A U.S. citizen should be able to:

If the citizens were more knowledgeable on these seven points, we'd have fewer problems and misunderstandings during the Christmas seasons, fewer misinformed school officials and better collections in our public libraries.

1. Explain the position that religious liberty is a universal human right, the preservation of which depends upon a reciprocal responsibility to respect that right for everyone.

2. Explain how the constitutional principles of religious liberty are the ground rules that enable people of all faiths and none to live together as citizens of one nation.

3. Explain the principles of religious liberty or freedom of conscience as found in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

4.Explain various interpretations of the constitutional relationship of religion and government in American political life.

5. Explain the significant role religion and religious belief have played in American history and politics.

6. Explain the relationship of religious liberty to the strength and diversity of religious life in the United States.

7.Take, defend, and evaluate positions on constitutional issues regarding religious beliefs and practices.

Finding Common Ground; a First Amendment Guide to Religion and Public Education, on-line edition, “Appendix B, “A history of religious liberty in American public life.” The on-line edition has more material than the print edition, 1997, as well as an article from 2007 by the editor, Charles C. Haynes of the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt.