10.What is freedom of religion?
10.宗教自由是什么？
Answer:
答案：
You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion.
你可以参与宗教，也可以不参与。
Explanation:
解释：
Many of the earliest Americans followed a religion that was different from the one practiced (or believed in) by the people in government. These early Americans fled (or ran away from) their original countries because they were treated unfairly because of their religious beliefs. When it was time for them to write their own governing document (or laws to create a country) they felt that freedom of religion was very important. Freedom of religion is also sometimes called separation of church and state. Separation of church and state means that religion (also called the “church”) and government (also called the “state”) are separate and independent and should not work too closely together. For example, it is unconstitutional (or against the law) for Congress to make a law that says Americans have to attend (or go to) a church, synagogue, mosque, temple, or any other place where people meet for religious purposes. The government also cannot endorse one religious group over another, meaning that the government cannot tell Americans which religion it thinks is the best. Either of these things would violate (or go against) Americans’ freedom of religion.
许多早期美国人的宗教和政府人员遵循的宗教不同，他们因宗教信仰不同在之前国家受到虐待才逃到美国。当这些人编写自己国家的法律时就觉得宗教自由非常重要。宗教自由也称政教分离。政教分离指宗教（也称教堂）和政府（也称国家）需分开独立不能联系太紧密。比如，国会如果出台法律说美国人必须加入基督教，犹太教，伊斯兰教，佛教或其他宗教，这是违反宪法的。政府也无权指定宗教说哪个宗教是最好的。任何上述政府的行为都是违反宗教自由的。
The United States was one of the first countries in the world to have freedom of religion. Today, this is one of the most important freedoms in the United States. About seventy-five percent of Americans are Christians, but other religions such as Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism are also practiced by many people in the U.S., while some people don’t follow any religion at all. Because religious freedom is widespread and accepted in most areas and by most people in the country, religious diversity (or the existence of many different religions in the same place at the same time) has become normal in this country. The men who wrote the Constitution and passed the amendments in the Bill of Rights were mostly white, wealthy, Protestant Christians. They would have had no way of knowing how much religious diversity the U.S. would have many, many years later as a result of their creating freedom of religion.
美国是全世界最早实行宗教自由的国家之一。现如今，宗教自由是美国最重要的自由权利之一。美国约75%的人信仰基督教，但也有很多人信仰犹太教，伊斯兰教，佛教，印度教等，也有人不信任何宗教。因宗教自由在国家的大部分地区和人群中都已接受，因此在美国宗教多样性（同时同地有多种宗教）是很普遍的。撰写宪法，通过人权法案的大多是富有的新教徒白人，他们在通过法案的时候无法想象多年之后美国会有如此多样的宗教。
Freedom of religion has always been a controversial topic (or a topic that is often argued over because people have many different opinions). Even in recent years, there have been many legal questions about whether religion belongs in school and in public places. Not everyone agrees on how religion and government should be separated, and the courts continue to change how they interpret (or understand) freedom of religion.
宗教自由一直是备受争议的话题（因人们各持己见），即使近些年，仍有许多法律争论宗教属于学校还是公众场所。并不是每个人都认为政教应分开，法院对宗教自由的解释也在不断变化。
Glossary
词汇
10.What is freedom of religion?
10.宗教自由是什么？
to practice (a religion) - to follow the teachings of a religion; to be part of a religion and do what it tells people to do
To practice (a religion)—遵循宗教教条；按宗教规定的来做
*Do you practice Catholicism?
*你信奉天主教吗？
to flee - to run away from something or someone, usually to leave a dangerous or difficult situation; to leave a dangerous or difficult situation
To flee—逃离某人或某事，通常指远离危险困难的境况
*Thousands of people began to flee the area when they heard that a big hurricane was coming.
*听说有强飓风来袭，成千上万人逃出了这片区域。
governing document - the law or laws that create a country, a business, or an organization, saying what kind of government or management it will have and how it will work
Governing document——法律条文规定的国家，商业，或组织的性质和如何运作
*Have you read the governing document for our new organization?
*你看了我们新组织的管理规定了吗？
separation of church and state - the idea that religion and government should be separate and independent, not working together closely
Separation of church and state—宗教和政府应分开独立，不能合为一体
*Because of the separation of church and state, American students do not pray while they are at school.
*因政教分离政策的出台，在校学生不礼拜。
unconstitutional - against the Constitution; against the law
Unconstitutional—违反宪法；违反法律
*It would be unconstitutional for someone to be president of the United States for more than eight years.
*美国总统日期超过八年是违反宪法的。
to endorse - for a person or organization to support something and say that it is better than other things, sharing that opinion with many people
To endorse—个人或组织支持某事，声称比其他事物好并与他人分享意见
*This toothpaste is endorsed by the American Dental Association.
*美国牙医协会推荐这款牙膏。
to violate - to do something that is not allowed; to break a rule or law; to go against a rule or law
To violate—做被禁止做的事；打破规定或法律；违背规定或法律
*You violated the law when you drove past the stop sign without stopping.
*遇到红灯不停是违反法律的。
widespread - common and found in most places or almost everywhere
Widespread—普通的，到处可见的
*There was widespread panic in New York City and much of the rest of the country after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.
*2001年9月11日恐怖袭击后美国和其他国家都很恐慌。
religious diversity - the existence of many different religions in the same place at the same time
Religious diversity—同时同地有多种宗教存在
*Our university has a lot of religious diversity, with many Muslim, Jewish, Christian, and Buddhist students.
*我们学校有许多伊斯兰教，犹太教，基督教和佛教的学生。