ABSTRACT
Overview The overall question that guides this chapter is: Under what circumstances arepeople free to practice their religious beliefs, and under what circumstances has it beenheldthat they must refrain from suchpractices? The two quotations above present very different leanings on the interpretation of the free exercise clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This chapter
examines applications and controversies concerning the free exerciseclause. To refresh your memory on the religious clauses of the First Amendment, let's state them again: Congress shall makeno lawrespecting an establishment of religion, orprohibiting thefree exercise thereofAs in the previous chapter, our focus is on interpretations of the clause by the Supreme Court, but we will also consider certain important legislation in this area (e.g., the Religious Freedom Restoration Act). The major questions we will consider are:
• How have approaches to interpreting the free exercise clause differed from approaches to interpreting the establishment clause?
