April 19, 2010

Unconstitutional Day of Prayer

Interestingly, a virtually identical view [to that of President Thomas Jefferson and now United States District Judge Barbara Crabb] was voiced in the First Congress on September 25, 1789—the very day the Bill of Rights cleared both houses. When New Jersey Representative Elias Boudinot introduced a bill recommending "a day of public thanksgiving and prayer," South Carolina's Thomas Tucker rose up in opposition: "[I]t is a religious matter, and as such, is proscribed to us. If a day of thanksgiving must take place, let it be done by the authority of the several States...."
— Akhil Reed Amar, The Bill of Rights, p. 35.
Not that a State proclamation would solve the problem nowadays ...

1 comment:

  1. Some will argue that endorsement (wink, wink) can be stretched to be almost anything you want it to be.

    ReplyDelete