Separation of Church and State is a Two-Way Street
American circus showman P.T. Barnum purportedly said, “There are two kinds of people in the world, con men and suckers. Thank God for the suckers!”
The next time someone cries, “Separation of church and state!” immediately ask, “Do you think it is a one-way or a two-way street? Does it mean only that government may not require religious practice or speech? Or does it also mean that government may not censor religious practice and speech?”
My friends, the Constitution never says everyone has the right to freely exercise their religion except for bakers in Colorado.
The Constitution never says everyone has a right to free speech except for football coaches at public high schools in Washington State.
The Constitution never says everyone has the right to freely exercise their religion except government employees.
Not long ago, Auburn’s head football coach, Hugh Freeze, voluntarily helped baptize about 200 students on the spur of the moment in a lake on campus. Immediately, the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) cried foul.
The phrase, “Freedom from Religion,” tells you everything you need to know about this group. “Freedom from” is merely “newspeak” for censorship. I suspect if Jesus were on a college campus today, they would probably try to “freedom from” him too.
The FFRF pounds the table demanding “Separation of Church and State,” pretending that the U.S. Constitution promotes atheism over religion — a one-way street.
The FFRF Emphasizes One Clause of the Constitution to the Detriment of Other Clauses
Here is their game. The FFRF focuses exclusively on the Establishment clause of the Constitution: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” This means the government may not require religious practice or speech. Americans overwhelmingly support this clause in the Constitution — me included.
However, the FFRF religiously goes deafeningly silent on the Free Exercise clause, which says, “Congress shall make no law … prohibiting [religion’s] free exercise.” They even shoulder aside the Free Speech clause. It’s not an overt lie — just a deceptive omission.
When you combine the Establishment clause with the Free Exercise clause, it means the government may neither require nor censor religious practice or speech.
When you combine the Establishment clause with the Free Exercise clause, it means the government may neither require nor censor religious practice or speech. Emphasizing one above the other breaches the Constitution.
Jefferson’s “wall of separation” between Church and State forbids the government from requiring or censoring religious speech or practice anywhere, at any time. It emblazons a bright red line across the Constitution, thundering, “You shall not pass!”
The Freedom from Religion crowd promote what I describe as, “Segregation of Church and State.” They boot religious speech to the back of the bus. Years ago, we threw off the evil shackles of government enforced racial segregation. Now is the time to reject government sponsored segregation of religious speech as well.
The Constitution guarantees every American freedom of speech — and the right to freely exercise their religion. Of course, we all know you do not have the right to endanger other people’s lives by yelling “fire!” in a theater. But what rational person would equate free speech or religious speech with life-threatening speech?
The Government May Not Restrict Our Religious Speech
Separation of Church and State slaps handcuffs on the government. Politicians, judges and bureaucrats may not forbid, censor, stifle, subjugate, coerce or restrict the religious or non-religious speech of We the People.
The Constitution obligates government to remain neutral, ensuring a level playing field for all speech — religious and non-religious. Protecting secular speech while censoring religious speech is not neutral. Every child knows that is called taking sides. The courts contemptuously disregard the bright red line of separation restraining both Church and State whenever they censor the religious speech of even one American.
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Many Freedom from Religion folks allege that allowing religious expression in public education is “exclusionary by definition.” Do you know what is exclusionary by definition? Censorship.
They often say that to be “inclusive” of all viewpoints, you must exclude religious viewpoints. In other words, in order to be inclusive you must be exclusive. Welcome to George Orwell’s 1984 where: “War is Peace.” “Freedom is Slavery.” “Ignorance is Strength.” And Exclusivity is Inclusivity.
So, the next time someone utters, “Separation of Church and State,” listen closely for the deafening silence. Omissions often speak far louder than spoken words. Don’t be a sucker.
I applaud Coach Freeze for his courage and authenticity. He loves Jesus. He loves the Auburn students. He loves his neighbor as Jesus commanded. And he is far more concerned about God’s approval than man’s. We should all aspire to be more like Coach Freeze.
God is the issue.
Brad Bright is an author, speaker, president and CEO of Bright Media, and host of the weekly podcast, GOD is the Issue. Find him at BrightMedia.org.
© Brad Bright 2023, All rights reserved. (Permission granted to The Stream to republish.)
