Recent developments:

* In 1988, 200 Americans of many religious backgrounds signed the Williamsburg Charter reaffirming their belief in the importance of the First Amendment. 

* In 1995, President Clinton delivered a speech on religious freedom which described the benefits derived from that amendment.

* In 1993, Congress passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act which gave special religious privileges to individuals and groups and limited the application of laws that intruded on personal or corporate religion.

* Today, only the states of Texas and one of the Carolinas have constitutions requiring a religious test for holders of public office. And although these laws are still on the books, they have been nullified by Federal legislation.

* Many, perhaps most, countries around the world do not have a wall of separation between church and state. The result is enormous abuses, largely directed against their own citizens who follow minority religions.