax-exempt status and rightly so -- as PACs and other political organizations are not tax exempt.

I hope that my fellow readers and writers will find this essay helpful and perhaps a little informative. Arguments about Religion tend to become mired in one-line retorts with little thought for the deeper historical and political context of the discussion. Perhaps this post will serve to add some depth to our discourse.

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