Government and Religion: A Dangerous Mix In a significant victory for the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and for the separation of state and church, a federal judge on April 15 2010 struck down the US National Day of Prayer as unconstitutional. President Obama has appealed the decision to the 7th Circuit Federal Appeals court, so the battle continues. If upheld, the case will undoubtedly go before the US Supreme Court. Dan Barker, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, will tell the story of how this 1952 law mixing religion and government was defeated and talk about the efforts to protect this important historic victory. -- About Dan Barker: Dan Barker is co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation. He was born in 1949, and served as a Christian preacher and musician for 17 years, until he left Christianity in 1984. He received a degree in Religion from Azusa Pacific University and was ordained to the ministry by the Standard Community Church, California, in 1975. He served as associate pastor at a Friend's (Quaker) Church, an Assembly of God, and an independent Charismatic church. To this day, he receives royalties from his popular children's Christian musicals, Mary Had a Little Lamb (1977), and His Fleece Was White As Snow (1978), both published by Manna Music and performed in many countries. A successful musician, Barker has composed over 200 songs that have been published or recorded. Along with his wife Annie Laurie Gaylor, he is the ...