![]() The book’s title is from Noonan’s hero, James Madison (or JM, as he signed himself), for whom, says Noonan, “the whole burden of freedom was carried by the formula of free exercise.” The First Amendment’s commitment to the free exercise of religion, Madison wrote, “promised a lustre to our country.” There are but sixteen words: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” But the interpretation of those few words, more than any other aspect of contemporary jurisprudence, has cut to the heart of our understanding of the American experiment. The book is a personal summing up of Noonan’s reflections on what he correctly believes to be America’s most innovative and audacious contribution to world history-the free exercise of religion. That demonstration continues with his new book, The Lustre of Our Country: The American Experience of Religious Freedom (University of California Press, $35 Widely acclaimed books on usury, the slave trade, and other matters demonstrate that he is, above all, a historian, with a particular flair for the history of ideas. Before being appointed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in 1986, he was professor at Boalt School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, and authored major studies on the maddeningly complex connections between religion and law. is without doubt one of the most distinguished minds in our federal judiciary. It is simply that I say some things here that seem more appropriate for this forum.) ![]() ![]() (No, Jody Bottum, who used to be our associate editor and is now the books and culture editor of the Standard, did not have the temerity to cut his former boss’ copy. Since I do not assume that all our readers are also readers of the Weekly Standard, herewith an expanded version of a review that appeared in that esteemed publication.
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