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Originally Posted by SStockDart
Look again....The phrase many Americans use to describe religious freedom, “separation of church and state” is not found in either the Constitution or the Bill of Rights. It comes from an 1802 letter by President Thomas Jefferson.
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The beginning of the First Amendment reads: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” This is called the Establishment Clause. Originally, it did two things: it banned a national church and kept the government out of existing state churches. Individuals were protected from a national government imposing a specific set of religious beliefs. The Establishment Clause keeps the government from establishing an official religion or supporting a specific religion.