Book contents
- The Cambridge Companion to the First Amendment and Religious Liberty
- Cambridge Companions to Law
- The Cambridge Companion to the First Amendment and Religious Liberty
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Notes on Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Part I Philosophical Foundations
- 1 The First Amendment and Natural Religion
- 2 The Philosophical Meaning of Religious Exercise
- 3 Freedom of Religion
- Part II Historical Interpretations
- Part III Law, Politics, and Economics
- Index
1 - The First Amendment and Natural Religion
from Part I - Philosophical Foundations
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 17 December 2019
- The Cambridge Companion to the First Amendment and Religious Liberty
- Cambridge Companions to Law
- The Cambridge Companion to the First Amendment and Religious Liberty
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Notes on Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Part I Philosophical Foundations
- 1 The First Amendment and Natural Religion
- 2 The Philosophical Meaning of Religious Exercise
- 3 Freedom of Religion
- Part II Historical Interpretations
- Part III Law, Politics, and Economics
- Index
Summary
The idea of religious liberty is sometimes thought to be necessary precisely because people will not agree on religious opinions. Yet the American tradition of religious freedom is grounded in the reality of both revealed religion and natural religion. While revealed religion, which is more contentious, is most often the subject of First Amendment cases, religious liberty need not presuppose that all religious knowledge is impossible. Instead, the Declaration of Independence famously affirms natural religion: that some things about God, human nature, and individual rights are knowable by reason. This chapter considers areas of natural religion, reason, and presuppositional thinking in order to show how knowledge is possible and how greater agreement can be achieved concerning religion.
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- Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020