WI: Four extra words in the First Amendment

Thanos6

Banned
Let's say that all the Deist/agnostic/atheist members of the Founding Fathers are struck by the memories of the Salem Witch Trials and other such times when religion got out of hand, and they want to make doubly sure that nothing even remotely similar could ever happen in the new country they were constructing. So here's how they construct a certain section of the First Amendment:

"...freedom of, or if desired, from religion..."

They tell their faithful brethren that these words were chosen to make it as hard as possible for those of another faith (such as the "Mohammedans") to inflict their rules on "good Christians." They accept this reasoning and the amendment is accepted.

How does this affect the legal and cultural landscape in the US down the line?
 
Let's say that all the Deist/agnostic/atheist members of the Founding Fathers are struck by the memories of the Salem Witch Trials and other such times when religion got out of hand, and they want to make doubly sure that nothing even remotely similar could ever happen in the new country they were constructing. So here's how they construct a certain section of the First Amendment:

"...freedom of, or if desired, from religion..."

They tell their faithful brethren that these words were chosen to make it as hard as possible for those of another faith (such as the "Mohammedans") to inflict their rules on "good Christians." They accept this reasoning and the amendment is accepted.

How does this affect the legal and cultural landscape in the US down the line?

I can hardly imagine that to happen. After all, many of those founding fathers will have some legal knowledge, and "freedom from religion" right from the start rules out any public display of religion. This makes america a laizistic state - that's much more than guaranteeing freedom of religion.

The consequences of laizism are far reaching. I would expect that religious minorities would use this freedom first.
 
I doubt this would be possible. With the possible exception of Thomas Paine, none of the founders were atheists in the literal sense of the word, and most obviously believed that there was a role for religious sensibility and reverence (while not specific religions) in the public arena. I don't think most founders would have considered "freedom from religion" as a positive social value they would want to encourage.
 

Anaxagoras

Banned
I doubt this would be possible. With the possible exception of Thomas Paine, none of the founders were atheists in the literal sense of the word, and most obviously believed that there was a role for religious sensibility and reverence (while not specific religions) in the public arena. I don't think most founders would have considered "freedom from religion" as a positive social value they would want to encourage.

Thomas Paine was not an atheist but was, like Jefferson and Franklin, a Deist.
 
No one in the first Congress would have proposed this. If they had, it wouldn't have passed. If passed, the states would not have ratified it. If ratified, it would have been overturned via amendment (in this TL, you may actually get the 'christian amendment' that was proposed and came close to being passed a time or two in the 19th).

So, you know.

But assuming ASB intervention, legally it wouldn't have made a huge difference from OTL. It wasn't until part way through the 20th that the 'endorsement' test was created, and by that point atheism was held to be protected by the free exercise clause of the 1st Amendment anyway.

Let's say that all the Deist/agnostic/atheist members of the Founding Fathers are struck by the memories of the Salem Witch Trials and other such times when religion got out of hand, and they want to make doubly sure that nothing even remotely similar could ever happen in the new country they were constructing. So here's how they construct a certain section of the First Amendment:

"...freedom of, or if desired, from religion..."

They tell their faithful brethren that these words were chosen to make it as hard as possible for those of another faith (such as the "Mohammedans") to inflict their rules on "good Christians." They accept this reasoning and the amendment is accepted.

How does this affect the legal and cultural landscape in the US down the line?
 
Let's say that all the Deist/agnostic/atheist members of the Founding Fathers are struck by the memories of the Salem Witch Trials and other such times when religion got out of hand, and they want to make doubly sure that nothing even remotely similar could ever happen in the new country they were constructing. So here's how they construct a certain section of the First Amendment:

"...freedom of, or if desired, from religion..."

They tell their faithful brethren that these words were chosen to make it as hard as possible for those of another faith (such as the "Mohammedans") to inflict their rules on "good Christians." They accept this reasoning and the amendment is accepted.

How does this affect the legal and cultural landscape in the US down the line?

Well, even though the 1st Amendment was designed to allow freedom from religion as well as of it anyhow, I don't think this'll be an issue until the end of the 19th century at the very latest. On the other hand, it would be much harder for the Fundies and any other hardcore right-wing Christian groups to twist the 1st to suit their viewpoint.
 
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