it is part of the establishment clause of the constitution. the national government is not to endorse any certain religion or hinder another unless it endangers someone else.
The most prominent example today is in schools, but this is also prominent in courtrooms.
Today several countries have the Lutheran Church as the state church. Those countries are Norway, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Denmark and Greenland. In Finland the Lutheran Church is the national church.
Today it is state of California property and the Catholic Church still holds mass, has weddings there, funerals, and festivals.
If you are asking about the mission it is still a working church with services, weddings, funerals, and festivals. The mission is part of California state property and parks system as well as the Catholic Church. Tours are done daily and you can visit the church and gardens. The state does the upkeep of the mission and repairs the buildings.
The Pilgrims wanted freedom from religious persecution. The Church of England was the state church and all other religions were banned. Most of the Pilgrims were Anabaptists or reformers of the church. This is why the "Separation of church and state" is part of our laws, the government did not want freedom from the church, but the church needed freedom from the government.
The state of California has it as historical property open for services and visitors.
This is a concept known as "separation of church and state." This was a big issue in the civil war and today it still is.
It has given the church a bad name.
depending on which church you go to
The leader of the Catholic Church is the pope. Today (2011) that is Pope Benedict XVI.
"We missed you in church today" in English is Ci siete mancati in chiesa oggi in Italian.
No. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the "Mormon" church) does not run the state of Utah. The Government of the State of Utah runs the state of Utah. Theocratic governments are not allowed within the United States. About 60-70% of the state-level politicians in Utah are members of the Mormon church, which is simply a reflection of the fact that about 65% of the residents of Utah are practicing Mormons.