Faith and Civic Engagement

By Jack Moline, Director of Public Policy, RA

Anyone who engages in advocacy on behalf of a religious community has to puzzle over the role of religion in the deliberations of the United States government.

I have been privy to some passionate debates over the meaning of the protections in the First Amendment to the Constitution. Some people, suspicious of the “faith agenda,” contend that the wall of separation between “church and state” is meant to be impenetrable. Others – especially those who feel faith has been marginalized by society – insist that government must protect the devout as vigorously as any minority.

Of course, there is a both-and aspect to this debate. But when we engage in public advocacy, we’d do well to remember a simple piece of wisdom into what keeps Jewish tradition vital. “Everything is in the hands of heaven except the fear of heaven” means that the person who does not respect the operating premise of a sacred system will ultimately compromise the system.

It is fair to say that the Constitution protects the integrity of religious traditions that, if authority were reversed, would not protect the integrity of the Constitution and other religious traditions. When religious partisans seek to promote their values and practices at the expense of others’ full engagement, they only reinforce that fact. It is true whether a group seeks to impose public prayer or to limit medical treatment, or whether the group seeks to redefine ritual objects as “cultural expressions” to circumvent Constitutional restrictions.

My friend Rev. Galen Guengrich once observed, “The price of America is that the Constitution trumps Scripture.” His observation should be understood broadly in our civic engagement. While we should seek the welfare of our people and the advancement of our concerns, we should recognize our responsibility to join with everyone who respects the foundational principles of US society. We should always be able to affirm that what we seek for ourselves is both right and responsible.

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