A Nation Under God? The ACLU and Religion in American Politics

by Krannawitter, Thomas L.; Palm, Daniel C.

• ISBN13: 9780742550872
• ISBN10: 0742550877
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-09-15
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Summary

A Nation Under God? The ACLU and Religion in American Politics questions the claim of the ACLU that the First Amendment to the Constitution requires the complete cleansing of any religious expression in the American public square. That position, Krannawitter and Palm argue, is not consistent with the principles of the American founding, but derives from early 20th century progressivism and modern liberalism that requires ultimately a reconstituting of the American regime along completely secular lines. A re-examination of the American founding, its theoretical and constitutional principles, allows for limited religious expression without violating the constitutional principle of religious liberty.

Author Biography

Thomas L. Krannawitter is a Claremont Institute Senior Fellow, and assistant professor of political science at Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan Daniel C. Palm is a Claremont Institute Senior Fellow, and associate professor of political science at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, California

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	vii
Introduction	ix
The ACLU and Religion in American Politics Today	1	(10)
Religion and Politics in Historical Perspective	11	(14)
Religion and the Moral Conditions of Freedom in the American Founding	25	(20)
The Progressive Rejection of the Principles of the American Founding	45	(12)
The Birth of the ACLU and the Rise of Modern Liberalism	57	(10)
Building the Wall of Separation: The ACLU Takes Religion to Court	67	(26)
Immoral Religion? The ACLU's Select Defense of Religious Free Exercise	93	(22)
Conclusion	115	(14)
Appendix: Documents from the Founding on Religion and Religious Liberty Declaration of Independence	129	(114)
Northwest Ordinance, Article 1, Article 3 (1787)	135	(2)
United States Constitution---Preamble, Article VI, Article VII, First Amendment (1787)	137	(2)
State Constitutions Acknowledging God	139	(30)
George Washington, First Inaugural Address (1796)	169	(4)
George Washington, Thanksgiving Proclamation (1789)	173	(2)
George Washington, Letter to the Hebrews at Newport (1790)	175	(2)
George Washington, Farewell Address (1796)	177	(16)
James Madison, A Memorial and Remonstrance (1785)	193	(8)
Thomas Jefferson, Virginia Statute for Religious Liberty (1786)	201	(4)
Thomas Jefferson, Letter to the Danbury Baptists (1802)	205	(2)
Samuel West, On the Right to Rebel Against Governors (1776)	207	(22)
Samuel Cooper, Sermon on the Commencement of the Massachusetts Constitution (1780)	229	(14)
About the Authors	243	(2)
Index	245