Abstract
Controversies about the relationship between church and state are at least as old as the Bible. In a familiar story, the Pharisees and Herodians tried to trap Jesus by asking him whether it was lawful to pay taxes to secular government. Jesus replied, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.
That canny response did not finally resolve church-state debates. Centuries later, when the American colonies were settled, the controversies were especially vehement. England had an established church, and many colonists emigrated from England seeking liberty to practice religion freely. When the colonists adopted their Constitution, they insisted on an amendment to prevent the national government from establishing a religion. Today, the Church of England remains established, but the degree of its connection to the state has diminished. Meanwhile, a “culture war” in the United States generates heated discussion about the appropriate degree of separation between church and state, with some preferring a wall between the two and others arguing that the United State should permit more governmental religious expression.
This Article will analyze the two nations’ current approaches to church and state through recent cases on the subject. Part II analyzes recent cases in each country, and Part III draws comparisons and contrasts between the countries’ contemporary approaches to church-state issues. It concludes that the two countries, once so far apart, are moving closer to each other on the issue of establishment.
Recommended Citation
Fischer, Judith D. and Wallace, Chloë J.
(2006)
"God and Caesar in the Twenty-First Century: What Recent Cases Say About Church-State Relations in England and the United States,"
Florida Journal of International Law: Vol. 18:
Iss.
2, Article 2.
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.ufl.edu/fjil/vol18/iss2/2