1943 Quote by Robert H. Jackson

If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox…

— Robert Jackson

“Struggles to coerce uniformity of sentiment in support of some end thought essential to their time and country have been waged by many good…

— Robert H. Jackson

“...legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared…

— Thomas Jefferson

We repeat and again reaffirm that neither a State nor the Federal Government can constitutionally force a person 'to profess a belief or disbelief…

— Hugo Black

There is no doubt where the founding fathers stood on this issue. They believed that people of faith should be permitted to express themselves…

— John Cornyn

“Let [the Constitution] be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges, let it be written in primers, in spelling books and in almanacs,…

— Abraham Lincoln

“I believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute; where no Catholic prelate would tell the President -- should…

— John F. Kennedy

“As noted, late in their deliberations the drafters of the Constitution included a clause prohibiting religious tests or prerequisites for holding any federal office.”

— Steven K. Green

“Almost any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so.”

— Robert A. Heinlein

“First, societies lacking full religious liberty lack a critical restriction on state power. When citizens are free to have an ultimate commitment to something…

— Timothy Shah

The Establishment Clause prohibits government from making adherence to a religion relevant in any way to a person's standing in the political community.

— Sandra Day O'Connor

“& experience both forbid us to expect that National morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”

— Janice T. Connell