Will Barack Obama and Rev. Rick Warren Violate the First Amendment?

I read an article today about President-elect Obama’s choice, Rev. Rick Warren, for the inaugural prayer. There has been a small but vocal opposition to his choice. Besides the issues Rev. Warren has stood for, the emphasis is on what he may say. The AP writer showed concern that lawsuits would be filed for invoking the name of Jesus or Christ in the prayer. Does invoking the name of Jesus violate the First Amendment of the Constitution, or is it protected by it?

A couple of years ago I was taking a Critical Thinking class in college. The instructor gave us a list of topics to choose from for our projects. I decided to be bold and write about ‘One Nation under God’ in the Pledge of Allegiance. I soon found out that not only was I the only one who argued that it was constitutional, but I also had a lot of fun defending it. I often wonder what our founding fathers would say if they faced the same arguments today.

During the Critical Thinking class, I learned how hostile individuals are when it comes to religion. The first thing from their mouths were the words, “that is unconstitutional”. My classmates would argue that “Under God” was an establishment of religion. Michael Newdow sued to have “Under God” taken out of the pledge for that very reason. My question to them was, “How did it establish a national religion?” They never gave me a good answer. Their answers were based on feelings.

Alexander Hamilton, in the Federalist Papers #84, made the argument that there was no need for a bill of rights because they were stipulations between kings and their subject, and there were examples of rights already given in the articles of the constitution. He said, “It is evident, therefore, that, according to their primitive signification (Magna Charta, Petition of Rights, and Declaration of Rights), they have no application to constitutions, professedly founded upon the power of the people, and executed by their immediate representatives and servants.” In other words, free men already possessed the rights granted by the Bill of Rights.

Let’s see what The First Amendment of the Bill of Rights states. “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibit the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

The section of this amendment that has had the greatest controversy is “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion”. The congress, under the Articles of Confederation, had been working on the constitution with fresh memories of the Church of England. The king or queen was the head of the church. Whether they were Catholic or Protestant dictated what religion their subjects belonged to. The intent was not to take church out of the state, but to keep the state form heading the church.

The bill was a direct order to the congress that had the power to write laws. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines established as “to institute (as a law) permanently by enactment or agreement”. In other words, congress cannot create and control a permanent national religion. The Head of the Church of England required the English people to attend and pay tithes to the church. They were persecuted if they practiced any other religion.

The second part stated: “or prohibit the free exercise thereof”. Congress is prohibited from stopping anyone from exercising their religion. With this in mind, how does a prayer, or any INDIVIDUAL religious action, violate the First Amendment of the Constitution? It does not. The phrase “Separation of Church and State”, as it is used today, is in direct violation to the First Amendment. The correct phrasing should be, “The Protection of the Church from the State.” If there was a “Wall of Separation” between the church and the state, than it would have been written into the bill.

I was disappointed when my Critical Thinking class was over, but the lessons I learned were valuable. On January 20th an invocation will be delivered. Our soon to be president, Barak Obama, has enacted his right to choose Rev. Warren to pray during his inauguration. I hope, for our sakes, that the First Amendment will be used to protect our rights and not trample them. Do not look at the First Amendment as a control on the church. But, look at it as stipulations between congress and the people. The Declaration of Independence was written on behalf of the people to the King of England. In the same way, the Bill of Rights was written on behalf of the people to the Congress of the United States of America.