Opinion

Why the 1st Amendment Protects Religion but Not Satanism

By Michael Schwarz December 12, 2023 at 12:03pm

Social media erupted over the weekend when an image of a satanic display at the Iowa Capitol began circulating.

Republican state Rep. Jon Dunwell of Iowa, for instance, received considerable attention and substantial criticism for his explanation of why Iowans must allow the Satanic Temple of Iowa’s evil display to stand.

“My observation as an Iowan and a State Representative, I don’t want the state evaluating and making determinations about religions,” Dunwell wrote Friday as part of a lengthy explanation on the social media platform X. “I am guided by the First Amendment of the US Constitution.”

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Tags:

American history, Bill of Rights, Christianity, Constitution, First Amendment, Founding Fathers, God, Iowa, John Adams, Religion, Satanism, Thomas Jefferson

Michael Schwarz

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Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.