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Summary:
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits the government from establishing a religion and guarantees citizens the right to freely exercise their religion. The U.S. Supreme Court has clarified the scope of these broad guarantees. This report provides an overview of the governing principles of the law of church and state.1 It explains the legal requirements for challenges under the Establishment Clause and Free Exercise Clause and the standards used to evaluate such challenges. The report includes current interpretations of these clauses and summarizes related statutes (the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act).
