By MICHAEL T. GJEFLE | Ontario
The Bill of Rights…first amendment “Congress shall make no law concerning the establishment of religion nor the free exercise thereof.”
You responded to Rob Friske’s letter last week with the statement, “Were the Bible assigned reading, that would be a clear violation of the separation of church and state as guaranteed in the Bill of Rights.”
The first amendment under the direction of James Madison and others sought to prohibit a state or national church and to guarantee the right to worship God freely for the citizen. The first amendment protected the citizen from the state, not the state from the citizen. Read American history up until recent years, and the Bible was used frequently in education (example: “McGuffy Reader”).
Our courts, not Congress, have made decisions to remove the Bible from a place of prominence and influence. The first amendment allows the Bible and things like prayer to be a part of education and our activities. As we witness the crumbling of our nation, how wise we would be to appreciate our nation’s heritage and the rights from our constitution and the Bill of Rights. Thanks for your letter, Rob.
Thanks for listening.
