Robert Boston - Taking Liberties: Why Religious Freedom Doesnt Give You the Right to Tell Other People What to Do

ALSO BY ROBERT BOSTON

Why the Religious Right Is Wrong
about Separation of Church and State

The Most Dangerous Man in America?
Pat Robertson and the Rise of the Christian Coalition

Close Encounters with the Religious Right:
Journeys into the Twilight Zone of Religion and Politics

Published 2014 by Prometheus Books

Taking Liberties: Why Religious Freedom Doesnt Give You the Right to Tell Other People What to Do. Copyright 2014 by Robert Boston. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, digital, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, or conveyed via the Internet or a website without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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To the memory of my mother, Alice R. Boston

Im fortunate because I have been able to spend most of my professional life doing something that means a lot to me: defending the separation of church and state.

Im doubly fortunate that for over twenty-five years, Ive had the privilege to work alongside lots of great people who share the goal of shoring up the church-state wall. There are too many of them to mention by name, but Id like to single out a few here.

Barry W. Lynn has been executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State since 1992. Barry, who is both a minister and an attorney, brings an important perspective to bear in this debate. Hes a man of faith who understands why freedom of conscience must be extended to all, believers and nonbelievers, and he intuitively grasps why the government is not the proper agent to promote theology.

Barry drives religious Right leaders crazy. Over the years, Ive heard many of them insist that he cant be a real minister or that his theology degree must be a fake. I know better. Barrys faith is genuine, and hes comfortable enough with it to believe that it needs no support other than what he and his coreligionists are willing to give it. Barry understands that only a weak religion needs the strut of the state. I suspect thats what really bothers so many people about Barry. Deep down, they envy his uncluttered belief system, which is in contrast to the politicized version they have fashioned. Barrys faith is still about God, worship, and community. The religious Rights is about politicians, ballot boxes, and lobbyists. You see their distress.

Joe Conn was my boss for a quarter of a century. I could not list all that I learned from him. Joe, who served as editor of Church & State (the magazine published by Americans United) and ran the media outreach for Americans United, was patient with my learning curve and introduced me to many of the church-state topics I ended up writing about for so long. My life could have turned out very differently if Joe hadnt been such a good boss. Im glad he was.

The current and former leadership team of Americans Unitedamong them, Ayesha Khan, Maggie Garrett, Beth Corbin, Betsy Pursell, Michael Smoot, Marjorie Spitz Nagrotsky, Aaron Schuham, Richard Katskee, Rebecca Davis-Nordhave been inspiring colleagues and dedicated coworkers. It has been a privilege to labor alongside them in this important cause. I could say that about all the employees of Americans United, past and present. I also deeply appreciate the support (financial and otherwise) of the members of Americans United. We couldnt do this without themand I mean that literally.

I have also benefitted from the knowledge of many scholars over the years and the research produced by many of the activist groups that work with Americans United. These organizations come in many formsJewish, humanist, Christian, and so on. All share the commitment to real religious liberty that the separation of church and state gives us. As the old saying goes, there is strength in numbers, and, through our coalition work, we have learned that, while we may not always agree on points of theology, we definitely agree on the need for a government that respects our right to disagree and doesnt take sides on theological matters.

Id like to give a special shout-out to the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, a group that works to expose the falsehood that Christians dont support the separation of church and state.

Americans United senior litigation counsel, Greg Lipper, gave me some feedback about legal issues. Scott Pichon and Dominic Vallosio, interns in our Field Department, made suggestions that improved the flow of the manuscript. My friend Ivory Madison helped me bring the book into focus during a time when I was still a little fuzzy on what I wanted to say.

On the home front, the support and encouragement of my wife, Carol, has been absolutely essential. Every day I am reminded that I made the best decision of my life when I asked her to marry me way back in 1991. Our two children, Claire and Paul, bring joy to our lives and remind me of the importance of the work Americans United does so that the next generation will continue to enjoy the benefits of real religious liberty.

I make no claim that the people I have mentioned will agree with everything in this book. The reader may not either. My hope is to foster a discussion about what religious freedom really means in twenty-first-century America. Our experiment in freedom has succeeded well. The only way we can keep it is to continue defending it.

The term religious freedom means the right to make decisions about theology for yourself. Its the right to worship Godor not to worship at allas you see fit. Its the right to share your faith and join in worship with a community of like-minded believers. Its the right to pass that faith on to your children.

That is what religious freedom is. Here is what it is not: Its not the right to tell other people what to do. Its not the right to make decisions for others. Its not the right to use the power of government to impose your theology on anyone else.

There was a time when we had a pretty good understanding of religious freedom in America. Thats not surprising, given our nations history. We took pride in our past. We looked with wonder at our accomplishment: our journey from a nation of Puritans who saw no need to divide religion and government to a vibrant, multifaith society resting on a secular constitution and the separation of church and state.