Separation of Church and State...a myth?

I know this is a philosophy class and we are supposed to be focusing on things like morality and where it comes from in the law, but I feel since most of the class are Criminology majors, one option or another, this topic should be covered somewhat in depth in light of the recent blog posts. In the Constitution, including the 1st Amendment, there are no references to the idea of separation of church and state. The 1st Amendment says that "Congress shall make not respecting the establishment of religion, prohibiting the free exercise thereof." This may appear to be the clause that would create the separation of church and stat, but in reality it does nothing of the sort. First, this clause only says that Congress cannot make any laws establishing a national religion, meaning it cannot have a law that forces individual to adhere to a specific religious system. Also, this clause says that Congress cannot make any law that would prohibit the freedom of others to practice any religion they wish, again this does not separate the church and state. In reality, the church and the state have been linked since the creation of this nation. the 1st Amendment does not stop Congress, the President, or any judicial official to use religion or personal moral belief based on their religious preference to influence the creation of and enactment of laws. Additionally, each year we have a Christmas service at the White House, every piece of currency you have has "In God We Trust," in court you are required to put your hand on the BIBLE to swear in for testimony, as well as the President rests his hand on the BIBLE while being sworn into office. In the end, there is NO separation of church and state, and based on the law of the land there is no necessity for or reason to have that separation.