November 22, 2004, here on slacktivist: Religious Liberty II
Here is what the First Amendment has to say about religious liberty: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”
I consider the two clauses of this statement to be complementary and mutually reinforcing. From my own Baptist perspective — a perspective shaped by the hard lessons of history — the free exercise of religion can only be guaranteed by the strict prohibition of the establishment of religion. I believe the two clauses, together and in harmony, constitute an argument for the separation of church and state.
One alternative to this position calls itself an “accommodationist” approach. Accommodationists tend to see a tension between the two clauses of the First Amendment. Where I see the two clauses as simply two sides of the same Caesar’s coin, they view the clauses as almost opposites.
The protectionist view … goes further even than the accommodationist approach. They view the two clauses as not merely in “tension,” but at war. Where I see the establishment clause as the guarantor of free exercise, they see it as the enemy of religious liberty.
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