David Price: “in our country the State is not to sponsor or sanction religious exercises. Neither is it to interfere with the free…”

“in our country the State is not to sponsor or sanction religious exercises. Neither is it to interfere with the free exercise of religion. That is a delicate balance that the Bill of Rights has protected for over 200 years. It is a delicate balance that the Istook amendment threatens to destroy. I want to make one point this morning, a quite simple and straightforward point: the prohibition against State-sponsored religious exercises in our country protects not only civic life but also, and more importantly, religious life. Mr. Speaker, it is no accident that a long list of religious communities and religious organizations are lined up in opposition to the Istook amendment. Amending the First Amendment to permit the State establishment of religion is a threat to our constitutional democracy, to be sure, of which freedom from religious coercion is a cornerstone. But even more, it is a threat to religious faith and practice. Mr. Speaker, religious liberty is not just freedom from coercion. Religious liberty is also freedom for the leading of the spirit, freedom to follow and obey God's will. Roger Williams, colonial America's foremost proponent of religious liberty, understood that the prohibition against the establishment of religion was more about protecting the church than it was about protecting the State. Religious freedom protects communities of believers, it protects the lonely conscience of the prophet, it protects the faithful individual.”