Cobblestone articles from January 2000

Cobblestone archives from January 2000

America's BOLDEST Experiment.(including freedom of religion in the Constitution)
January 1, 2000... "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...." - First Amendment, U.S. Constitution These first sixteen words of the First Amendment are responsible for the boldest...

A TAPESTRY OF RELIGIONS.(religions in the US)
January 1, 2000... The principle of religious liberty had few true supporters in early America. But with the adoption of the Bill of Rights (the first ten Amendments to the U.S. Constitution) in 1791, freedom of religion became the law of the land. There...

Religious Freedom in Colonial America.
January 1, 2000... America's first colonists came to the New World in search of religious freedom. Yet all the early colonies -- whether settled by the French, Spanish, Dutch, or English -- set up established or state-supported churches patterned after the...

`SWORN UPON THE ALTAR OF GOD'.
January 1, 2000... Few men fought tyranny, especially religious tyranny, more vigorously than Thomas Jefferson. "I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man," Jefferson wrote to his friend Dr. Benjamin...

Nativism and the Know-Nothings.
January 1, 2000... An angry mob waving torches rushed at the Catholic school on the hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts. The crowd had heard rumors that immoral things went on behind those doors. They believed a false report that nuns and priests were holding a...

Did You Know?(religion and human rights)
January 1, 2000... In the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries, European Christians participated in religious holy wars, or Crusades, to take back the Holy Land (Palestine) from the Muslims. In 1534, England's King Henry VIII did the unthinkable: He declared...

OBEYING GOD, Disobeying Your Doctor.
January 1, 2000... Does freedom to practice your religion under the First Amendment mean you can say "no" to medical treatment? Seventeen-year-old Alexis Demos thinks it does. In 1999, she got a chance to prove it. Alexis is a Jehovah's Witness (see the...

RELIGIOUS LIBERTY and Public Schools.
January 1, 2000... In the 19th century, saluting the flag and reading the Bible in public schools were not the explosive issues they are today. With a more religiously diverse population today, Americans must learn to allow all people the right to practice the...

WHAT'S YOUR Verdict?
January 1, 2000... The nine judges of the U.S. Supreme Court do not always agree on religion or the separation of church and state in the cases brought before them. The majority opinion becomes the Court's verdict, but dissenting judges also write down their...

DEVILS TOWER.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2000... Religion Versus Rock Climbing No one could have predicted the controversy that would surround Wyoming's Devils Tower. President Theodore Roosevelt created the first national monument there in 1906. An "extraordinary example of the effect...

A SALUTE TO Religious Freedom.(Illustration)
January 1, 2000... In 1942, just after the United States entered World War II, West Virginia's Board of Education required all public school students "to participate in the salute honoring the Nation represented by the Flag... ," including the Pledge of...

Brain Ticklers.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2000... Give your brain a little tickle to see how well you read and understood what this issue on religious freedom was about. If you believe the answer to be false, give yourself the ultimate test and see whether you can explain why it is false. ...

A Final Word.(religious diversity protected)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2000... Consider all the wars or armed conflicts that go on in the world over religious issues -- the Balkans and the Middle East are just two examples. Isn't it remarkable that the United States can be so religiously diverse and do its best to protect...

Letters.(Brief Article)(Poem)
January 1, 2000... frost Out in our yard, mud puddles rage. The frost covers over them. Out of something ugly comes something that sparkles in the sunlight. Megan Kinney Annapolis, Maryland I Wish I...

Dear Cobblestonians,.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2000... In the October 2000 issue, we will delve into the history surrounding King Philip's War of 1675-1676. Philip, an American Indian leader, waged war against New England colonists who had illegally moved onto Indian territory. Consider the cost of...

Books to Read.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2000... Freedom of Worship by Victoria Sherrow (Brookfield, Connecticut: The Millbrook Press, 1997) is part of the Land of the Free series on the Bill of Rights. This colorful book traces the history of religious freedom from Colonial days to the...

More Media.(on church and state)
January 1, 2000... The Supreme Court's Holy Battles traces the controversy that has always surrounded the separation of church and state and looks at Supreme Court cases that dealt with religious expression in public places. For more information, contact PBS...

On the Web.(sites on freedom of religion)
January 1, 2000... Visit the Library of Congress' on-line exhibit titled "Religion and the Founding of the American Republic" (lcweb.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/religion.html) to view dozens of original documents, paintings, and images related to freedom of...

Places to Visit.(National Archives)
January 1, 2000... National Archives, Washington, D.C. Built specifically to house the archives of the U.S. government, the National Archives' collections include the original Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. The Archives...