One of the exceptional features of the United States is the way that our nation developed a strong tradition of religious liberty. But even in earlier times, religious liberty was not always practiced. For example, people like Obadiah Holmes (1610–1682) was whipped in the Massachusetts Bay Colony for his religious beliefs and activism. Because they had been part of the European model of the State Church, some American colonists believed that the majority could determine the religious practices of the minority.
There is, of course, always a battle between good and evil. When we examine our nation’s rich history of religious liberty, we understand that we have been blessed with many Godly people who have forged our path to religious liberty. Consider the stories of these religious liberty pioneers.
Barton W. Stone (1772–1844) was a preacher who was active in legal battles over religious freedom in Kentucky and Tennessee. Although he was not religious in his youth, he trusted Christ in his early twenties and became an evangelist during the Second Great Awakening.
Stone was a champion for “the Bible alone,” and he believed that individual people had the right to read the Bible and interpret it for themselves. Stone rejected the idea that individuals should be allowed to believe only the official teaching of some churches.
In his “Apology,” Stone boldly argued against the idea that individuals must conform their beliefs to the official positions of established churches, writing, “Is it not better to clear away all the rubbish of human opinions and build the church immediately on the Rock of Ages, the sure foundation which God has laid in Zion?”
Stone further wrote, “We will, that the church of Christ assume her native right of internal government—try her candidates for the ministry, as to their soundness in the faith, acquaintance with experimental religion, gravity and aptness to teach; and admit no other proof of their authority, but Christ speaking in them.” With strong ideas like these, it is clear that Stone would never support government-authorized churches.
Stone’s writings are considered early examples of American declarations of religious freedom. It is clear that the American spirit of rugged independence has important roots in religious liberty. The idea of democratic self-government is inconceivable apart from religious freedom.
James Madison (1751–1836) is known as the “Father of the Constitution,” and he was a strong advocate for religious liberty. Madison believed in the “intangible property of the conscience.” When the Virginia Declaration of Rights was being formed, Madison fought to make a small change of wording that resulted in a big change of meaning. The Declaration originally said that citizens should be allowed to have the “fullest Toleration” of their religion; Madison successfully changed the wording to say that citizens should have “free exercise of religion.”
In the 18th-century culture of Virginia, “fullest Toleration” essentially meant that there would be an official, approved church that would receive special benefits, and other religions would be merely allowed to exist. But by using the language “free exercise of religion,” everything changed. There would be no official church with others considered less significant. Instead, all citizens would be allowed to practice their religion as dictated by their conscience, not as permitted by the government.
When Virginia was considering the advantages of an official state church supported by tax dollars, Madison famously wrote his “Memorial and Remonstrance” to right this legislation. In his first point, Madison wrote that “Religion or the duty which we owe to our Creator…can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence.” In his second point, he specifically advocated for keeping the government out of religious decisions, writing, “if Religion be exempt from the authority of the Society at large, still less can it be subject to that of the Legislative Body.” In his fifteenth and final point, Madison wrote clearly: “The equal right of every citizen to the free exercise of his Religion according to the dictates of conscience is held by the same tenure with all our other rights.”
William Jennings Bryan (1860–1925) was born in Salem, Illinois; and he became a prominent politician. Bryan would become a member of the House of Representatives, run for president three times, and serve as Secretary of State from 1913–1915. A skilled orator, he was famous for his “Cross of Gold” speech that eloquently explained his view of economic policy.
Midst all this political activity, Bryan’s faith was very important to him; and he believed that the teaching of Darwinism threatened both religious and humanitarian values. In 1925, he famously served as the prosecutor in the Scopes Trial, a landmark case that tested the legality of anti-evolution laws in public schools. This trial, the first to ever be broadcast on live radio, created a media frenzy as high school teacher John Scopes was accused of violating Tennessee’s Butler Act, which prohibited the teaching of human evolution in public schools.
The trial was part of the fundamentalist-modernist controversy, and Bryan believed in the importance of supporting a literal understanding of the Genesis account of creation. Because of his open religious fervor, many attempted to minimize his intellect and claim that he was out of the mainstream. In spite the obstacles, Bryan poured his heart and soul into defending religious liberty in the early twentieth century.
For over fifty years, the attorneys of the Christian Law Association have labored to defend religious liberty in these United States. We understand that the fabric of religious freedom in our nation would not even exist without the labor, strength, and courage of many religious freedom pioneers who preceded us. We are thankful for our Christian heritage, and we honor the memory of all those who helped make religious freedom in America a reality.
