I think it is true that the constitution prohibits the laws and policies based on the
religious views of the people. In the first Amendment it clearly states that the "Congress
shall make no law respecting an establishment of a religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof." (B.P 50). There are two clauses in the first amendment which
guarantee the right of freedom and religion to the people of Unites States. Firstly there
is an establishment clause.. The establishment of the religion means that the clergy are
paid by the tax money and only the members of denominations can hold office or
vote. This clause prohibits the government from passing legislation to establish an
official religion or preferring one religion over another. So the first amendment makes it
clear that congress cannot make laws based on the religious views of people. In lemon
v.kurtzman it says that, "a law might not establish a state religion but nevertheless
should be one respecting it" (BP 71). Since the schools were religious and the primary
purpose of these schools was the propagation of the faith, Supreme Court declared it as
unconstitutional as it was favoring one religion over the other and hence violating the
first amendment.
The founders of the religion in the free society believed that the religion is an
indispensable. Jefferson said that, "the liberties of nation be thought secure when we
have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in there minds of the people that these
liberties are gift of god".(bp72) He believed that the fear of the god is only the firm basis
you cannot do without it. Religion is a affair that lies exclusively in place between man
and his god that he accounts to none other than his faith and worship. He says that that
only firm basis of enjoying our rights are based on religion. Hamilton said that, "Tos
substantially true, that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government."
In general the founders viewed that the religion and morality are indispensable part of a
popular government. You cannot do without it.
The fourteenth amendment of the United States constitution forbids any states
from abridging the" the privileges and immunities" of the citizens of the United states
and also forbids any state from denying any U.S citizen of "life, liberty, or property
without due process law. "(B.P-9). The right of life means the persons legal and
uninterrupted enjoyment of his life ;the right liberty consists in the power of locomotion
of moving freely from one place to another and the right of property consists in free use
and dispositions of ones property under the laws of the land. Originally the fourteenth
amendment was proposed to deal with the problems experienced by AfricansAmericans in the years immediately following the civil war. Previously the Supreme
Court ruled that the 14th amendment did not require the states to obey the limitation
listed in the bill of rights. The founders of the American constitution believed that the bill
of rights was a limitation on the federal government and it was confirmed in Barron
V.Baltimore." The effect of the Court's decision in this case was that the freedoms
guaranteed by the Bill of rights specifically the right against government taking property
without compensation, are restrictions on the federal government alone, and that state
governments are not necessarily bound by them."(Wikipedia). But, however in Gitlow
v.NewYork the court ruled that the states had to obey at least one of the limitations
listed in the bill of rights—the prohibition against abridging freedom of speech in the first
amendment.(B.P 11). In this case the court included the religious clause of the the first
amendment to the fourteenth amendment.
In my opinion I think that the constitution should prohibit the laws and policies
based on the religious views of the people. America is a democratic country and people
from different ethical groups live here. So if a constitution supports the establishment of
the people belonging to one religious group, it may lead to a innumerous number of
problems and it will also violate the first amendment of the U.S constitution. Living under
a government which does not supports the establishment of any particular religion is
very beneficial as it does on discriminate or prefer one religion over another.