Freedom Of Religion (American Rights)

The very first words of the Bill of Rights protect the freedom of religion and prohibit the government from establishing any official religion. Freedom of Religion discusses those first 16 words, which protect the right of every citizen to exercise his or her religious beliefs. Politicians and legal scholars agree that the first 16 words in the Bill of Rights are the cornerstone of American law, but rarely do people agree on what those words mean.

Topics include:

• Court cases over the legality of wearing religious attire, such as yarmulkes, in the military
• Controversy over whether or not publicly funded town and county holiday decorations may be religious in nature
• How the First Amendment transformed into a firm guarantee of individual religious liberty and the separation of church and state
• Religious freedom in the American colonies
• The American religious culture's potential for change
• The religious diversity of the United States
• The Scopes trial over teaching evolution in the public schools
• and more.

Gr. 7-10. Books in the American Rights series look at rights guaranteed to U.S. citizens by the Bill of Rights. Although the Freedom of Religion clause makes its point in only 16 words, it has generated millions beyond that in discussion. This solid, readable volume walks readers through the part religion played in the formation of the colonies and looks at how faith informed the people's lives and the tensions among various religions. Head gives background on the First Amendment and then moves on to specific cases about religion in the U.S., including references to the Scopes trial and school prayer. Final chapters consider the politics of faith and the future of religious freedom. Although the complexity of the topic results in some dense writing, Head does a good job of presenting his information in an understandable manner, despite the complexity of the topic. Good-size print and frequent headings promote easy reading, and the appended material, which includes bibliographies and excerpts from documents by individuals such as Thomas Jefferson, is particularly helpful. The black-and-white photographs are dull in quality but interesting in content. Ilene Cooper
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