Because of this clause in the First Amendment, I cannot say that denying a student's or anyone's constitutional right to prayer would the correct thing to do. I firmly believe in liberty, which means freedom from government restraint. I have never understood why many Libertarians such as Bill Maher, oppose the idea of student-lead school prayer. They claim that they believe in personal liberty, but are then inconsistent with this belief when it comes to school prayer or any religious activity in the public sphere. Preventing prayer in school and the public sphere is the antithesis of one's freedom from government restraint and something that Libertarians are said to abhore...but sometimes I wonder about that one.
When it comes to Constitutional Law, I adhere more to the Non-Preferential Approach, which simply means that government shouldn't prefer one religion over another, or establish an official church or state religion. Renquist, O'Conner, Thomas, and Scalia would most likely agree with me on this one.
I tend to not agree with the High-Wall of Separation Approach, which is self-explainatory...and in my opinion extremely flawed because this Supreme Court Precedent was not taken out of the U.S. Constitution, but from words taken out of context in a letter from Jefferson to the Danbury Baptist Association. Because of this letter, the Supreme Court has interpreted the Establishment Clause in the Constitution to mean something that it does not. The Founding Fathers incorporated the Establishment Clause so that America federally would not adopt an official state religion, although it has been argued in the past on whether or not the Establishment Clause was even to be made applicable to the states by the 14th Amendment. But through selective incorporation, the Supreme Court has applied the Bill of Rights in the Constitution to the states to conform to a national standard, at least the rights that are considered to be implicit in the concept of ordered liberty. But anyway I keep droning on and back to the subject, I tend to worry when the Supreme Court makes rulings based on flawed hermanutic and ideas that are not specifically stated in the Constitution in regards to their idea of the separation between church and state means.
The full context of that letter, along with other previously cited quotes by Washington, Madison,
Jefferson and Adams belie your claim.
And Bill Maher is no more a libertarian than Jim Jeffords is a conservative.
If you are going to quote the constitution, and the use of quotation marks says you are, please quote it exactly and do not paraphrase it.
The correct wording is;
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" and it goes on. The difference made by that one word is substantial.
I have never understood why many Libertarians such as Bill Maher, oppose the idea of student-lead school prayer.
Bill Maher is not a libertarian.