Religion and the American Constitutional Experiment

RELIGION AND THE AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONAL EXPERIMENT, 3rd ed. 2011 Westview Press

U of St. Thomas Legal Studies Research Paper No. 10-22

Emory Public Law Research Paper No. 10-133

15 Pages Posted: 2 Oct 2010 Last revised: 2 Oct 2014

See all articles by John Witte, Jr.

John Witte, Jr.

Emory University School of Law

Joel A. Nichols

University of St. Thomas School of Law (MN)

Date Written: 2010

Abstract

This volume provides a comprehensive, multidisciplinary overview of the history, theory, law, and comparative analysis of American religious liberty from the earliest colonial period through the most recent Supreme Court cases. It also highlights the shifting jurisprudence and weakening of First Amendment religion clauses that is leading to new federal and state legislation and eroding protection of religious liberty in the United States. “We are troubled by this emerging shift from the judiciary to the legislature, and from the federal to the state governments in the protection of religious liberty in America. Such a shift leaves what should be common national rights of religious liberty vulnerable to fleeting political fashions and contingent on a claimant’s geographical location,” the authors write in the new introduction.

The new volume gives ample attention to the seven U.S. Supreme Court cases regarding religious liberty, including McCreary County v. ACLU and Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, that have arisen since the second edition went to press in 2004. Also included is a chapter on religious organizations and the law, a topic that has become increasingly important as attention shifts toward this subject with regard to religious institutions’ division over same-sex marriage. The book maintains the structure and themes introduced in the first two editions but contains substantial revisions.

We have included the preface and introduction to the new edition.

Keywords: Religious Liberty, First Amendment, Religion Clauses, Free Exercise Clause, Establishment Clause, Religious Organizations, Church and State, Religious Rights, Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, McCreary County v. ACLU

Suggested Citation

Witte, John and Nichols, Joel A., Religion and the American Constitutional Experiment (2010). RELIGION AND THE AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONAL EXPERIMENT, 3rd ed. 2011 Westview Press, U of St. Thomas Legal Studies Research Paper No. 10-22, Emory Public Law Research Paper No. 10-133, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1685645

John Witte

Emory University School of Law ( email )

1301 Clifton Road
Atlanta, GA 30322
United States
404-727-6980 (Phone)
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Joel A. Nichols (Contact Author)

University of St. Thomas School of Law (MN) ( email )

MSL 400, 1000 La Salle Avenue
Minneapolis, MN Minnesota 55403-2005
United States
651-962-4827 (Phone)

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