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The First Amendment was never intended to bar Christians from the political process, nor prevent religious morals from influencing public policy. So where did the "Separation between church & state" come from? This phrase is not found anywhere in the Constitution or the Bill of Rights. It originates, not from the Constitution or any other foundational document of our country, but from a letter Thomas Jefferson sent to the Danbury, Connecticut Baptists Association in 1802, 13 years after Congress passed the First Amendment. The Baptists in Danbury were being discriminated against and not allowed to participate in government because they were Baptists. Jefferson wanted to reassure the Baptists that there would be no official denomination for the country. Jefferson believed that God, not government, was the Author and Source of our rights and that the government therefore, was to be prevented from interference with those rights. The letter was very private and personal.
It was not until 1947 that our current understanding of separation between church & state came into being. It was in the Supreme Court case, Everson vs. Board of Education, in which the court interpreted the First Amendment to remove prayer in public schools. The Court however, only quoted eight of Jefferson's words from his letter (which talked about a wall of separation between church and state). These eight words were taken out of context and have been misused ever since.
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