Written by Don Byrd
September 17 is the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution. Today we celebrate our form of government and our most fundamental freedoms and rights. The Baptist Joint Committee has a great Constitution Day page of resources. (If you have never taken a look at the actual document, or read it before, check out the National Archives’ Constitution page as also a great place to start.)
From a religious liberty perspective, when I think of our Constitution, I am impressed by what is *not* found there. For one, there are no references to America being a “Christian nation,” as so many are fond of suggesting. In fact, there are hardly any religious references at all.
Article VI includes this provision: “[N]o religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.“
The First Amendment includes the two religion clauses: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.“
And that’s it for mentions of God or religion! (apart from the formality of describing the year of signing as the “Year of Our Lord, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Eighty Seven.”)
The Constitution establishes a government that is neutral toward religion, a radical experiment that has allowed religion to flourish. Happy Constitution Day!
Use the hashtags #ConstitutionDay and #ConstitutionDay2015 to share your thoughts in social media! On Twitter, follow me (@BJCblog) and the BJC (@BJConTheHill) to see what we are sharing.
See the BJC’s excellent Constitution Day resources, including links to classroom lessons, and Brent Walker’s “Top Five Myths of the Separation of Church and State.“
