Separation of Church and State
A political and legal doctrine derived from the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment, which mandates that the government must remain neutral in matters of religion, neither endorsing nor inhibiting religious practice.
A political and legal doctrine derived from the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment, which mandates that the government must remain neutral in matters of religion, neither endorsing nor inhibiting religious practice.
Example: The Supreme Court’s decision in Lee v. Weisman (1992) ruled that clergy-led prayer at public school graduation ceremonies violates the Establishment Clause, reinforcing the boundary between government-sponsored events and religious practice.
Common misconception: The phrase ‘separation of church and state’ appears in the U.S. Constitution. The phrase does not appear in the Constitution; it originates from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson in 1802, though the Supreme Court has adopted it as a shorthand for interpreting the First Amendment’s religion clauses.
Sources: https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/amendment-1/ — First Amendment religion clauses (Constitution Annotated; discusses Jefferson's 1802 Danbury letter); https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/505/577/ — Lee v. Weisman, 505 U.S. 577 (1992) opinion text (non-official mirror of the opinion)