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Panel Discussion At "Signs Of The Times: The First Amendment And Religious Symbolism", Carl H. Esbeck
Panel Discussion At "Signs Of The Times: The First Amendment And Religious Symbolism", Carl H. Esbeck
Faculty Publications
No abstract provided.
When Accommodations For Religion Violate The Establishment Clause: Regularizing The Supreme Court's Analysis, Carl H. Esbeck
When Accommodations For Religion Violate The Establishment Clause: Regularizing The Supreme Court's Analysis, Carl H. Esbeck
Faculty Publications
This article sets forth five rules with respect to what government may do to accommodate religious practice and five rules with respect to what government may not do. As it turns out the Supreme Court has said that most religious accommodations are left to the broad discretion of legislators and public officials. So long as the object of the accommodation is to protect or expand religious freedom, as distinct from expanding religion, the accommodation will be permitted.
The Establishment Clause As A Structural Restraint: Validations And Ramifications, Carl H. Esbeck
The Establishment Clause As A Structural Restraint: Validations And Ramifications, Carl H. Esbeck
Faculty Publications
The opening phrase of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." The free exercise clause functions as an individual right with its purpose being to forestall personal religious harm. Its underlying principle is that in religious matters a person ought to be free of coercion caused by the government and thereby not made to suffer for cause of conscience. The function of the establishment clause is altogether different, for its purpose is to restrain government from using its powers to act on matters …
Differentiating The Free Exercise And Establishment Clauses, Carl H. Esbeck
Differentiating The Free Exercise And Establishment Clauses, Carl H. Esbeck
Faculty Publications
The purpose of the Establishment Clause is not to safeguard individual religious rights. That is the role of the Free Exercise Clause, indeed its singular role. The purpose of the Establishment Clause, rather, is as a structural restraint on governmental power. Because of its structural character, the task of the Establishment Clause is to limit government from legislating or otherwise acting on any matter "respecting an establishment of religion." The powers that fall within the scope of the foregoing clause (denied to government, hence within the sole province of religion) and the powers outside this clause (hence, authority vested in …
The Establishment Clause As A Structural Restraint On Governmental Power, Carl H. Esbeck
The Establishment Clause As A Structural Restraint On Governmental Power, Carl H. Esbeck
Faculty Publications
This Article inquires into whether the singular purpose of the Establishment Clause is to secure individual rights, as is conventionally believed, or whether its role is more properly understood as a structural restraint on governmental power. If the Clause is indeed structural in nature, then its task is to negate from the purview of civil governance all matters “respecting an establishment of religion.” Conceptualizing the role of the Establishment Clause as either rights-securing or structural has profound consequences for the nation's constitutional settlement concerning the interrelationship of government and religion.
Establishment Clause Limits On Governmental Interference With Religious Organizations, Carl H. Esbeck
Establishment Clause Limits On Governmental Interference With Religious Organizations, Carl H. Esbeck
Faculty Publications
In this article it will be argued that the establishment clause, properly viewed, functions as a structural provision regimenting the nature and degree of involvement between government and religious associations." The degree of involvement should be a limited one, although it is clear that the interrelationship need not nor cannot be eliminated altogether. Although the degree of desired separation has proven to be a continuing controversy, the goal of separation is not so divisive. The aim of separation of church and government is for each to give the other sufficient breathing space. The ordering principle is reciprocity in which "both …