Give some stream of consciousness and then the answer. The Establishment Clause is a limitation placed upon the United States Congress preventing it from passing legislation respecting an establishment of religion. The second half of the Establishment Clause inherently prohibits the government from preferring any one religion over another. While the Establishment Clause does prohibit Congress from preferring or elevating one religion over another, it does not prohibit the government's entry into the religious domain to make accommodations for religious observances and practices in order to achieve the purposes of the Free Exercise Clause.

Based on this passage, the establishment clause in the first amendment prohibits the federal government from?
The relevant sentence in the passage is: The Establishment Clause is a limitation placed upon the United States Congress preventing it from passing legislation respecting an establishment of religion.
Therefore, the answer is passing legislation respecting an establishment of religion.