"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." This is a key statement in the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Also known as the Establishment Clause, this amendment separates the church and the state. "At an absolute minimum, the Establishment Clause was intended to prohibit the federal government from declaring and financially supporting a national religion, such as existed in many other countries …showed first 75 words of 1884 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1884 total…Kappan, 1998. "Anti School Prayer Position." School Prayer: A Community at War. 1999. 11 Apr. 2005 http://www.schoolprayer.com/eduguide/positions.html "Enter By The Narrow Gate." Daily Bible Study. 2002. 11 Apr. 2005 http://www.keyway.ca/htm2003/20030110.htm Ben Keesee. "Majority rule not always the best." Letters to the Editor - Week of Jan. 3, 2005. 2005. 9 Apr. 2005 "Introduction to the Establishment Clause." Exploring Constitutional Law. 2004. 19 Apr. 2005 <http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/estabinto.htm>