The Freedom From Religion Foundation, with more than 13,000 members, is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists and agnostics) in the United States. FFRF has been working since 1978 to promote freethought and to keep state and church separate.
The Foundation promotes freedom from religion with a weekly national radio show, a newspaper, a freethought billboard campaign and other educational endeavors, including scholarships for freethinking students. The Foundation acts on countless violations of the separation of state and church, and has taken and won many significant complaints and important lawsuits to end state/church entanglements and challenge the "faith-based initiative."
The FFRF offers a quiz entitled What Do You Know About The Separation of State and Church? The quiz consists of 21 questions to test your knowledge of America's vital principle that protects those who choose religion and those who prefer none.
Here are the questions, reproduced with permission. Most are multiple choice; some invite true/false selections. After perusing the questions, go to http://www.ffrf.org/quiz/ffrfquiz.php for a score, assessment and background on each of the questions.
The average score (correct answers) is 12! Since October 12, 2000. 28,090th people have taken the test.
Do well. Think of the test as a learning experience, also, that will boost your awareness of this wonderful constitutional safeguard against creeping theocracy.
1. The U.S. Constitution says that the United States was founded as a Christian nation, based on the sovereign authority of God
2. How many times does the word "God" appear in the U.S. Constitution?
3. How many times does the Declaration of Independence refer to Christianity or Jesus?
4. The US Constitution guarantees religious liberty for
5. Where did the separation of church and state originate?
6. What does the First Amendment say about religion?
7. The phrase "wall of separation between church and state" originated with
8. Which early colonies practiced freedom of religion?
9. The Puritans escaped religious persecution and, in their own colony, allowed religious freedom for
10. ". . . the government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion;" Where does this phrase appear?
11. By an Act of Congress, U.S. currency has carried the motto "In God We Trust" since
12. The Pledge of Allegiance, first published in 1892, has included the words "under God" since
13. Who made the following statement? "Secular schools can never be tolerated because such a school has no religious instruction and a general moral instruction without a religious foundation is built on air; consequently, all character training and religion must be derived from faith . . . We need believing people."
14. In 1890, bible reading was outlawed from Wisconsin schools. Who was responsible?
15. The U.S. Supreme Court outlawed student-initiated prayers at high-school football games in 2000. Who were the plaintiffs in that lawsuit?
16. According to the "Lemon test," in order to be constitutional, a law or public act must:
17. All American Presidents have been practicing Christians
18. The U.S. Constitution says there shall be no religious test for public office
19. John Adams declared Christmas to be a national holiday
20. A president, being sworn in, is required to place a hand on the Holy Bible and say "so help me, God."
21. Since the First Amendment deals with "Congress," states are free to advance religion if they wish.
Go to http://www.ffrf.org/quiz/scripts/ffrfquiz_results.php for results. Be well.
