So much so that history documents that European governments were so threatened by the prospect of this form of government catching on they conspired in secrecy to bring it down. As for the First Amendment, taken strictly in the context in which it was written, it seems clear that the Establishment Clause was never intended to restrict either government from involving itself in religion, or religion from involving itself in government. Mr. Tichenor's contention that in order to guarantee an atmosphere of absolute religious liberty the founding fathers mandated strict separation of church and state is simply not tenable. That interpretation comes from the U.S. Supreme Court. Although that opinion makes it law, it doesn't make it right.
Constitutional scholars disagree on a great many things.
We all too frequently hear the First Amendment misquoted or abridged. The very essence of liberty is the sum of rights and exemptions possessed in common by the people. Liberty by its nature does not limit the right to free exercise, but contends for it. The intent of the framers in creating the Establishment Clause was to prevent a recurrence of the Church of England, a state-run religion. Yes, the Ten Commandments are found in the Torah.