Opinion: Freedom of religion is not only for me; it's also for my neighbor

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is the top banner on the Register’s Opinion section: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” Many people focus on the Second Amendment, as though it is the only important one in the Bill of Rights.

However, the First Amendment Establishment Clause protects against governmental endorsement and imposition of religion giving privilege to all religions without discrimination. The Free Exercise Clause ensures the right to practice one’s faith, whatever that is, in the United States. It is not a matter of choosing between the two, nor “finding a balance,” The two need to go together.

A newspaper wrote, “A series of court decisions has raised fears that the conservative majority are forcing religion back into the US political system.” This is incorrect. Religious freedom means that I and my neighbor both have religious freedom. Each person should be able to talk about the faith that informs their values. The question is how we create a trustworthy environment in this pluralistic nation to be different together.

In May the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of a conservative Christian group that wanted to fly a flag emblazoned with a cross at Boston city hall. In June the Court endorsed taxpayer money paying for students to attend religious schools under a Maine tuition assistance program. Justice Sonia Sotomayor is concerned that the U.S. Supreme Court is dismantling the wall between church and state.

In late June the Supreme Court sided with a Washington state high school coach who led on-field prayers. The court said the suspended coach’s prayers amounted to private speech protected by the First Amendment. Dissenters said this ruling favored the free exercise clause at the expense of the establishment clause.

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In regard to church and state (or should we say, “religion and government”?) we need to recognize and respect all faith communities. Religious diversity started with the European immigrant encounter with indigenous peoples. Although many colonists came to this land in search of religious freedom, they (my ancestors included) systematically and violently denied it to the indigenous peoples already here through the destruction of tribal identity, culture, religion, language, and sacred sites.

The “no establishment clause” of the First Amendment required “Disestablishment” which happened gradually, state by state, over a 50-year period in the new United States of America, finally achieved only in 1833. The disestablishment of churches resulted in the organization of national religious bodies independent of state and federal government. The no establishment clause provides neutrality and equality, not absence of religions. In public and political life, we welcome ideas and beliefs of many diverse beliefs. This is helpful nationally and certainly in global understanding.

I’ve studied these issues since the U.S. bicentennial in 1976. Robert Bellah in his significant 1967 article “Civil Religion in America” wrote that many believed God created this chosen people to come across the biblical Red Sea (the Atlantic Ocean), to conquer the continent. American exceptionalism derived from this story of a chosen people with a promised land. America’s myth of origin did not include the 550 distinct native tribes already here. They didn’t fit into the story of “discovery.” Nor did God’s “covenantal people” incorporate the enslaved people brought against their will. There were Chinese restrictions and Japanese internment camps.

Over the years I’ve seen this American Civil Religion become entwined with the fundamentalist evangelical right, morphing into a Christian nationalism, distorting both American identity and Christianity. It implies that to be a good American, one must be a certain kind of Christian, and have a certain kind of politics. It implies that people of other religions don’t belong in the United States. Christian nationalism encourages white supremacy and racial subjugation. American Christian nationalism is based on the belief that America is divinely established and superior to other countries. Holding or not holding this belief determines “loyalty” to the country.

This is a generous nation. However, we should not be generous on the basis of greatness, but because we are one among all nations, and called to helpful, healthy interrelationships. A belief that we are exceptional, God’s chosen people, keeps us from recognizing the problems we have had historically and also today. That’s why mass shootings still surprise us. We say, “How could that happen here?”

Many think these are issues America cannot afford to address right now. But can we afford not to? For our nation to truly heal, we must rectify our past. We need to teach our true history, not so that people will “feel bad,” but so that we can move toward equity and justice for all. Belief systems of justice, courage, and care, lead to actions of kindness, giving, and courageous endeavors for the sake of the world. With trust and respect, we can talk about important, serious issues: the climate crisis, immigration policies, gun violence, voting rights, war and diplomacy.

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To have a trustworthy environment to be different together is to listen and learn from each other. We can say, “Tell me how you came to believe that way?” And then, “I appreciate your saying that. Here is what I think on that subject.” And then in a group: “What other views do those of us hold?

Public education is essential for an inclusive, educated people. This means tax support for excellent community schools for youth to be educated together, inclusive of all economic classes, races, abilities and disabilities in all types of neighborhoods.

Privatization under the guise of parental choice can divide this state and nation even further. There is also the problem of using tax revenue to fund private K-12 religious schools and school voucher programs. We need to provide safe, trustworthy places, especially public community schools, to teach about religions, while not imposing one particular religion. Each student comes as a person with a belief system and perhaps as a member of a faith community.

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People say, God has been pushed out of the schools. Many people think the Word “God” cannot be mentioned and that teachers should be fired if they do. Indeed, teachers should not teach or preach their own religious beliefs to students with the intent to convert them; that is against the establishment clause. The function of the school is to educate about all religions, not to convert anyone to religion or any specific religion and not to practice a religion. Study about Religions, their holy days and place in history in public school is encouraged.

The First Amendment to the U. S. Constitution is truly important. Disestablishment of religion and government enables each of us and our neighbors to all be free. We need to beware of Christian Nationalism which seeks to determine loyalty to the country based on one’s religious and political views. We need to fully fund and support great public community schools for all. How can we together create and maintain trustworthy environments for us to be different together?

Dr. Norma Cook Everist, distinguished professor emerita at Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, was previously a lecturer at Yale Divinity School. She was born in Des Moines and now lives in Mason City. Email: ncookeverist@wartburgseminary.edu.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Opinion: Freedom of religion is for me and for my neighbor