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	Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom (annotated transcript) - The Story of Virginia
		The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom is both a statement about freedom of conscience and the principle of separation of church and state.
		Written by Thomas Jefferson and passed by the Virginia General Assembly on January 16, 1786, the Statute is the forerunner of the first amendment protections for religious freedom.
		God has granted individuals freedom of conscience in religious matters and any attempt to limit or restrict it is wrong.
	www.vahistorical.org /sva2003/vsrf.htm (266 words)

	The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom - Cambridge University Press
		Jefferson wrote the Virginia Statute, shepherded it through a decade-long struggle to adoption, and included it in his epitaph (along with the Declaration of Independence and the founding of the University of Virginia).
		The Statute’s history reflects two key revolutionary principles: absolute freedom of religious conscience; and the separation of church and state.
		Religious Freedom and the desacralization of politics J. Pocock; 4.
	www.cambridge.org /catalogue/catalogue.asp?isbn=0521343291 (424 words)

	Plymouth Rock Foundation - Leadership Advisory
		Virginia's Religious Freedom Statute, authorized by its Constitution and the only one of its kind in America, declares religious liberty to be a "natural right" of mankind and that any act passed to repeal the present act, or to narrow its operation, such act will be an infringement of natural right.
		Religious toleration substitutes the civil magistrate for the individual himself so as to decide, in the magistrate's opinion, whether or not that person's action is a legitimate discharging of the duty owed to his Creator.
		The Virginia Statute states that to allow a civil magistrate to do this "is a dangerous fallacy, which at once destroys all religious liberty." In other words, religious toleration and religious liberty are mutually exclusive.
	www.plymrock.org /leadership.html (1011 words)

	Religious Freedom: The Other Revolution
		However, contrary to the climate of extending religious freedom to all Christian denominations, Christian ministers were to be denied election to public office by New York, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, South Carolina and Delaware.
		As mentioned earlier, the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was passed in December 1785 to finally clarify the status of religion in Virginia.
		The development of religious freedom and the separation between church and state which began to develop in the American states, particularly Virginia and New England, was part of the same process which led to the American Revolution.
	www.earlyamerica.com /review/2003_summer_fall/religious_freedom.htm (4872 words)

	Amazon.ca: The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom : Its Evolution and Consequences in American History: Books: ... (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-04)
		The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, Its Evolutionand Consequences in American History edited by Merrill D. Peterson and Robert C. Vaughan is a book that should be on the shelf of those who read and want to understand why it was so important to overthrow the Established Church...
		Jefferson was the author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom and it was a hard fought fight and struggle for ten years to extracate the established church, but a fight well worth the effort.
		Jefferson drafted the Virginia Statute in 1777, when he was a member of the Virginia legislature and it became law on January 16, 1786, when he was United States minister to France.
	www.amazon.ca /Virginia-Statute-Religious-Freedom-Consequences/dp/0521343291 (606 words)

	Virginia Statue of Religious Freedom of 1786
		Thomas Jefferson led the fight for religious freedom and separation of church and state in his native Virginia.
		In Jefferson's words, there was now "freedom for the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and the Mohammedan, the Hindu and infidel of every denomination." When the First Amendment to the Constitution went into effect in 1791, Jefferson's principle of separation of church and state became part of the supreme law of the land.
		forcing him to support this or that teacher of his own religious persuasion is depriving him of the comfortable liberty of giving his contributions to the particular pastor whose morals he would make his pattern and whose powers he feels most persuasive to righteousness...
	www.rjgeib.com /thoughts/lynch/religious-freedom.html (241 words)

	Definition of Religious Terms
		Religious beliefs and the evolution of American organized religion contributed considerably to the restructuring of American society that culminated in a formal break from Great Britain.
		Freedom of religion, and the unique system of institutional religion it fostered, were integral parts of the process of becoming Americans.
		In 1786, the Virginia Assembly enacted Thomas Jefferson's Statute for Religious Freedom.
	www.history.org /almanack/life/religion/religiondfn.cfm (699 words)

	firstamendmentcenter.org: commentary
		The object of Madison’s high hopes was the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, adopted by the Virginia Assembly on Jan. 16, 1786 – nearly 10 years after it was first written and proposed by Jefferson.
		Because by passing the statute, the Virginia Assembly disestablished an established church – and simultaneously prohibited any future “establishments.” For the first time in history, church and state were fully separated by law.
		Passage of the Virginia Statute was a great victory for “no establishment” as a core principle of religious freedom.
	www.firstamendmentcenter.org /commentary.aspx?id=12445 (622 words)

	[No title] (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-04)
		The Religious Freedom Monument in Fredericksburg, Virginia by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for the Study of Religious Freedom.
		The Struggle for Religious Freedom in Virginia: The Baptists by William Taylor Thom.
		Based in Richmond, this group sponsors a yearly student essay contest and gives out the First Freedom Award given to "extraordinary advocates of religious freedom." The council is also building the First Freedom Center which will educate the public on the importance of religious freedom.
	www.historypoint.org /columns2.asp?column_id=1279&column_type= (902 words)

	Freedom of religion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		Freedom of religion as a legal concept is related to but not identical with religious toleration, separation of church and state, or laïcité (a secular state).
		Freedom of worship in India was encapsulated in an inscription of Asoka:
		It was not until the converted protestant prince Henry IV of France came to the throne that religious tolerance was formalized in the Edict of Nantes in 1598.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Religious_freedom (3516 words)

	Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		Thomas Jefferson was the author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom.
		The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was written in 1779 by Thomas Jefferson.
		Government involvement in religious matters tends to end in the restraint of religion.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Virginia_Statute_for_Religious_Freedom (287 words)

	Religious Liberty
		Religious groups and individuals are entitled to the same protection of the law and the same opportunities to participate in government affairs and programs as everyone else.
		When Columbia Union College was denied a grant for education by state bureaucrats solely because it was "too religious," college officials decided to battle for their right to religious freedom in federal court.
		Virginia's 1786 Statute for Religious Freedom is well-known as one of the earliest American declarations of the religious rights of citizens.
	www.cir-usa.org /religious_liberty_theme.html (244 words)

	Understanding the Separation of Church and State
		The seeds of separating church and state were planted in the religious persecution that forced many English to leave their country for the American colonies.
		Jefferson remembered this when he wrote the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom in 1779, which was an influencing source on the Bill of Rights.
		The statute, however, makes no mention of preventing people from speaking about religion in public, or making sure that nobody is offended by anything religious.
	home.woh.rr.com /drimages/2003/separation-of-church-and-state.html (1331 words)

	Introduction to Religious Liberty in America (Page 2)
		Virginia statesman Patrick Henry had proposed a religious tax, dubbed “General Assessments,” as a compromise between a single established church, which in colonial Virginia was the Anglican Church, and complete disestablishment.
		Religious liberty was a guarantee through the right of nature to choose — to choose to be different or to choose to be the same — whatever the choice might be,” Goff said.
		Madison’s deft maneuverings in Virginia politics were a coup d’état for religious freedom in what was then America’s largest and most wealthy state, laying the groundwork for the First Amendment and the United States Constitution – both of which Madison was a principal drafter.
	www.facsnet.org /issues/faith/liberty2.htm (3500 words)

	Jefferson on Politics & Government: Freedom of Religion
		Religious institutions that use government power in support of themselves and force their views on persons of other faiths, or of no faith, undermine all our civil rights.
		Every religious society has a right to determine for itself the times for these exercises and the objects proper for them according to their own particular tenets; and this right can never be safer than in their own hands where the Constitution has deposited it...
		"The advocate of religious freedom is to expect neither peace nor forgiveness from [the clergy]." --Thomas Jefferson to Levi Lincoln, 1802.
	etext.lib.virginia.edu /jefferson/quotations/jeff1650.htm (2397 words)

	To Seek the Peace of the City: Thomas Jefferson, Religious Liberty, and the Jews
		His Declaration of Independence and support for the Act for Religious Freedom laid an explicit foundation for citizenship rights and educational opportunities of the sort which did not exist for Jews in much of Europe or America in the late 18th century.
		Jefferson's firm commitment to a "wall of separation" between church and state, wherein all are to be "free to profess" their own religious beliefs, and all can have access to public education, helped to establish the United States as a beacon for Jews around the world for the next two centuries.
		From the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, drafted by Thomas Jefferson in 1777 and adopted by the General Assembly in 1786.
	www.lib.virginia.edu /small/exhibits/seek/tj.html (544 words)

	The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom Becomes Law (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-04)
		Consequently, the "Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom" guaranteed that no citizen of Virginia would be compelled to attend church, to support the clergy or establishment of any church, or be penalized for failing to do any of those things.
		After claiming that the Virginia Statute was unnecessary, anyway, because good men would see that minority religions were not persecuted, Henry and his supporters indulged the classic slander that the Statute was a stealthy attack on religion itself.
		In fact, what is compelling about the "Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom" is its first section, in which Jefferson waxes philosophical on the "natural right" of religious liberty.
	www.ronaldbrucemeyer.com /rants/0116almanac.htm (423 words)

	The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom and the First Amendment
		The Constitution was ratified without an overt statement regarding religious liberty - but in the First Congress, James Madison led the effort to amend the document to fulfill promises made in the Virginia ratification convention.
		Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
		Virginia was the leader in establishing religious freedom over two centuries ago, but produced leaders that edged close to mixing the affairs of church and state.
	www.virginiaplaces.org /religion/religionfree.html (586 words)

	Religion and the Early Republic
		Enacted in 1786, the Statute for Religious Freedom is one of the most important documents in American history on the subject of religious liberty.
		But the measure was opposed by Patrick Henry and many of Virginia's larger religious denominations, who feared that churches would decline without tax support.
		Religious denominations had to compete for followers without government support.
	www.hfac.uh.edu /gl/Religion11.htm (753 words)

	History
		The mission of the Council for America's First Freedom is to increase understanding and respect for religious freedom in diverse communities worldwide through education about this core human value: the freedom of thought, conscience and belief.
		The Council for America’s First Freedom was founded in 1984 to celebrate the bicentennial of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, adopted in 1786 by the Virginia General Assembly.
		The Virginia General Assembly was then working from temporary quarters in a warehouse near the corner of 14th and Cary Streets in an area of downtown Richmond, Virginia, known as Shockoe Slip.
	www.firstfreedom.org /aboutus/history.html (728 words)

	Jefferson's Statute for Religious Freedom: a huge problem for liberals
		Virginia this week is celebrating the 220th anniversary of the passage of Thomas Jefferson's Statute for Religious Freedom.
		Unfortunately for the church of secular liberalism, his statute is problematic for groups who like to cite Jefferson in support of their effort to remove all mention of God, and Christianity in particular, from the public square.
		Jefferson's statute sheds light on the meaning of the Establishment clause in particular — "Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion..." Although an activist judiciary has twisted the meaning of this clause virtually out of all recognition, clearly, according to Jefferson, a violation of religious freedom occurs only when coercion is involved.
	www.renewamerica.us /columns/fischer/070117 (637 words)

	ReligiousFreedomDay.com \| About RFD
		Commemorating the anniversary of the passage of Thomas Jefferson's Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
		Each year, the President declares January 16th to be “Religious Freedom Day,” and calls upon Americans to “observe this day through appropriate events and activities in homes, schools, and places of worship.” The day is the anniversary of the passage, in 1786, of the Virginia Statute on Religious Freedom.
		Religious Freedom Day is not "celebrate-our-diversity day." Freedom means the freedom to disagree (respectfully).
	www.religiousfreedomday.com /about.html (215 words)

	Documents \| International Religious Liberty Association
		One holds that religious belief --or non-belief--is not the business of government, that citizens may neither be compelled to worship nor barred from worshiping however and whenever they wish.
		The only way to avoid religious war, he reasoned, was to guarantee religious freedom.
		For thoughtful contributions to her article, the author is indebted to Robert M. O’Neil, Director, The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression; Richard Marius, writer and lecturer; Rodney Smolla, Allen Professor of Law, University of Richmond; and James Lee, The College of William and Mary.
	www.irla.org /documents/fel/fel1998/negus.html (1869 words)

	Crosswalk.com - Christians Celebrate Religious Freedom Day
		You need only glance at the news to realize religious freedom in public schools is under attack.
		Freedom of religion does not mean freedom from religion.
		It was Reverend King’s religious faith that animated his fight for civil rights, and religious freedom that enabled him to express his faith and move a generation.”
	www.crosswalk.com /news/religiontoday/1373317.html (803 words)

	--:: The Bill of Rights Institute ::---
		The Virginia Statute for Religious Liberty, written by Thomas Jefferson in 1786, protected freedom of religion in two ways: by protecting against government-established religion, and preventing the government from restricting individual beliefs.
		This statute led to the disestablishment of the state church of Virginia, and ultimately helped bring about the end of all state-mandated religion.
		The Statute, one of Thomas Jefferson’s proudest achievements, was an important precursor to the 1791 First Amendment.
	www.billofrightsinstitute.org /Instructional/Resources/Lessons/Lessons_List.asp?action=showDetails&id=128&ref=showCatD&catId=8 (544 words)

	Web Sites Related to Church State Law and Religious Freedom : Religious Liberty Archive : Rothgerber Johnson & ...
		The Center for Religious Freedom—A Division of the Freedom House - The Center for Religious Freedom is a self-sustaining division of Freedom House, the oldest human rights group founded in 1941 by Eleanor Roosevelt and Wendell Willkie to oppose Nazism and Communism in Europe.
		Religious Organizations and the Law - a Westlaw publication offering comprehensive analysis of the laws, decisions, statutes, ordinances, and regulations affecting the operation of religious entities.
		The website offers information regarding Federal laws protecting religious freedom, recent cases and efforts by the USDOJ to enforce these laws, educational information and opportunities offered by the USDOJ regarding religious liberty issues, and directions for contacting the USDOJ to seek its involvement in a religious discrimination matter.
	www.churchstatelaw.com /links.asp (1041 words)

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