Why the Istook religion amendment should be rejected.

Church-state separationists say U.S. Rep.

Ernest J. Istook's so-called "Religious

Freedom Amendment" is a blueprint for

government-sanctioned worship, taxation

for religion and majoritarian oppression.

Here are some points to keep in mind when

considering the measure:

* The Istook proposal is not a

"Religious Freedom Amendment." Rather,

it is a recipe for religious tyranny.

Separation of church and state has served

this country well for more than 200 years,

bringing America interfaith harmony,

incredible religious vitality and a high rate

of attendance at houses of worship. The

Istook amendment removes that vital

principle from our Constitution.

* No amendment is need to guarantee

students' right to pray in public schools; they

already have the right to engage in purely

voluntary, non-disruptive prayer any time

during the school day. The Istook

amendment is designed to permit coercive 

programs of group prayer in public schools.

Students would be forced to single

themselves out by getting up and leaving

the room if they did not want to participate.

* Provisions in the amendment barring

government officials from compelling

participation in prayer are insufficient. In

public schools, student "volunteers" could

impose religious worship on their peers by

reciting prayers of their own composition

or ones already written.

* The provision allowing "the people"

to "recognize their religious beliefs, heritage

or traditions on public property" is

dangerously vague. In Utah, the people

could vote to declare the state officially

Mormon; in Alabama, a county could

become officially Baptist. Religious groups

would be forced to compete with one an

other for government recognition and

favors.

* Private groups, including religious

organizations, already have the right to

acknowledge religion on government

property under certain conditions. For

example, a church may display a Nativity 

scene in front of city hall if that space has

been used for other free-speech activities in

the past. This amendment is designed to

allow government officials to endorse

religion, a practice that could make millions

of Americans feel like outsiders in their

own communities.

* The amendment would force

taxpayers to put their hard-earned money

in the collection plates of houses of

worship, even though they might disagree

with the faith being taught. For example,

the provision stating that government shall

not "discriminate against religion or deny a

benefit due to religion" forces government

to give tax aid to religious groups for

schools and other ministries. It taxes

people to support religions in which they

may disbelieve and is, at bottom, a religion

tax--a notion this country did away with

more than 200 years ago.

* Under this amendment, every

religious group that wants public funding 

would have a constitutional right to receive

it. It is estimated that there are nearly

21000 separate religious denominations in

the United States. The government simply

does not have the money to fund religion

on this scale. Even if just half of the groups

demanded public aid, financial chaos would

result. Either taxes would shoot up

dramatically, the budget deficit would soar 

or other government services would have

to be cut to the bone or eliminated. In

addition, since the government cannot play

favorites among religions, every group that

asks would have to funded, including

unpopular groups or denominations with

unusual doctrines. (Under the law, all

religions are equal; the government could

not deny funding to groups deemed to be

"cults.")

* The Istook amendment is a huge step

toward government control of religion.

Giving religious groups a constitutional

right to public funding also guarantees that

they will be regulated by the state. The

government simply does not hand out

money with no strings attached. In fact, a

raft of government rules and regulations

would have to be implemented to ensure

that the public interest was being served.

* Changing the First Amendment is a

radical step that has never been done in the

206-year history of the Bill of Rights. Yet

the Istook amendment guts the First

Amendment's religious freedom

protections. These rights, bequeathed to us

by the Founding Fathers, are precious and

should not be tampered with.

The First Amendment was drafted by

James Madison and other visionary

thinkers of early American history. It is the

height of arrogance for Religious Right

lawyers, TV preachers and far-right

operatives to believe they can improve

upon Madison's eloquence.

* Organizations backing the Istook

amendment include radical Religious Right

groups that labor to undermine the

separation of church and state. They

include TV preacher Pat Robertson's

Christian Coalition, James Dobson's Focus

on the Family, Concerned Women for

America and Robertson's American Center 

for Law and Justice.

* The Istook amendment is opposed

by the vast majority of America's mainline 

religious denominations, including most

leading Protestant bodies and numerous

Jewish groups, as well as major civil

liberties organizations.

In short, church-state separationists

regard Istook's "Religious Freedom

Amendment" as a misguided effort to

destroy a two-century-old tradition of

religious liberty in America. It should be

rejected out of hand.