|
<!-- Do NOT change spelling of words from British to American English. More than likely, if you think a word is misspelled, it is not. Check [[American and British English spelling differences]] and take it to the articles talk page before changing. -->
{{Mergefrom|Laïcité|Talk:Separation of church and state#Merge proposal|date=October 2006}}
{{current|date=June 2007}}
The '''separation of church and state''' is a political doctrine which states that the institutions of the state or national government should be kept separate from those of [[religion|religious]] institutions. The concept has been a topic of [[politics|political]] debate throughout history.
{{Infobox terrorist attack
|title=2007 London Car Bombs
|image=Haymarket car bomb.jpg
|caption=The Mercedes-Benz on Haymarket covered by a tent
|___location=[[London, UK|London]], [[United Kingdom]]
|target=[[Haymarket (London)|Haymarket]],<br>[[Park Lane (road)|Park Lane]]
|date=[[29 June]] [[2007]]
|time-begin=
|time-end=
|timezone=|type=Attempted [[car bomb]]s
|injuries= 0
|perps=Unknown number, identities as yet unknown
|Status=Not successful
}}
On '''[[29 June]] [[2007]]''', '''two unexploded [[car bomb]]s''' were discovered in '''[[London]]''', in the '''[[United Kingdom]]'''. The first device was found near the [[Tiger Tiger (nightclub)|Tiger Tiger]] [[nightclub]] in [[Haymarket (London)|Haymarket]]. The device was removed and later disassembled by explosives officers. Several reports were made to the [[Metropolitan Police Service|police]], including one from an [[paramedic|ambulance crew]] that saw what looked like smoke in the car (which later transpired to be petrol evaporating) some time after 01:25 ([[Western European Summer Time|BST]]) after being called to the nightclub to attend to a man who had fallen over and suffered a minor head injury.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,70131-1272962,00.html | title=Bomb Attempt: Police Briefing |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Sky News]]}}</ref> The car was a [[1989]]<ref name=CNNPhoto>{{cite news|url=http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/interactive/world/0706/gallery.london.scare/images/super.patiogas.weir.jpg | title=Car registration plate (G-prefix indicates 1989) |date=[[2007-06-29]]}}</ref> light metallic green [[Mercedes-Benz W124|Mercedes 300E]] [[sedan|saloon]].
Around 04:00 there were reports that two large gas canisters and a large number of nails had been found in the car.<ref name=BBC>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6252276.stm | title=Police avert car bomb "carnage" |date=[[2007-06-29]] |work =[[BBC News]]}}</ref><ref name=Skynews-1>{{cite news|url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,70131-1272910,00.html | title=Two Bombs Were Set To Blow In London |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Sky News]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/picture_gallery/picture_gallery/0,,70131-1272919,00.html | title=Sky News Pictures - London bomb scare|date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Sky News]]}}</ref> The second device was left in a blue [[Mercedes-Benz W123|Mercedes-Benz]] [[sedan|saloon car]] in nearby Cockspur Street,<ref name=BBC1>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6255960.stm | title=Two car bombs found in West End|date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[BBC]]}}</ref> but was not discovered until after the car had been towed away as it was found to be illegally parked.<ref name=Telegraph1>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/29/nbomb1029.xml | author=Duncan Gardham and Sally Peck
==Overview of the principle==
| title=Second car bomb found in London's West End|date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Telegraph]]}}</ref>
In the [[United States]], separation of church and state is sometimes believed to be in the [[Establishment Clause of the First Amendment|Establishment Clause]] of the [[First Amendment]] to the [[U.S. Constitution]] and by legal precedents interpreting that clause, some being extremely controversial. The Establishment Clause states that, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;" However, the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] decided that the [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fourteenth Amendment]] (one of the [[Reconstruction|Reconstruction Amendments]]) makes the Establishment Clause and other portions of the [[Bill of Rights]] binding on state and local governments as well, although it is arguable that this restriction on state and local government existed in Article VI of the unamended Constitution and that the Fourteenth Amendment was a clarification on the limitation of government power. Many other democratic governments around the world have similar clauses in their respective constitutions.
<!--These events took place two days after [[Gordon Brown]] became the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] and one day after [[Home Secretary]] [[Jacqui Smith]] took office, a week before the second anniversary of the [[7 July 2005 London bombings|2005 London bombings]] and a day before a [[Pride London|gay pride march]] was to take place along the street where the first bomb was found.-->
The phrase "separation of church and state" does not appear in the Constitution, but rather is derived from a letter written by [[Thomas Jefferson]] to a group identifying themselves as the [[Danbury Baptists]]. In that letter, quoting the [[First Amendment]] of the [[United States Constitution]], he writes: "I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between Church and State." [http://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/9806/danpre.html Letter to Danbury Baptists (1802)]
==Timeline==
While Jefferson's letter is often cited by separationists to prove that the original intent of the First Amendment was complete separation of church and state, anti-separationists either consider it irrelevant or might say that it supports the idea that the original intention of the First Amendment was to guarantee religion the freedom to exist without government influence, and say that it makes no mention of government being wholly separate from all religious activity. This is supported by Federal Government decisions on the matter, such as Supreme court case [[Vidal v. Philadelphia]], as well as Federal Government's past involvement in printing Bibles, and using the Bible as a textbook in public schools.
[[Image:The Haymarket London.jpg|thumb|Haymarket]]
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Time (UTC+1)!!Event
|-
! colspan=3 style="text-align:center" | [[29 June]] [[2007]]
|-
| '''01:25'''
| [[London Ambulance Service]] crew report seeing smoke in a car parked in [[Haymarket (London)|Haymarket]]. Eyewitnesses claim to have seen the car being driven "erratically" and then crashing into bins, after which the driver got out and ran off.<ref name=BBC/>
|-
| '''02:00'''
| [[Metropolitan Police Service|Metropolitan Police officers]] investigate the vehicle and cordon off the area.<ref name=BBC>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6252276.stm | title=Police avert car bomb "carnage" |date=[[2007-06-29]] |work =[[BBC News]]}}</ref>
|-
| '''02:30'''
| A second car is found illegally parked in Cockspur Street, near Trafalgar Square.<ref name=BBC2>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6256386.stm | title=London car bombs timeline |date=[[2007-06-30]] |work =[[BBC News]]}}</ref>
|-
| '''03:30'''
| The second car is taken to a car pound in Park Lane. Police manually disable a device in the first car.<ref name=BBC2/>
|-
| '''04:00'''
| A witness sees the police removing gas canisters from the car.
|-
| '''08:00'''
| [[Piccadilly Circus tube station|Piccadilly Circus Underground station]] is closed.
|-
| '''10:25'''
| The car is taken from Haymarket and sent to the [[Dstl|Defence Science and Technology Laboratory's]] research site at [[Fort_Halstead|Fort Halstead]] in [[Kent|Kent]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.kentnews.co.uk//kent-news/Fort-Halstead-probes-car-in-London-security-scare-newsinkent4217.aspx | title=Fort Halstead probes car in London security scare |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Kent News]]}}</ref>
|-
| '''10:30'''
| The government's [[Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms|COBR]] committee meets to discuss the issue. Piccadilly Circus Underground station is reopened.
|-
| '''14:30'''
|[[Park Lane (road)|Park Lane]] is closed off after a second suspect vehicle is discovered in an underground car park.<ref name=parklane>{{cite news|url=http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20070629/tuk-britain-attacks-alert-a7ad41d.html | title=Central London street sealed off amid new alert |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Yahoo! News]]}}</ref>
|-
| '''15:45'''
|A police bomb investigation robot is seen near the entrance to the car park.<ref name=parklane />
|-
| '''17:00'''
|Police cordon off [[Fleet Street]] after finding a third suspicious vehicle.
|-
|'''18:00'''
|Fleet Street re-opens after nothing is found in the vehicle.
|-
|'''19:00'''
|Police confirm that a second device has been located at the Park Lane site.<ref name=Telegraph1 />
|-
| '''20:45'''
|Police confirm that both vehicles were packed with nails, petrol and gas cylinders.<ref name=BBC2/>
|}
==First bomb==
[[James Madison]], the principal drafter of the [[Bill of Rights]], often wrote of "total separation of the church from the state" ([[1819]] letter to Walsh); "Strongly guarded . . . is the separation between religion and government in the Constitution of the United States.", and he declared "practical distinction between Religion and Civil Government as essential to the purity of both, and as guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States" (1811 letter to Baptist Churches). [[Ulysses S. Grant]] also called for Americans to "Keep the church and state forever separate."
[[Image:Tiger Tiger Haymarket.jpg|thumb|[[Tiger Tiger (nightclub)|Tiger Tiger nightclub]] in Haymarket.]]
The vehicle has been reported to have contained 60 litres of [[Gasoline|petrol]], [[gas cylinder]]s, and [[Nail (engineering)|nail]]s.<ref>BBC News: [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6253802.stm Q&A: Car bomb investigation], July 29, 2007</ref> [[Scotland Yard]] has reported that while the gas contained in the canisters and the quantity of the canisters remains unknown, they do not wish to increase speculation and that further details will be given after they have been analysed by [[Forensic science | forensic]] experts. The head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorism command said, "It is obvious that if the device had detonated there could have been serious injury or loss of life."<ref name=BBC /> However, the device could not have detonated, because it lacked an oxidizer, according to a columnist for The Register (UK).<ref>http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/29/more_fear_biscuits_please/</ref><ref>http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/07/02/terror_idiocy_outbreak/</ref> This information may have originated from an interview of former [[CIA]] counter-terrorism officer Larry Johnson, conducted by [[Keith Olbermann]] of MSNBC on 29 June. <ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QK5-jIfOBjQ&eurl=</ref>
According to ''[[Sky News]]'', the gas cylinders contained [[propane]] gas, used for patio heaters.<ref name=Skynews-1>{{cite news|url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,70131-1272910,00.html | title=Two Bombs Were Set To Blow In London |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Sky News]]}}</ref>
The belief that religious and state institutions should be separate covers a wide spectrum, ranging between one extreme which would secularize or eliminate the church, and theocracy, in which the government is an affiliate of the church. Some secularists believe that the state should be kept entirely separate from religion, and that the institutions of religion should be entirely free from governmental interference. Churches that exercise their authority completely apart from government endorsement, whose foundations are not in the state, are conventionally called "Free" churches.
==Second bomb==
A ''[[secular]]'' government does not cite a specific religious institution for the justification of its authority. However, some secular governments claim quasi-religious justifications for their powers, emphasizing the relationship mainly for ceremonial and rhetorical purposes. This is done for the general welfare and the benefit of the state, does not necessarily favor any specific religious group, and the state does not conform to any doctrine other than its own. This arrangement is called ''[[civil religion]]''. Some secularists would allow the state to encourage religion (such as by providing exemptions from taxation, or providing funds for education and charities, including those that are "faith based"), but insist the state should not establish one religion as the [[state religion]], require religious observance, or legislate dogma.
A second bomb was later found in a blue [[Mercedes-Benz W123|Mercedes-Benz 280E]]<ref name=BBC2/> believed to have been left in the same area at around the same time. The illegally-parked car received a parking ticket in Cockspur Street at 02:30. At about 03:30 the car was transported to the Park Lane car pound. Staff left the car in a public area after smelling petrol fumes and alerted police on hearing about the first bomb.<ref name=Telegraph1>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/29/nbomb1029.xml | title=Second car bomb found in London's West End|date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Telegraph]]}}</ref><ref name=BBC-A>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6255452.stm | title=
Police hunt for London car bomber
|date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[BBC News]]}}</ref>
==Suspects==
Some countries embrace a middle position, a compromise between secular and religious government. In these countries the state uses the powers of government to directly support a specific religious institution or [[established church]]. In Turkey, for example, despite it being an officially secular country, the Preamble of the Constitution states that ''"There shall be no interference whatsoever of the sacred religious feelings in State affairs and politics."'' In order to control the way religion is perceived by adherents, the State pays imams' wages, and provides religious education in public schools (article 24 of [[Constitution of Turkey|that country's Constitution]]). The State has a Department of Religious Affairs (article 136 of the Constitution), directly under the Prime Minister bureaucratically, responsible for organizing the Muslim religion - including what will and will not be mentioned in sermons given at mosques, especially on Fridays. Such an interpretation of secularism, where religion is under strict control of the State is largely at odds with the [[Free Exercise Clause]] of the [[First Amendment]] of the [[U.S. Constitution]], and is a good example of how secularism can be applied in a variety of ways in different regions of the world.
U.S. officials told [[NBC News]] that three men have been identified and are believed to be from [[Birmingham]]. Furthermore, the network reported that one of the three men could be an associate of [[Dhiren Barot]], an [[India]]n [[Conversion to Islam|convert to Islam]] who was sentenced to life in prison last year for plotting to fill limousines with explosives similar to those found in these incidents and park them in garages beneath hotels and office complexes. Bharot, whom police described as a high-level [[al-Qaeda]] operative, also planned to attack five financial landmarks in the United States: the [[New York Stock Exchange]] and the [[Citigroup Tower]] in [[New York City]]; the [[International Monetary Fund]] and the [[World Bank]], both in [[Washington, D.C.]]; and the [[Prudential Financial|Prudential Building]] in [[Newark, New Jersey]]. [[Scotland Yard]] are denying claims from a report by [[ABC News]] that police had a "crystal clear" picture of one suspect from [[Closed-circuit television|CCTV]] footage.<ref>MSNBC and NBC News: [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19516724/ U.K. police hunt for London car bomb plotters], June 30, 2007</ref>
A 27-year-old doctor Mohammed Haneef was arrested at Brisbane Airport on 2 July in connection with the bombings in the UK. The doctor works at the [[Gold Coast Hospital]] and is believed to be a junior doctor from India. He was arrested while trying to board a flight with a one way ticket to [[Bangalore]], India, apparently to visit his newly born daughter. The arrest followed information received from the UK. <ref>Daily Telegraph July 5 [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/05/nterror205.xml]</ref> A second doctor was detained at the Gold Coast Hospital by police on 3 July 2007 and was later released.{{Fact|date=July 2007}}
A [[theocracy]] exists when a religion establishes the government and religious law is applied to state policy under the direct authority of the religious institution. In a theocracy, the courts or officials of the religion direct policies of the civil government.
==Aftermath==
The separation of church and state is similar to the concept of [[freedom of religion]], but the two concepts are not the same. For example, the citizens in a country with a state church may have complete freedom of religion. And citizens in a country without a state church may or may not enjoy the freedom to practice their religion. In the United States, the structure and wording of the [[First Amendment]] with both the [[Establishment Clause]] and the [[Free Exercise Clause]], demonstrates this difference. Both clauses have evolved an important body of case law from the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] as well as lower federal courts.
A spokesperson for [[Pride London]] stated that the route of their [[gay pride]] march, set for [[30 June]] [[2007]], would be unchanged although extra precautions such as removing bins would be implemented.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.pridelondon.org/ | title=Car bomb found in London |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Pride London]]}}</ref> The police do not think the attacks were targeted at the event. Other suspicious vehicles in [[Park Lane (road)|Park Lane]] and [[Fleet Street]]<ref>{{cite news|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUKL2919779720070629 | author=Peter Graff and Mark Trevelyan| title=Police find two car bombs in central London |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Reuters UK]]}}</ref> were investigated by police, as well as reports of suspicious cars in other areas of the UK, such as [[Warrington]],<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/6253720.stm | title=Police lift town exclusion zone |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[BBC News Online]]}}</ref> which suffered a [[Warrington bomb attacks|1993 bomb attack]] by the [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]].{{Fact|date=July 2007}}
Office workers, students and tourists were still enjoying a Friday night out in London only hours after the discovery of the bombs. Bars and clubs remained open and [[Mayor of London|London mayor]] [[Ken Livingstone]] urged the capital's communities to work together to defeat the terrorism threat.<ref>Rupert Neate, Rachel Williams and Helen Pidd: [http://www.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,,2115283,00.html Bomb alerts and travel chaos fail to deter West End revellers], ''The Guardian'', June 30, 2007</ref>
While many states or nations permit freedom of religious ''belief'', no country allows completely unrestricted freedom of religious ''practice''. National laws, when they reflect important or fundamental governmental interests, may prohibit certain acts which some citizens may claim represent the free exercise of their religious belief.
Security at [[The Championships, Wimbledon|Wimbledon]] was increased as a result of the incident.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.tennis.com/news/news.aspx?id=89624 | author=AP| title=Security increased at Wimbledon due to terrorist threat |date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[Tennis.com]]}}</ref> [[Her Majesty's Government|Whitehall]] sources later stated that "international elements" were believed to be involved with the bomb.<ref name=BBC/> Police claim to have a "crystal clear" picture of the driver of the first car and suspect he may be an individual formerly detained in relation to the [[2004_Financial_buildings_plot|case]] of convicted terrorist Dhiren Barot.<ref name="Barot">Brian Ross and Richard Esposito: [http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/06/terror-plot-inv.html Terror Plot Involves Islamic Extremists; Police Have 'Crystal Clear' Picture of Suspect], ''ABC News'', June 29, 2007</ref> Barot was connected to an earlier "limousine bomb" plot, which also involved cars packed with [[propane]] gas cylinders.<ref name=BBC1/><ref>Dominic Casciani:
In the United States, state laws can prohibit practices such as bigamy, sex with children, human and occasionally animal sacrifice, use of drugs, or other criminal acts, even if citizens claims the practices are part of their religious belief system. However, the federal courts give close scrutiny to any state or local laws that impinge upon the ''bona fide'' exercise of religious practices. The courts ensure that genuine and important religious rights are not impeded, and that questionable practices are limited only to the extent necessary. The courts usually demand that any laws restricting religious practices must demonstrate a fundamental or "compelling" state interest, such as protecting citizens from bodily harm. See [[Free Exercise Clause]] for further discussion.
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6756619.stm The men who made a plot possible], [[BBC]], [[2007-06-15]]</ref> One senior law enforcement official called the event a "terror plot involving [[Islamist terrorism|Islamic extremists]]."<ref name="Barot">Brian Ross and Richard Esposito: [http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/06/terror-plot-inv.html Terror Plot Involves Islamic Extremists; Police Have 'Crystal Clear' Picture of Suspect], ''ABC News'', June 29, 2007</ref>
[[CBS News]] has reported that a message appeared on the widely used [[jihad]]ist [[Internet forum]] [[Al-Hesbah]] at 08:09, [[June 28]] [[2007]], stating: "Today I say: Rejoice, by Allah, London shall be bombed." The message went on to mention the recently announced [[Knighthood of Salman Rushdie|knighthood]] of ''[[The Satanic Verses|Satanic Verses]]'' author [[Salman Rushdie]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/06/29/terror/main2997517.shtml | author=Tucker Reals |title=Was London Bomb Plot Heralded On Web?|date=[[2007-06-29]]| work =[[CBS News]]}}</ref>
==History==
===Ancient===
:''Main article: [[Separation of church and state (ancient)]]
The following day, in another incident, a [[Jeep Cherokee (XJ)|Jeep Cherokee]] was [[2007 Glasgow International Airport attack|set on fire and driven into the main departure terminal]] of [[Glasgow International Airport]] causing considerable damage. Two men, believed to be of Asian appearance, were arrested at the scene. One, who had been on fire, was taken to a nearby hospital and the other to a police station. [[Home Secretary]] [[Jacqui Smith]] announced that the attack is being treated as a terrorist attack and that the United Kingdom terrorism threat level has been elevated from "Severe" to "Critical", meaning "further attacks are expected imminently". In a press conference Glasgow police said this attack and the car bombs in London are believed to be linked.<ref>BBC News: [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/6257194.stm Blazing car crashes into airport], June 30, 2007</ref><ref>UK Home Office: [http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/security/current-threat-level/ Current Threat Level]</ref><ref>Mark Townsend, Jo Revill and Paul Kelbie: [http://www.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,,2115693,00.html Glasgow attacked as terror threat spreads], ''The Guardian'', June 30, 2007</ref>. The BBC reported that a mobile phone found after the arrest of the Glasgow suspects contained the numbers of those involved in the London bombing attempts. The Metropolitan Police say this is the first evidence they have linking the events.{{Fact|date=July 2007}}
"Church" and state were separate institutions in ancient Israel. The offices of state (e.g; the king) and the religious cult (e.g.; the priesthood) were separate and limited to their respective spheres of authority and responsibility. In other cultures, the civil ruler was usually also the highest religious leader and sometimes considered divine. Under republican government, religious officials were appointed just like political ones. In other cases a religious authority also held the highest civil authority, as in the autonomous [[Judaea|Judaean]] [[theocracy]] under foreign supremacy. [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] emperors were considered divine and also occupied the highest religious office. This was challenged by Christians who acknowledged the Emperor's political authority but refused to participate in the state's religion or to recognize the emperor's divinity. Because of this, Christians were considered enemies of the state and adherence to Christianity was punishable by death (e.g., [[Justin Martyr]] under [[Marcus Aurelius]]). At various times, this resulted in violent [[Persecution of Christians|persecutions]] until [[Constantine I (emperor)|Constantine I]] and [[Licinius]] signed the [[Edict of Milan]] in 313. The [[Roman Empire]] formally became Christian by edict of [[Theodosius I]] in 390. The teachings of Jesus himself are sometimes cited as providing support for the separation of church and state, (e.g. Mark 12: 17: "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."). Being a child of the people of Israel, he would have been familiar with the distinct and separate offices of king and priest.
In the [[United States]] White House press secretary [[Tony Snow]] said "There is no specific or credible evidence of any threat of any kind against the United States of America." [[Homeland Security]] Secretary [[Michael Chertoff]] said there were no immediate plans to raise the U.S. national threat level, now at yellow, or elevated. In [[New York City]] Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]] said police would work extra hours in more locations. The police department increased patrols at high profile tourist areas such as [[Times Square]], as well as the subways. Officers were told to give extra attention to parking garages and any suspicious vehicles. After the Glasgow attack patrols were increased at some airports.<ref>AP: [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19503746/ U.S. urges vigilance after U.K. bomb defused], ''MSNBC'', June 29, 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19524699/ U.S. ‘comfortable’ with terror alert status MSNBC]</ref>
===Medieval===
:''Main article: [[Separation of church and state (medieval)]]
In the West, the separation of church and state during the medieval period saw monarchs who ruled by [[Divine Right of Kings|divine right]] and papal authorities who claimed to wield God's earthly authority. This unresolved contradiction in ultimate control of the state led to power struggles and crises of leadership that resulted in a number of important events in the development of the west.
At approximately 21:30 on [[30 June]], officers of the [[Metropolitan Police Service|Metropolitan Police]] and [[West Midlands Police]] arrested two people at junction 16 on the northbound [[M6 motorway]] near [[Sandbach]] in south Cheshire, blocking the motorway for about 40 minutes.<ref>BBC News: [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6257606.stm UK terror threat now 'critical'], July 1, 2007 </ref>
In the Eastern Roman Empire, also known as the [[Byzantine Empire]], the Emperor had supreme power over the church and controlled its highest representative, the [[Patriarch of Constantinople]]. [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodoxy]] was the state religion. When the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]] conquered Constantinople (now Istanbul), the Emperor was killed. The position of head of the [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Church]] was given to Gennadius II Scholarius by the conquering Islamic Ottoman ruler, Sultan Mehmed II, who continued to practice the right of the Roman Emperor to appoint the head of the Eastern Orthodox Church.
[[Gordon Brown]] stated on [[July 1]] that "[it is] clear that we are dealing, in general terms, with people who are associated with al-Qaeda."<ref>BBC News: [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6258062.stm ''PM defiant over "al-Qaeda threat"''], July 1, 2007; retrieved [[July 1]] [[2007]]</ref>
===Modern===
:''Main article: [[Separation of church and state (modern)]]
Countries in the modern world have varying degrees of separation of church and state; some countries are stricter than others in disallowing church influence on the state. In some countries, however, the two institutions are heavily interconnected.
On [[July 4]] a suicide note was found that police said belonged to two of the suspects.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/07/04/london.investigation/index.html UK terror police find suicide note]</ref>
==Secularism and theocracy==
[[Secularism]] in government is a policy of avoiding or reducing entanglement between civil and religious institutions, ranging from reducing ties to a state church to promoting the secularization of public discourse.
==References==
There are automatic entanglements between the institutions, inasmuch as the religious institution, and its adherents, are members of civil society. Secularism ''requires the primacy of civil laws'' within its jurisdictions; but some policies provide for protections of religious expression, in order not to unnecessarily conflict with the claims of religion over the public lives of its adherents. Most forms of secularism propose policies guided by an interest in the free exercise of religion, and freedom also for lack of religion, for the sake of assuring equal protection under the same laws. But to the extent that religion cannot be a strictly private matter, some policies defined as "free exercise of religion" are, in terms of a religion which mandates a public duty for its adherents, restrictive of their religion in certain respects.
{{reflist|2}}
== See also ==
Some political philosophies, such as [[Marxism]] generally hold the belief that ''any'' religious influence in a state or society is a negative thing. In nations that have officially embraced such beliefs, such as the former [[Eastern Europe]]an [[Communist Bloc]] countries, the religious institution was made subject to the secular state, in the public interest. Freedom to worship was subject to licensure and other restrictions, and the doctrine of the church was monitored to assure conformity to secular law, and inoffensiveness to the official public philosophy. In the Western democracies, it is generally agreed that such a policy is not conducive to freedom of religion.
* [[2007 UK terrorist incidents]]
* [[2007 Glasgow International Airport attack]]
* [[21 July 2005 London bombings]]
== External links ==
The [[#France|French version]] of secularism is called [[laïcité]]. This model of a secularist state protects the religious institutions from some types of interference by the state, but public religious expression is also limited. The intention is to protect the public power from the influences of the religious institution, as these might be mediated through the decisions of its adherents, especially in public office (''see [[anti-clericism]]''). Religious perspectives which contain no idea of public responsibility, or which hold religious opinion to be irrelevant to politics, will be less impinged upon by this type of secularization of public discourse.
{{Wikinewspar5|Car bomb defused in central London|MI5 terror threat warning level raised to 'critical'|Further arrests following terror attacks in London and Glasgow|Eighth suspect connected to failed UK bombings arrested|Controlled explosions take place as police enquiry into UK bombings continues}}
*[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/gallery/070629/GAL-07Jun29-79723/index.html ''Washington Post Photo Gallery'']
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/6253418.stm In pictures: Car bomb discovered] ([[BBC]])
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6253778.stm London mayor calls for vigilance] ([[BBC]])
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6255960.stm Metropolitan Police press conference (video)] ([[BBC]])
*[http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,70131-1272910,00.html Public On Alert As Car Bombing Foiled] ([[Sky News]])
*[http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/546BFEB3-352D-488C-97BD-F0E08351DE68.htm Al-Jazeera News coverage (in English)]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QK5-jIfOBjQ Keith Olbermann with ex-CIA expert on MSNBC]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6265674.stm] BBC News, Heathrow T4 Suspect package
{{War on Terrorism}}
Though the goal of a secularist state is to be religiously neutral, when the expression of religious opinion is excluded from the public sphere it is repressive of some aspects of religion. Ostensibly, it is equally repressive toward all religions in order to be equally protective of all from interference by others.
[[Category:2007 in London|car bombs]]
Many [[Western world|Western]] democratic nations place a high importance on the separation of the institutions of church and state. Some nations, such as the [[United States|United States of America]], [[Australia]] and [[Canada]], even have specific clauses in their [[constitution]]s which are widely interpreted as forbidding the government from favoring one religion over another.
[[Category:Terrorist incidents in 2007]]
[[Category:Terrorism in London]]
Other democracies, such as the [[United Kingdom]], have a constitutionally established [[state religion]], but are inclusive of citizens of other faiths. In countries like these, the [[head of government]] or [[head of state]] or other high-ranking official figures may be legally required to be a member of a given faith. Powers to appoint high-ranking members of the state churches are also often still vested in the worldly governments. These powers may be slightly anachronistic or superficial, however, and disguise the true level of religious freedom the nation possesses.
[[Category:Al-Qaeda activities]]
[[Category:Islamist terrorism in Europe]]
The opposite end of the spectrum from secularization is a [[theocracy]], in which the state is founded upon the institution of religion, and the [[rule of law]] is based on the dictates of a religious court. Examples include ancient Israel, [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Vatican City|the Vatican]] and [[Iran]]. In such countries state affairs are managed by religious authority, or at least by its consent. In theocracies, the degree to which those who are not members of the official religion are to be protected is decided by professors of the official religion, and ordinarily the civil rights, or restrictions of rights of the unfavored group, are defined in terms of the official religion.
[[Category:Failed terrorist attempts]]
==Enactment==
Separation of church and state occurs in different ways:
* legal separation
* voluntary separation, such as by churches teaching that religious ceremony should be confined to either the church or the [[home]].
Some countries of the world have a stable separation between church and state, while other countries are in a state of political unrest over the separation. The [[1905]] [[France|French]] [[1905 French law on the separation of Church and State|law on the separation of church and state]] started considerable [[controversy]] and even [[riot]]s.
Separation of church and state is a notion related to, but separate from, [[freedom of religion]]. There are many countries with an official religion, such as the United Kingdom or [[Norway]], where freedom of religion is guaranteed. Conversely, it is possible for a country not to have an official religion, or a set of official religions, yet to discriminate against [[atheism|atheist]]s or members of religions outside of the mainstream. For instance, while the United States does not officially advance any particular religion, proponents of atheism were persecuted in many US jurisdictions in the [[19th century]].
There are different interpretations of the notion of separation of church and state:
* one sees this separation from a legal and financial point of view: the State should not establish nor fund religious activities, and may even be prohibited from funding non-religious activities affiliated to religious organizations;
* another sees this separation in keeping motivations of public policies out of the religious beliefs, preventing interference from state authorities into religious affairs. In this way every person may worship whoever and however they desire.
* another sees this separation in keeping religious beliefs out of the motivations of public policies, preventing interference from religious authorities into state affairs, and disapproving of political leaders expressing religious preferences in the course of their duties.
For instance, [[France]] is legally prohibited from funding religious activities (except for [[Alsace-Moselle]] and military [[chaplain]]s), but funds some private religious schools for their non-religious activities as long as they apply the national curriculum and do not discriminate on grounds of religion; yet religious motivations are usually kept out of the political process.
==Countries with separation==
Different countries have different approaches to the separation of church and state.
===[[Australia]]===
Since the founding of the [[Commonwealth of Australia]] in [[1901]], religious freedom has been guaranteed and state religion has been outlawed. Section 116 of the [[Australian Constitution]] says:
:''The Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any religion, or for imposing any religious observance, or for prohibiting the free exercise of any religion, and no religious test shall be required as a qualification for any office or public trust under the Commonwealth.'' [http://www.australianpolitics.com/constitution/text/116.shtml]
Some Australian judges (see Murphy ([http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/disp.pl/au/cases/cth/HCA/1981/2.html?query=title(black+%20near+%20commonwealth)])) have gone so far as to say that the government cannot support [[religious school]]s, even if done in a non-discriminatory way. The [[High Court of Australia]], however, has consistently allowed funding of religious schools. State aid for non-Government schools became an issue in [[1962 in Australia#Events|1962]] and was a major campaign issue in the [[Australian legislative election, 1963|1963 federal election]], following which federal and State Government funds have supported non-Government schools.
The issue of separation between religion and state is generally less contentious than in the United States. The [[Australian Parliament]] still holds prayers at the start of each sitting day and has since [[federation]]. Attendance at the prayer services is optional but many [[Member of Parliament|Members of Parliament]] do attend.
===[[Canada]]===
In Canada there is no established church, however religious groups can qualify for tax-exemption. The amount of funding religious schools receive varies from province to province. In many provinces religious schools are government funded in the same way other independent schools are. In most parts of Canada there is a Catholic education system alongside the secular "public" education system. They are run on Catholic principles and include religious activities and instruction as a matter of course. They are not exclusively attended by practicing Catholics.
Again, like most countries, the specific form of separation unique to the US does not apply here. There is no restriction on government funding of "faith-based" activities. Religious activity in schools is not excluded constitutionally (though in public schools it is usually not undertaken). Some Canadian public schools have the students recite the Lord's Prayer daily, some schools do not recite it.{{fact}}
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which is entrenched in the Constitution, states in the preamble that Canada "is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law." [http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/const/annex_e.html#I]. Freedom of religion as also guaranteed. The [[Supreme Court of Canada]], in the case of ''[[Her Majesty The Queen in Right of Canada v. Big M Drug Mart Ltd.]]'', <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[1985]]<nowiki>]</nowiki> (1 S.C.R. 295) ruled that a 1906 statute that required most places to be closed on Sunday did not have a legitimate purpose in a "free and democratic society," and was an unconstitutional attempt to establish a religious-based closing law (see [[Blue law]].)
===[[France]]===
[[Image:1905loi2.gif|thumb|1905 caricature depicting the separation of the church and state. The man in the middle is [[Jean-Baptiste Bienvenu-Martin]], Minister of Education at the time]]
Since [[1905]], [[France]] has had a law requiring separation of church and state, prohibiting the state from recognizing or funding any religion. According to the [[French constitution]], freedom of religion was already a [[constitutional right]]. The [[1905 law on secularity]] was highly controversial at the time. France adheres to the notion of ''[[laïcité]]'', that is, noninterference of the government into the religious sphere and noninterference of religion into government, and a strict neutrality of government in religious affairs.
References to religious beliefs by politicians to justify public policies are considered a political [[faux pas]], since it is widely believed that religious beliefs should be kept out of the public sphere.
Public tax money supports some church-affiliated schools, but they must agree to follow the same [[curriculum]] as the public schools and are prohibited from forcing students to attend religion courses or to discriminate against students on the basis of religion.
Churches, synagogues, temples and cathedrals built before 1905, at the taxpayers' expense, are now the property of the state and the [[Commune in France|commune]]s; however they may be gratuitously used for religious activities provided this religious use stays continuous in time. Some argue that this is a form of unfair [[subsidy]] for the established religions in comparison to Islam.
The [[Alsace-Moselle]] area, which was administered by Germany at the time the 1905 law was passed and was returned to France only after [[World War I]], is still under the pre-1905 regime established of the [[Concordat of 1801|Concordat]], which provides for the public subsidy of the [[Roman Catholic Church]], the [[Lutheran Church]], the [[Reformed church]] and the [[Jew]]ish Religion as well as public education in those religions. An original trait of this area is that priests are paid by the state; the bishops are named by the [[President]] on the proposal of the [[Pope]]. Controversy erupts periodically on the appropriateness of these and other extraordinary legal dispositions of Alsace-Moselle, as well as on the exclusion of other religions in Alsace-Moselle from this arrangement.
''See also:'' [[laïcité]]
===[[Germany]]===
After the wars that followed the Reformation, the principle ''[[cuius regio, eius religio]]'' divided the [[Holy Roman Empire]] in statelets with a homogeneous faith. This principle, already complicated by changes in state boundaries in the early 18th century, ended with the fall of all German monarchies in the [[1918]] revolution.
Today, church and state are separate, but there is cooperation in many fields, most importantly in the social sector. Churches and religious communities, if they are large, stable and loyal to the constitution, can get special status from the state as a "corporation under public law" which allows the churches to levy taxes called Kirchensteuer (literally [[church tax]]) on their members. This revenue is collected by the state in return for a collection fee.
As required by the constitution, religious instruction (for members of the respective religions) is an ordinary subject in public schools (in most states). It is organized by the state, but also under the supervision of the respective religious community. Teachers are educated at public universities. Parents, or students 14 years old and above, can decide not to take those religion classes, but most federal states require classes in "ethics" or "philosophy" as replacements. A small but significant number of religious schools, which receive the majority of their funding (but never all of it) from the state, exist in most parts of the country; however nobody can be compelled to attend them. There was considerable public controversy when the Federal Constitutional Court declared a [[Bavaria]]n law requiring a [[crucifix]] in every classroom to be unconstitutional in [[1997]]; Bavaria replaced it with a law still demanding the same, unless parents file a formal protest with the state.
As immigration has significantly increased the numbers of Muslim inhabitants, there is ongoing discussion about introducing an Islamic religious instruction for Muslim pupils, but such plans have yet been hampered by difficulties in organising a curriculum for the whole Islamic spectrum. The Federal Administrative Court recently ruled that the Berlin Islamic Federation was a qualified religious community under Berlin law (which differs considerably from most of the rest of the country); hence, the Berlin State Government decided to begin Islamic religious instruction in public schools in areas with significant Islamic populations.
There is an ongoing controversy over the status of the [[Church of Scientology]], as the German states deny this group [[tax exemption]] normally granted to religious communities and rather classify it as a business enterprise subject to taxation. This issue is intermingled with controversial allegations that Scientology is a totalitarian cult. These classifications however do not prohibit the group's activities in Germany. [http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2002/18367.htm]
===[[Ireland]]===
For most practical purposes, Ireland has separation of church and state. While many religious schools are funded, the religious link is due to the way the [[National School|national school]] system is funded - a board of management runs the school, which is usually privately owned, while teachers' salaries are paid by the state. The [[Fifth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland|Fifth Amendment]] of the [[Irish Constitution|constitution]] removed the section which referred to '''the special position''' of the [[Catholic Church]], though it has been argued that this section was more symbolic than of actual influence. The [[President of Ireland|Irish President]] has to swear an oath that does contain an explicit religious reference, though this may be changed in future. Occasionally, there is mild controversy that the [[Angelus]] bell is broadcast by [[Radio Telefís Éireann|RTE]] on RTÉ 1 TV and radio station, but it generally peters out, due to the indifference of the population at large to the issue.
===[[Israel]]===
With very few exceptions, such as laws relating to marriage and divorce, Israel is a purely secular state. English Common Law, rather than Judaic Talmudic Law, is the legal tradition. Every citizen of Israel, regardless of his or her religious or national affiliation, enjoys full and equal civil rights. This of course includes the large Arab and Muslim minority.
However, the ultra-Orthodox minority parties in Israel, being a necessary element in almost every coalition government, try to increase religious influence over the state, and receive state funding for religious schools, and other benefits, such as exemption from service in the [[Israeli Defence Forces]]. Israel also offers automatic citizenship to any Jew who wishes to become a citizen. Such benefits and funds are considered by many as discriminatory privileges, and as clear violations of the principle of separation of church and state.
Israel is commonly referred to as "the Jewish State" which is often a source of confusion, as the term "Jew" has the twin meaning of referring to both a religion and a nation. Israel's founders considered "Jew" as a nationality and hence Israel can be considered "the Jewish State" with regard to nationality only, just as Italy can be described as the "Italian State," France "the French Republic" and so on.
===[[Japan]]===
Historically, Japan had long tradition of mixed religious practice between Shinto and Buddhism since the introduction of Buddhism in 7th century. Though the [[emperors of Japan|Emperor of Japan]] is supposed to be the direct descendant of Amaterasu Oomikami, shinto sun god, all imperial family as well as almost all Japanese were buddhist who also practiced shinto religious rite as well. Moreover, throughout Japanese history, religious organisation fail to exercise strong political influence as seen in Europe and when they tried to do so, they were violently suppressed. (see Ikko Ikki and Christianity in Japan).
After the Meiji Restoration, Japan tried to remodel the state in line of modern European constitutional monarchy. Upon learning that many European state sourced their constitutional authority to monolithic Chritian God, which Japanese religious tradition did not have, the emperor itself was substituted to its position. Buddhism and Shintoism were officially separated and Shintoism was set as the state religion which mirroredd the position of Chritianity in European monarchy. The Constitution specifically stated that Emperor is "holy and inviolable" (Tennou ha shinsei nishite okasu bekarazu). During the period of Emperor Showa, the status of emperor is further elevated to be a living god (Arahito gami). This ceased at the end of [[World War II]], when the current constitution was drafted. (See ''[[Ningen-sengen]]''.)
Article 20 of the [[constitution of Japan]] drafted in by the occupation by the [[USA]], in 1946 and currently in use, mandates a separation of religious organizations from the state, as well as ensuring religious freedom: "No religious organization shall receive any privileges from the State, nor exercise any political authority. No person shall be compelled to take part in any religious act, celebration, rite or practice. The State and its organs shall refrain from religious education or any other religious activity." However, like the CDU of Germany, Japan is not without a political party that has religious affiliation, namely the [[New Komeito Party]] has affiliation with [[Soka Gakkai|Sōka Gakkai]]. Less than one percent of Japanese population are Christian.
===[[Mexico]]===
A precedent of limiting the rights of the church – especially the [[Roman Catholic Church]]– was set by [[President of Mexico|President]] [[Valentín Gómez Farías]] in [[1833]]. Later, President [[Benito Juárez]] enacted a set of laws that came to be known as the ''[[Leyes de Reforma]]'' between [[1859]] and [[1863]] in the backdrop of the ''[[Guerra de Reforma]]''. These laws mandated, among other things, the separation of church and state, allowed for civil marriages and a [[civil registry]], and confiscated the church's property.
Tensions also existed between the Roman Catholic Church and the post-[[Mexican Revolution|Revolution]] Mexican government. Severe restrictions on the rights of the Church and members of the clergy were written into the country's [[1917 Constitution of Mexico|1917 constitution]] that led to the eruption of the [[Cristero War]] in [[1926]]. In [[1992]] the government reestablished diplomatic relations with the [[Holy See]] and lifted almost all restrictions on the Catholic Church. This later action included granting all religious groups legal status, conceding them limited property rights, and lifting restrictions on the number of priests in the country. However, the law continues to mandate a strict separation of church and state. The constitution still bars members of the clergy from holding public office, advocating partisan political views, supporting political candidates, or opposing the laws or institutions of the state.
The constitution provides that [[Education in Mexico|education]] should avoid privileges of religion, and that one religion or its members may not be given preference in education over another. Religious instruction is prohibited in public schools; however, religious associations are free to maintain private schools, which receive no public funds.
According to the Religious Associations and Public Worship Law, religious groups may not own or administer broadcast radio or television stations; however, the Catholic Church owns and operates a national cable television channel. Government permission is required to transmit religious programming on commercial broadcast radio or television, and permission is granted routinely.
'''Source:''' [http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2004/35546.htm International Religious Freedom Report 2004]. [[United States Department of State]]. Last accessed: [[October 8]], [[2005]].
===[[Philippines]]===
By passing through the numerous phases of colonial occupation, the relationship of the church and state in the [[Philippines]] has repeatedly changed from the collaboration of the [[Roman Catholic Church]] with the government during the Spanish era to the generally accepted separation today.
'''Recent events'''
For current reports on the status of the church and state in the Philippines, check the [http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2002/13907.htm International Religious Freedom Report 2002] by the [[U.S. Department of State]].
: See also: [[Separation of church and state in the Philippines]]
=== [[Sweden]] ===
The [[Lutheran]] church and state were partially separated in [[1999]]. The [[Church of Sweden]] still maintains special status. It is now possible to register new religious organizations, but they lack the same special status and the ability to perform legally binding services such as marriage and burials.
There are ongoing efforts to remove the special status from the former state church. Marriage can now be performed by anyone who has received a certificate.
===[[Turkey]]===
Whether state and religion is separate in Turkey is disputed. Turkey is a country with a strong stance of secularism since [[Kemal Atatürk]]'s westernization movement in [[March 3]], [[1924]] by removing the [[caliphate]] system and all religious influence from the state. In reverse, [[Sunni]] Islam, the majority religion, is now controlled by the Turkish government through the "Department of Religious Affairs," and is state-funded. All Islamic views which are deemed political are censored in accordance with the principle of secularism. All stated funded mosques conduct weekly seminars whose content has to be approved by the state. Also, independent Sunni communities are illegal. Minority religions, like [[Alevi]] Islam or [[Armenian Orthodox Church|Armenian]] or [[Church of Greece|Greek Orthodox]]y, are guaranteed by the constitution as ''individual'' faiths and are mostly tolerated, but this guarantee does not give any rights to ''religious communities''. However the [[Treaty of Lausanne]] gives certain religious rights to Jews, Greeks, and Armenians, but not, for example, to Syrian-Orthodox or Roman Catholics. Recently, the question over reestablishment of an ancient Greek Orthodox seminary in Istanbul became a political issue in regard to Turkey's accession to EU membership. The EU considers such prohibition to amount to suppression of religious freedom. However, it is pointed out that, if the Greek Orthodox are allowed to reopen the school, they will become the only religion in Turkey with the right to independent religious schools. Recent attempts to outlaw adultery caused outcry in Europe and was seen as an attempt to legislate an Islamic value, while other point out that the legislation was intended to combat polygamy which is still common in rural areas. Also, similar to France, people are not allowed to wear [[hijab]] in government institutions such as in school, civil service or the university.
===United States===
{{main|Separation of church and state in the United States}}
[[Image:ChristianFlagEtc CovenantPresbyterianLongBeach20050213 CopyrightKaihsuTai.jpg|thumb|The Christian flag displayed alongside the flag of the [[United States|USA]] next to the pulpit in a church in California. Note the eagle and cross finials on the flag poles.]]
In the 1600s and 1700s, many Europeans [[emigration|emigrated]] to what would later become the [[United States]]. For some this was driven by the desire to worship freely in their own fashion. These included a large number of [[nonconformist]]s such as the [[Puritan]]s and the [[Pilgrim]]s as well as English [[Catholic]]s. However, with some exceptions, such as [[Roger Williams (theologian)|Roger Williams]] of [[Rhode Island]] or the [[Roman Catholic]] [[Lord Baltimore]] in [[Maryland]], most of these groups did not believe in [[religious toleration]] and in some cases came to America with the explicit aim of setting up a [[theocracy|theocratic]] state.
Such history and beliefs were integrated into the [[U.S. Constitution]] with the passing of the [[Bill of Rights]] containing the [[First Amendment]]. The clause of the First Amendment that adopted the founders' principles of separation of church and state and freedom of religion is known as the [[Establishment Clause]]. It states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...."
The interpretation of that clause is subject to disagreement. According to Conservatives, the first half of that establishment clause has been interpreted as requiring official indifference, whereas the second half (the free exercise portion) has been emasculated.
Public education is a case in point. Some conservatives doubt that restricting religious speech in public school classrooms was the original intent of the first amendment and believe that ending government-funded or government-endorsed religious activities for students constitutes censorship of religion, which they believe to be contrary to the intent of the First Amendment.
Some hold that the founders' intent was to prevent the state from mandating or banning any religion, while others, including the [[ACLU]], hold to the view that no government — federal, state or local — can perform any action or make any policy which blatantly favors one faith or church over the others, or which favors belief in God or the Supreme being over non-belief. The latter position has been gradually adopted by the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] since the latter half of the nineteenth century, though the Court is not unanimous on this: Supreme Court Justice [[Clarence Thomas]], an "originalist" who favors the stricter interpretation and application of the Constitution (e.g.,no government can blatantly favor one faith or church over the others, or favor belief in God or the Supreme being over non-belief) disagrees with the modern view.
The court-enforced separation does not extend to all elements of [[civil religion]]. By law, the country's currency now carries the motto "In God We Trust." Congress begins its sessions with a prayer, and since [[1954]] the [[Pledge of Allegiance]] contains the phrase, "one nation, under God." Court rulings have upheld these apparently religious references, viewing them as non-substantive "[[ceremonial deism]]" or utilizing other legal theories. Recent lawsuits have unsuccessfully attempted to challenge this view. Some expressions of religion on public property, such as certain displays of the [[Ten Commandments]] in courtrooms or [[Nativity]] scenes on public land have been recently ruled to be unconstitutional. The government is also permitted to restrict religious activities so long as these restrictions do not target religion specifically. For instance, a religious group can not perform human sacrifice under the veil of separation of church and state because the government views it as murder and murder is illegal.
Religion plays a strong role in national politics, especially in controversial issues like [[abortion]], [[euthanasia]], and [[homosexuality]]. Direct church-state issues also arise, currently including the question of whether or not [[school vouchers]] should be used to help parents pay for education at private schools which may have religious affiliations, and the status of the [[White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives|faith-based initiatives]] of the current President, [[George W. Bush]].
The most prominent religious participants in national politics are [[Evangelical Christians]], Conservative [[Catholics]] and some [[Orthodox Jews]], largely allied with the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] and in the [[Bible Belt]] of the [[Southern U.S.|Southern]] and [[Midwest|Midwestern]] United States, comprising what is known as the "[[religious right]]." Other Protestants (including predominantly liberal sects), Catholics, Mormons, Jews, Muslims, non-believers, and other faiths are also quite active. Some religious groups wish to increase the ability of government to make various religious expressions; they often emphasize the largely Christian demographics and history of the country, however it is also often used as an attempt to give state sanction to a majoritarian faith at the direct expense of the rights of minority religious groups. See ''[[Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe]]''
It is common practice for national politicians with strongly religious constituencies to cite religious texts or beliefs in support of certain policies. In other areas voters may be more disapproving of expressions of religious faith by political candidates and government officials.
===Other countries===
The status of the separation of church and state in almost any country around the world, as seen by the US government, can be viewed by clicking on the appropriate geographical region in the left panel of the [http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2004/ web page] maintained by the [[United States Department of State]].
==Countries with national or state churches==
===[[Denmark]]===
According to Section 4 in the [[Constitution of Denmark]]: "The Evangelical Lutheran Church shall be the Established Church of Denmark, and, as such, it shall be supported by the State." See also [[Religion in Denmark]].
===[[Egypt]]===
{{weasel}}
Despite the fact that [[Egypt]] is a predominantly [[Islamic]] population, the prevailing belief is that the [[Coptic Orthodox]] [[Church]] is the unofficial [[state church]] of Egypt. It is not noted in the [[Constitution of Egypt]] (which is currently in use) what is the official State Church because Egypt is currently an [[Arab]] [[Republic]] that recognizes [[Islam]] as the State Religion, but most inhabitants of Egypt accept the Coptic Orthodox Church as the unofficial State Church mainly due to the fact that it incorporates Egypt's largest Christian population, which makes up approximately 10% of Egypt's total population. The separation of the state's influence on religion and vice versa is often undetermined; many rights groups have claimed that some laws passed by the State are heavily influenced by the State Religion, and sometimes aims at particular minorities in Egypt. The Coptic Orthodox Church is in fairly good relations with the State. This was seen when the State officially declared [[January 7th]], the Coptic Orthodox [[Christmas]], as an official holiday in Egypt. However, some laws still aim at persecuting the Coptic Orthodox Church: the President of Egypt must approve any permits to build or repair any church in Egypt, also known as the Hamayouni Decree. [http://www.copts.net/demands.asp]
Other churches exist in Egypt, such as the [[Coptic Catholic]] [[Church]] as well as some [[Protestant]] denominations. However, their population composes a very small portion of Egypt's population.
===[[Finland]]===
As the national churches of Finland, the [[Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland]] and the [[Finnish Orthodox Church]] have a status protected by law. The special legal position of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland is also codified in the constitution of Finland. Both churches have the right to levy an income tax on their members and every Finnish company as a part of Corporation Tax. The tax is collected by the state. The administration of the national churches is regulated by their respective church laws, which are drafted by the churches and enacted or rejected by the parliament. State universities, religiously non-aligned in themselves, provide the theological education that is required from those to be ordained as clergy of the national churches. The general direction has been to restrict and remove the privileges of the national churches, and as of 2004, in most other official business (such as officiating marriages) any registered religious community has a status comparable to that of the national churches.
===[[United Kingdom]]===
In the United Kingdom, there are two state-approved churches. The [[Church of Scotland]] is [[Presbyterian]] while the [[Church of England]] is [[Episcopalian]] ([[Anglican]]). The former is a national church guaranteed by law to be separate from the state, while the latter is a [[state church|state-established]] church and any major changes to doctrine, liturgy, or structure must have parliamentary approval. Neither [[Wales]] nor [[Northern Ireland]] currently have established churches: the [[Church in Wales]] was disestablished in [[1920]], the [[Church of Ireland]] in [[1871]]. The king or queen must promise to uphold the rights of the Presbyterian church in [[Scotland]] and the Anglican church in [[England]]. He or she is the [[Supreme Governor of the Church of England]], holding the title of [[Defender of the Faith]], but an ordinary member of the Church of Scotland. Neither church receives direct funding from taxation. State schools must provide religious instruction and regular religious ceremonies, though parents may withdraw their children from either; the choice of religion is left up to the school governors, but in the absence of an explicit choice it is by default "broadly Christian;" the Church of England and the [[Catholic Church]] operate many state-funded schools and there are a small number of [[Jew]]ish and [[Muslim]] ones. Senior Church of England [[bishop]]s have a right to sit in the [[House of Lords]], the upper chamber of the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]].
===[[Greece]]===
Greece is the only European Union (EU) country to ban [[proselytism]] in its constitution, and for this reason the only EU country to have been condemned by the [[European Court of Human Rights]] for a lack of religious freedom. The position of the [[Church of Greece]] and its relations with the State are set forth in Article 3, par. 1 of the present Constitution ([[1975]]/[[1986]]/[[2001]]). According to this article: (a) The Greek-Orthodox dogma is the prevailing religion, (b) The Church of Greece is inseparably united in doctrine with the [[Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople]] and with all other Orthodox Churches, and (c) The Church is self-administered and [[autocephalous]].
About 98% of the population is Christian [[Orthodox]]. The remaining percentage represents [[Muslims]], [[Roman Catholics]], [[Eastern-rite Catholic]]s and [[Jews]]. The Government, under the direction of the Ministry of Education and Religion, provides some financial support by, for example, paying for the salaries and religious training of clergy, and financing the maintenance of Orthodox Church buildings. This special relation between the Greek State and the Orthodox Church has come about for historical reasons and long-established tradition, many Greeks attributing the preservation of Greek national identity during the 400 years of [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] occupation to the Orthodox Church. A separation of Church and State would require an amendment of the Constitution.
Being Greek Orthodox is a necessary requirement for those who wish to join the Hellenic Army special forces.
The relationship between church and state in Greece is partly responsible for the fact that Athens doesn't have a mosque, since the Church has expressed concern recent suggestions on building sites. However, the Church has now donated land in Athens to Athen's Muslim community for the purposes of building a mosque, belying attempts by many to attribute a hardline or racist stance against minorities by the Church. No other Church in Europe has made such a gesture to the Muslim community.
See [http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php/article?id=321 GREECE: Religious freedom, the Achilles' Heel]
==Countries in flux==
===[[Russia]]===
From the foundation of the [[Kiev]]an Rus dynasty until the institution of [[bolshevism]], Russia maintained very close ties between the officially recognized religion, the [[Russian Orthodox Church]], and the government. These bonds became tightest under [[tsar]] [[Peter I of Russia|Peter I]] ("Peter the Great"); in [[1721]], the office of [[Patriarch]] of [[Moscow]] was eliminated and replaced with a "Holy Governing Synod," presided over by an Imperial appointee and regulated by Imperial law. From that point until [[1917]] the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] was explicitly a department of the Russian [[government]].
After the [[October Revolution]] and [[bolshevik]] coup, the government of the [[Soviet Union]] was quite active in religious affairs, even though it was theoretically [[atheism|atheist]] and purely [[secular]]. Between 1917 and [[1922]], Soviet authorities executed 28 Orthodox Bishops and over 1,000 priests. A government-sponsored "renovation" known as the [[Living Church]] was instigated in May of [[1922]] as a replacement for the Russian Orthodox Church. It was eliminated in [[1943]] during the [[World War II|Second World War]], but state intervention in religious affairs did not end, and religion was highly regulated and controlled until the end of the Soviet Union.
On [[October 9]] and [[November 10]] of [[1990]], the Russian Parliament passed two freedom of conscience laws that formally disestablished the Russian Orthodox Church as the state church of Russia (this step had never actually been explicitly taken in the Soviet Union). In [[1997]], however, the Russian Parliament passed a law restricting the activities of religious organizations within Russia. Complete freedom is given to any religious organization officially recognized by the Soviet government before [[1985]]: the Orthodox Church, [[Judaism]], [[Islam]], and [[Buddhism]]. The basis for consideration as an official religion of the Russian Federation is supposed to be a 50-year presence in the state. According to this criterion, [[Roman Catholicism]], [[Lutheranism]], and the [[Baptist]] faith should all enjoy official status as Russian religions. However, this is not the case. Non-official religions are strictly limited in that they are not permitted to operate schools or import non-Russian citizens to act as missionaries or clergy. Likewise, they must annually re-register with local officials.
This act has been sharply criticized as antithetical to the concept of freedom of religion, especially in countries with religious organizations that expend a great deal of money and effort in [[Proselytism|proselytizing]].
The Russian government also engages in practices that have been accused of being discriminatory against citizens who profess faiths other than Orthodox Christianity. In the Russian armed forces — for which there continues to be universal conscription — no form of religious worship other than Orthodox Christian is permitted. Thus, conscripted Jews, Muslims, and Buddhists (despite their ostensible religious freedom granted in the 1997 law) are prohibited from engaging in prayer, even if they do so in solitude.
== Advocacy ==
=== Religious arguments for separation===
{{weasel}}
Some religious believers, including Jews, Christians and Muslims, support the separation of church and state in the belief that it protects their religion from the coercive power of government. That is to say, the state might harm the church. For example, the state may force on the church a system of ethical principles that compromises the freedom of the church to frame its own teachings. As the state is supported by taxation, the taxes support ideas or practices that offend religious convictions and conscience (for instance, [[Shinto#State Shinto|State Shinto]] in Japan).
Some [[Baptists]] support separation also, and hold the assertion that separation of church and state does not mean separation of God and state. In particular, many radical [[Anabaptist]] movements, sensitised by the persecution they suffered under both [[Protestant]] and [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] authorities, held that the state should not interfere in religious affairs and vice-versa. The earliest well-known formal plea for separation of church and state, called ''Religious Peace: or, a Plea for Liberty of Conscience'', was written to [[James I of England|King James]] of [[England]] by a London citizen named Leonard Busher, whom Dr. William Whitsitt identified as an Anabaptist. In 1868, the renowned Baptist pastor [[Charles Spurgeon|Charles Haddon Spurgeon]] perhaps best summed up the Baptist stand on church-state separation thusly (from ''The Inquisition'', 1868 ''The Sword and The Trowel''):
<blockquote>
Is it not proven beyond all dispute that there is no limit to the enormities which men will commit when they are once persuaded that they are keepers of other men's consciences? To spread religion by any means, and to crush heresy by all means is the practical inference from the doctrine that one man may control another's religion. Given the duty of a state to foster some one form of faith, and by the sure inductions of our nature slowly but certainly
persecution will occur. To prevent for ever the possibility of Papists roasting Protestants, Anglicans hanging Romish priests, and Puritans flogging Quakers, let every form of state-churchism be utterly abolished, and the remembrance of the long curse which it has cast upon the world be blotted out for ever.
</blockquote>
[[Ulysses S. Grant]]'s statement might be interpreted as arguing not only against institutional entanglements, but separation of religion from public life. "Leave the matter of religion to the family altar, the church, and the private school, supported entirely by private contributions. Keep the church and state forever separate."
[[Thomas Jefferson]] reflected this same religious basis for belief in the separation of church and state: "Almighty God hath created the mind free; that all attempts to influence it by temporal punishments, or burthens, or by civil incapacitations, tend only to beget habits of hypocrisy and meanness, and are a departure from the plan of the Holy author of our religion who being Lord both of body and mind, yet chose not to propagate it by coercions on either . . . ." [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=case&court=us&vol=330&page=1#12]
Some Christians interpret Biblical passages such as Christ's admonition to "[[Render unto Caesar...|render unto Caesar]] that which is Caesar's and to God what is God's" as a warning that the State has a strong tendency toward corruption, and therefore religious involvement in government is more likely to corrupt the religion than to benefit the state.
Since the 5th century, the [[Coptic Church]] has advocated separation of church and state. Most [[Unitarian Universalists]] advocate separation of church and state.
[[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] has long held to the doctrine of separation of church and state due to the long antagonism local and state governments have had towards their faith. Mormon writings have affirmed "[n]o domination of the state by the church; No church interference with the functions of the state; No state interference with the functions of the church, or with the free exercise of religion; The absolute freedom of the individual from the domination of ecclesiastical authority in political affairs; The equality of all churches before the law."
Historically, the [[Catholic Church]] enforced the view, within its domains and jurisdictions, that all Christians must recognize the authority of the [[pope]] and submit themselves to the discipline of the Church's doctrines. Combined with political power, the view of papal supremacy or, the denial of it by Protestant princes, led to persecution, wars, and forced emigration during the [[Protestant Reformation]]. Similarly, in England, Scotland and Ireland, Protestants and Catholics who refused to acknowledge the authority of the bishops of the state church, were denied by the state the freedom to worship as their conscience dictated, resulting in wars and bloody persecution, leading many to emigrate to the [[Americas]], and elsewhere. Once there, many of the early settlers sought to establish their colonies on principles of religious liberty combined with ideals of public godliness. However, some like [[Roger Williams]] found reason to object to those principles as framed by the leaders of [[Boston, Massachusetts]], because the laws of the colony included matters, as he saw it, of concern exclusively to the church - issues of the "first table" of the Law of Moses, as he distinguished them - which punished false worship, idolatry, blasphemy, and Sabbath-breaking. Rogers saw this as an establishment of religion, and an infringement on the liberty of the soul.
American Catholics, some suffering discrimination from mainstream, majority Protestants, eventually came to see the separation of church and state as a positive development (in contrast to the long standing Church tradition). The work of Jesuit priest and theologian John Courtney Murray in the 1960's was significant as he developed a theological justification of the separation view based upon St. Thomas Aquinas's observation that there existed a necessary distinction between morality and civil law; that the latter is limited in its capacity in cultivating moral character through criminal prohibitions. As Murray said:"it is not the function of civil law to prescribe everything that is morally right and to forbid everything that is morally wrong." Murray Memo to Cardinal Cushing (1965), Archives of the Archdiocese of Boston.
=== Secular arguments for separation ===
{{weasel}}
Some non-religious people desire the legal separation of church and state to keep what they regard as [[superstition]] out of government. For example, many [[Atheism|atheists]], [[Agnosticism|agnostics]] and [[Freethinking|freethinker]]s believe it inappropriate for government to be controlled by a religion.
The [[church]] might harm the [[state]]. For example, religious conviction might cause the state to become involved in a disastrous war, or to remain pacifist when force is necessary for the preservation of the state. It may also influence public policies in a manner detrimental to those who do not follow all the church's teachings.
Many people believe that the founding fathers wanted them completely separate, pointing to such statements like those made by Thomas Jefferson and Ulysses S. Grant above. They also note that the founding fathers broadly espoused key principles of the [[Age of Enlightenment]], specifically their support for [[Rationalism|Rationalist]] philosophy and [[Empiricism]]. These doctrines hold that truth can best be discovered through the application of reason and rational processes rather than faith or superstition, and thus rationality and science rather than faith or religious doctrine should serve as the basis for government policy-making.
The United States Supreme Court held in [[Lemon v. Kurtzman]] that state action must have a secular purpose, which neither advances nor inhibits religion: "The Establishment Clause forbids the enactment of any law 'respecting an establishment of religion.' The Court has applied a three-pronged test to determine whether legislation comports with the Establishment Clause. First, the legislature must have adopted the law with a secular purpose. Second, the statute's principal or primary effect must be one that neither advances nor inhibits religion. Third, the statute must not result in an excessive entanglement of government with religion." Lemon v. Kurtzman, 403 U.S. 602, 612-613, 91 S.Ct. 2105, 2111, 29 L.Ed.2d 745 (1971).
When the [[Louisiana]] state legislature passed a law requiring [[public school]] biology teachers to give [[Creationism]] and [[evolution]] equal time in the classroom, the [[United States Supreme Court]] ruled that the law was unconstitutional because it was intended to advance a particular religion, and did not serve the secular purpose of improved scientific education. [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=case&court=us&vol=482&page=578#593] See also, [[Creation and evolution in public education]].
Also, religious texts such as the [[Ten Commandments]] cannot be displayed in public buildings for the purpose of converting people to a religion. That is, religious people cannot display religious symbols on public property with the purpose of advocating their religion. There are still many exceptions to the general rule. [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=449&invol=39#41]
=== Religious arguments against separation ===
{{Dominionism}}
Some religious opponents of secular government hold that while the state should not establish a particular state religion or require religious observance because of the dangers noted above, it still must be infused with the ethics and values of religion generally if it is to operate properly, and ought to encourage ethical and beneficial religious belief of all types, both inside and outside of government. These persons argue that the teachings of religion are the basis of law and civil society, and that a society which discourages the promulgation of those beliefs cannot function successfully. Further, these groups argue that religious groups ought to be involved in politics, to assure that laws are passed which reflect what they perceive as universal truths as revealed through their religion. Some, such as the [[Christian Voice]] and the [[Christian Coalition]], have become highly and vocally involved in promoting what they believe to be Christian values in government.
The [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic Church]]'s 1983 [[Canon law (Catholic Church)|Code of Canon law]], while not laying down general rules about relations between Church and State, considers that a religious and moral education in harmony with the conscience of the pupils' parents is an integral part of education, and obliges Catholics to try to secure its inclusion: "Christ's faithful are to strive to secure that in the civil society the laws which regulate the formation of the young also provide a religious and moral education in the schools that is in accord with the conscience of the parents" (canon 799)[http://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG0017/_P2M.HTM]
Other religious persons argue that the State ought to maintain an [[established church]].
Islam holds that political life can only function properly within the context of Islamic law. To such believers, since God's law is universally true and beneficial to all people, any state law or action opposed to God's law would be harmful to the citizens, and displeasing to God. Many Muslims consider the Western concept of separation of Church and State to be rebellion against God's law. There is a contemporary debate in [[Islam]] whether obedience to Islamic law is ultimately compatible with the Western secular pattern, which separates religion from civic life.
Another view is that the state should provide a default religion for the large number of [[citizen]]s who wish to identify themselves as religious believers without actively choosing between the various alternatives. A slightly more extreme version of this is that the state should determine (or at least have the power to determine) the doctrine and structure of the state religion - this is the position in England, and has links to ideas underlying [[Erastianism]]. There need not be obligation on individuals to follow the state in religion in such cases.
Some religious people in America believe that prayer in the schools will improve the morals of American children, and they maintain that the inability of public school officials to conduct prayers in school does not protect religion but rather harms religion. Though multiple United States courts, including the United States Supreme Court, have concluded that such activity is unconstitutional, these people argue that the courts' interpretation of the separation of church and state is incorrect in this particular instance, relying on a strict interpretation of the [[First Amendment]].
'''Arguments against "separation of church and state" claimed to be based on American history'''
One of the most common arguments against separation of church and state in the United States is that the original settlers of the [[Massachusetts Bay Colony]], the [[Puritans]], desired a level of unity between church and state and that the early history of the country is an explicitly Christian history.
[[Puritan]] groups were among the first settlers of the [[Massachusetts Bay Colony]]. They emigrated from Britain (from 1630 to the early 1640s) in order to create a society where religious precepts would be followed by all, because they would be strictly enforced by law. Many others also emigrated to Massachusetts and Virginia during that time who did not share the Puritan's vision. The Puritans' utopian vision was of a Christian [[theocracy]] that would "purify" what they saw as a corrupt [[Church of England]]. Their founder [[John Winthrop]] referred to this vision as a "[[City upon a Hill]]" that would be a model of moral authority to the world. They believed in a merging of religious and state authority. They established a [[theocracy]] in Massachusetts ruled by clergy members and established religious courts that strictly enforced Puritan religious dogma through the rule of law.
This argument that many of the original settlers of America intended no separation between church and state ignores the fact that the Puritans and their descendents made up only a small fraction of the settlers of the America's original 13 colonies. In fact, many of the founders of the other American colonies chose to settle those lands because they were being persecuted for their religious beliefs by the Puritans of Massachusetts!
The colonies of [[Rhode Island]], [[New Hampshire]], [[New Jersey]],[[Pennsylvania]], among others were all founded by immigrants to the New World who were persecuted for their beliefs by the Puritans upon their arrival in [[Massachusetts]]! These colonies were founded as safe havens for the practice of any religion - out of reach of Puritan legal/religious authorities in the Massachusetts colonies.
Other colonies, such as Virginia, were not founded by religious groups, nor for any religious reasons at all, but entirely as economic ventures. Even in Massachusetts, not everyone emigrated there for religious reasons. The Puritan theocracy eventually lost the support of the people. They were driven from power in Massachusetts nearly a century BEFORE the ratification of the U.S. Constitution established the United States government as a secular republic.
'''PURITANISM IN ENGLAND'''
In England in the early 1600s, it was a crime to criticize the [[Church of England]], because it was founded by the king, [[Henry VII]], who was its official ceremonial head. The [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] was its highest religious authority. Criticizing the practices of the Church of England was, back then, considered akin to criticism of the King himself, a treasonous offense. However, the Puritans '''never''' renounced the Curch nor did they take exception with '''any''' of the Church of England's core theological beliefs. They were considered to be [[nonconformists]] ''within'' the [[Church of England]], not a separate denomination.
The idea that criticism of the official [[Church of England]] or its leadership, as immoral or inept, was sedition against the Crown, remained in English Law until [[Oliver Cromwell]], with the backing of Puritans (and other [[non-conformist]] sects in England overthrew the king (and beheaded him) during the [[English Civil War]] in the 1640s. By the 1640s there were many thousands of Puritans in England, living under the king's rule without "persecution", because the king had already taken steps to allow [[Puritanism]] and other [[non-conformist]] sects to worship as they wanted.
After Oliver Cromwell was installed as the new British ruler in the 1640s, there was really no longer any reason for any Puritan to emigrate in search of "religious freedom". The belief that most early colonists emigrated to America to escape religious persecution is largely a myth. The era of Puritans emigrating for religious reason was very short-lived. Most colonists came to America in the 1600s and 1700s for economic reasons, same as most immigrants today. In fact, after Cromwell came to power in 1640s the Puritans were the ruling religious authorities on both sides of the Atlantic!
The Puritan dominance of government back in England ended in the 1660s, following the [[Restoration]] of [[King Charles II]]. The British soon found the strict edicts of Cromwell and his son to be even worse than the king they had overthrown. However, despite the restoration of the monarchy, British laws guaranteeing tolerance of religious sects (at least for nearly all other Protestant Christian sects) remained.
'''WHAT DID AMERICA'S FOUNDING FATHERS REALLY INTEND?'''
Modern-day adherents to the pre-Constitutional view that church and state should not be kept separate often point out (correctly) that several of the "founding fathers" indicated that they wished for the church to have an active role in the government, but did not want the government to interfere in the business of the church. Particularly, they point to:
*[[Patrick Henry]], who once said: "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded not by religionists but by Christians, not on religions but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ" (although this quote is often used to support these views, there is no evidence that Patrick Henry ever said this).
*[[John Jay]], the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, said: "Americans should select and prefer Christians as their rulers."
*The opening of every session of Congress has opened with a prayer by a preacher paid from the government's budget since 1777
*The Senate's importation of bibles into the United States, as a necessary commodity, after the bible supply was interrupted due to the [[War of 1812]]/[[American War]].
*The requirement that public school teachers profess Christianity during the country's first 100 years
However, this evidence for the true intent of America's Founding Fathers (i.e. the authors of the [[U.S. Constitution]], not the Puritan colonial leaders ousted from government almost a century before the USA was founded) is discreditted even by the words of the Constitution itself. Neither Jesus nor God are mentioned anywhere in it. This is no doubt intentional - as colonists still remembered the horrors of the Puritan theocracy in Massachusetts less than a century before.
The [[Establishment Clause]] in the [[First Amendment]] of the Constitution says: "''Congress shall make no law respecting an [[establishment of religion]]''". This is a direct reference to the official "established" [[Church of England]] of Great Britain. In addition, Article VI states, "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States."
In fact, among the framers of the U.S. Constitution there were actually remarkably '''few''' devout religious men. Only one signatory was a former member of the clergy, and even he had given up that profession 20 years before to become a government administrator. The colected writings of most of America's Founding Fathers show that these were men who were far more concerned with secular pursuits, than religious ones. Most were worldly, well-eductated men - they were lawyers, businessmen, soldiers, diplomats, and even scientists.
The model they chose for American government came not from the Puritans, but from the example of the (pagan) ancient Romans & Greeks. The ideas of the Constitution's framers on civil liberties and human rights come primarily from [[Enlightenment]]-era English and French philosophers of the 1600s and 1700s (many of whom were well-known religious skeptics). The American Consitution was drafted mostly by colonial attorneys trained in the British legal system. The [[Bill of Rights]] comes from English Law, '''not''' from Biblical law.
Washington, Franklin, Jefferson were [[Freemasons]] and [[Deists]] (meaning they denied the divinity of Jesus). Jefferson even wrote his own editted version of the Bible, that specifically deleted all references to Jesus as god. Other prominent leaders of the [[American Revolution]] such [[Thomas Paine]] and [[Ethan Allen]] were even more vocal about their Deism.
Although it is claimed that Washington was a deist and thus denied the divinity of Jesus, he has been quoted as saying "You do well to wish to learn our arts and our ways of life and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are. Congress will do everything they can to assist you in this wise intention." This was in a speech to the Delaware Indian Chiefs on May 12, 1779 (The Writings of George Washington, Vol. XV (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1932), p. 55).
Furthermore, the [[Treaty of Tripoli]], written during the administration of President George Washington, signed by President John Adams and unanimously approved by the Senate in 1797, stated, "The Government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion."
So, the idea (often repeated by members of the [[Religious Right]] today) that Constitutional guarantees of religious freedom means only freedom '''to''' worship and not also freedom '''from''' religious intrusion in the affairs of government (and government-sponsored public programs) is simply not well-supported by the evidence - at least not if one interprets ''establishment of religion'' broadly as any activity that might establish a particular religious preference, or bias, by the government in favor of one particular religious views over anyone other.
Some religious leaders in the 1780s opposed ratification of the U.S. Constitution because of its clearly-stated religious neutrality in the [[Establishment Clause]] but this view was not widely held. With the deep regional religious difference among the original 13 American colonies (e.g. between Puritan Boston & Quaker Philadelphia), it is doubtful that any guarantee other than complete religious neutrality would have been ratified as the basis for a new federal government.
Historical arguments ''against'' strict interpretation of the [[Establishment Clause]] - claiming that the framers of the Consitution "intended America to be a Christian nation" - simply do not hold water when the historical context of who, when, where, and why the Constitution created this strict separation of church and state are considered.
=== Secular arguments against separation ===
{{weasel}}
Some non-believers, like [[Charles Maurras]] of [[France]], thought that the influence of the Catholic Church was necessary for the continuation of their country and their political objectives.
Some secularists, while favoring separation of church and state in general, believe that religion has a good effect on people's conduct and that the state has a stake in supporting this role of religion. Similarly, there are those who believe that state displays of religious symbols are acceptable so long as they are not meant to advocate any one religion over another.
== See also ==
*[[Laïcité]]
*[[Christian anarchism]]
*[[Christian Reconstructionism]]
*[[Islamic leadership]]
== External links ==
{{globalize/USA}}
===International Separation of church and state===
* [http://www.undergodprocon.org/bin/procon/procon.cgi?database=5-B%20sub2.db&command=viewone&op=t&id=12&rnd=79.07654701875278 Which other governments have separation of church and state issues?]
[[fr:Voitures piégées de Londres en 2007]]
===American court battles over separation===
[[nl:Verijdelde aanslagen (29 en 30 juni 2007) Londen en Glasgow]]
* [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=case&court=us&vol=330&page=1 1947], first case concerning separation of church and state; supporting busing for children to private religious schools and declaring that states were required to provide the same guarantees of religious freedom as the federal government
[[no:Bilbombene i London juni 2007]]
* [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=333&invol=203 1948], banning religious instruction in public schools
[[pl:Samochody-pułapki w Londynie, czerwiec 2007]]
* [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=343&invol=306 1952], allowing religious instruction off school property during regular school hours
[[fi:Lontoon autopommit 2007]]
* [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=case&court=us&vol=370&page=421#422 1962], banning teacher-led prayer from public schools
[[sv:Bilbomberna i London 2007]]
* [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=374&invol=203 1963], banning Bible-reading and the recital of the Lord's Prayer in public schools
* [
| 