Freedom of Religion
The First Amendment
• The founding fathers had a deep
concern about the relationship between
church and state
• There are two clauses that protect
religious freedom:
The Establishment Clause
• Jefferson referred to this clause as a “wall
of separation between church and state”
– IF there is a wall, then why don’t churches
pay property taxes? Isn’t this support for
churches?
The Establishment Clause
• Supreme Court has several tests for
cases in this realm:
– Endorsement Test –
– Three-part Test
• The gov’t action/law must have a secular
purpose
The Establishment Clause
• Important decisions under the
establishment clause include:
– An end to school sponsored prayer (even
voluntary prayer led by a school)
– Types of funding to parochial schools
The Free Exercise Clause
• While your right to worship as you
choose is protected, it is only protected
as long as it does not conflict with other
important interests
The Free Exercise Clause
• If gov’t intentionally interferes w/
religious practice, then the courts will side
with religion
Court Case Whip Around
• Case 1: West Virginia Board of Education v. Barnette
(1943)
http://www.oyez.org/cases/19401949/1942/1942_591
• Case 2: Welsh v. United States (1970)
http://www.oyez.org/cases/1960-1969/1969/1969_76
• Case 3: State of Wisconsin v. Jonas Yoder, et al.
(1972)
http://www.oyez.org/cases/19701979/1971/1971_70_110