Separation of church and state - is it on the way out?

What did Jefferson really mean - and have his words been twisted?

Jefferson's phrase "wall of separation" when talking about church and state has, ironically, gained religious importance in the minds of many. Looking into a question that is rarely dealt with even-handedly, the Washington Times educates the public a bit on the separation of church and state and wonders if the "wall of separation" is coming down:

Francis Manion, senior counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), says that with its 5-4 opinion in Van Orden v. Perry, the high court "did away with the idea that there is something constitutionally radioactive about the Ten Commandments."

In a December 2005 ruling about a Kentucky courthouse's display of the Ten Commandments, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals held that the phrase "separation of church and state" is an "extra-constitutional construct ... [that] has grown tiresome." The court ruled that the display was allowed because it was "part of an otherwise secular exhibit."

Since then, the ACLJ, a public-interest law firm that specializes in religious-liberty cases, has won "most of the Ten Commandments court cases" in which it has participated, Mr. Manion says....

Many Americans wrongly assume the words "separation of church and state" are included in the U.S. Constitution.

This is an article worth reading and spreading around: get the printer-friendly version here. (Thanks to LP for story.)

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