States in the southwest banning polygamy, for example. Host so when it came to massachusetts, talk about massachusetts or pennsylvania, were here in pennsylvania, as a case study of states, regulating religion. Guest sure. Pennsylvania, for example, had an active blasphemy now, which we think of now as unconstitutional, but in the last case that was brought, the last criminal prosecution under blasphemy law was actually brought in the early 1970s, kind of by accident, against someone who had a sign in the window saying Something Like wanted radical carpenter, speaks to crowd preaching peace, and, of course, the person met jesus, but someone complained, and the American Civil Liberties union got involved, and the prosecution was droppedded. More recently, the a film Company Owner tried to name his company i choose hell productions, and was denied in corporation under the states incorporation laws because it was a blasphemy title for the company, and that, too, eventually was dismissed.
Access to religious worship, the rights of religious organizations and so on. And in the early decades of the 20th century, that began to shift as the Supreme Court applied the National Constitutional establishment and free exercise clauses of the First Amendment against the states sort of centralizing debates about religion. Host but if the states had the control, we had it written into our constitution, freedom of religion. Guest we did, indeed. But the First Amendment begins Congress Shall enact no law. So it was addressed only to the national government. Host were there restrictions by different states on religion . Guest oh, yes, there were. Several states had religious establishments. Most states limited the amount of property a religious organization could own. Some taxed religious property. Others banned given groups practices. Im thinking, for example, eventually various states in the southwest banning polygamy, for example. Host so when it came to massachusetts, talk about ma