Political Crossfire Forums

[sLiPpY]

Most of us are aware, that escape from religious persecution was one reason for emigration to the New World. Emphasis on "one", out of many reasons. Almost no one ever mentions early settlers themselves were generally unwilling to grant religious liberty for differing beliefs.

In Virginia colonial authorities favored the Church of England, and by 1758 a conflict developed with the Presbyterians, Baptist, and other denominations that wanted to preach and establish congregations.

In 1779 the Anglican church was disestablished from the state, and by 1786, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Mason had produced the Virginia Statute of Religious Liberty, which firmly set forth principles that separated state power from church affairs, a position that reflected the one taken almost a century before by John Locke in his Letter Concerning Toleration. Madison drew heavily on this experience in fashioning the Bill of Rights, proposed in 1789.

For this example, we have John Locke to thank for his writings and anti-authoritarian positions where it came to Church and/or State. Locke was an Anglican, however argued for a "reasonable theology". He was very anti-Trinitarian, and influenced Issaic Newton to write on the subject.

Roger Williams is generally credited with being the father of religious freedom in America. Which I perceive to be a shining example, however not the complete story of events happening in other states...or the cultural influences and forces at work.

I'd invite others to expand the topic or share examples, they are aware of.

[thebreadloaf2003]

sLiPpY wrote: Most of us are aware, that escape from religious persecution was one reason for emigration to the New World. Emphasis on "one", out of many reasons. Almost no one ever mentions early settlers themselves were generally unwilling to grant religious liberty for differing beliefs.

In Virginia colonial authorities favored the Church of England, and by 1758 a conflict developed with the Presbyterians, Baptist, and other denominations that wanted to preach and establish congregations.

In 1779 the Anglican church was disestablished from the state, and by 1786, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Mason had produced the Virginia Statute of Religious Liberty, which firmly set forth principles that separated state power from church affairs, a position that reflected the one taken almost a century before by John Locke in his Letter Concerning Toleration. Madison drew heavily on this experience in fashioning the Bill of Rights, proposed in 1789.

For this example, we have John Locke to thank for his writings and anti-authoritarian positions where it came to Church and/or State. Locke was an Anglican, however argued for a "reasonable theology". He was very anti-Trinitarian, and influenced Issaic Newton to write on the subject.

Roger Williams is generally credited with being the father of religious freedom in America. Which I perceive to be a shining example, however not the complete story of events happening in other states...or the cultural influences and forces at work.

I'd invite others to expand the topic or share examples, they are aware of.

the first half of your entry is slightly contradictory. Yes they did leave england for freedom of religion...and yes as you mentioned, different authority officials brought about different religious teachings through their own churches. through this, they were exercising their freedom of religion, even thoiugh the villagers were somtimes forced by law and by threat of life to practice the religion.

and once more let us praise Locke for his great writings that have inspired my sense of free thought with no boundries and I hope that many more will find their way to a free, boundryless mind.

[sLiPpY]

thebreadloaf2003 wrote: sLiPpY wrote: Most of us are aware, that escape from religious persecution was one reason for emigration to the New World. Emphasis on "one", out of many reasons. Almost no one ever mentions early settlers themselves were generally unwilling to grant religious liberty for differing beliefs.

In Virginia colonial authorities favored the Church of England, and by 1758 a conflict developed with the Presbyterians, Baptist, and other denominations that wanted to preach and establish congregations.

In 1779 the Anglican church was disestablished from the state, and by 1786, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Mason had produced the Virginia Statute of Religious Liberty, which firmly set forth principles that separated state power from church affairs, a position that reflected the one taken almost a century before by John Locke in his Letter Concerning Toleration. Madison drew heavily on this experience in fashioning the Bill of Rights, proposed in 1789.

For this example, we have John Locke to thank for his writings and anti-authoritarian positions where it came to Church and/or State. Locke was an Anglican, however argued for a "reasonable theology". He was very anti-Trinitarian, and influenced Issaic Newton to write on the subject.

Roger Williams is generally credited with being the father of religious freedom in America. Which I perceive to be a shining example, however not the complete story of events happening in other states...or the cultural influences and forces at work.

I'd invite others to expand the topic or share examples, they are aware of.

the first half of your entry is slightly contradictory. Yes they did leave england for freedom of religion...and yes as you mentioned, different authority officials brought about different religious teachings through their own churches. through this, they were exercising their freedom of religion, even thoiugh the villagers were somtimes forced by law and by threat of life to practice the religion.

and once more let us praise Locke for his great writings that have inspired my sense of free thought with no boundries and I hope that many more will find their way to a free, boundryless mind.

I havent read much of Locke's work. But I am very interested in his ideas concerning "anti-trinitism".

For me it's always seemed so strange that Christianity became polytheistic whereas Judaism and Islam have remained faithful to monotheism

[cap'n queasy]

:lol:

[cap'n queasy]

If you had a fishbowl and the fish kept messing up your arrangement of things in the fishbowl would you try to climb into it and fix your arrangement or would you put your two hands into the bowl to fix things?

[HomoUniversalis]

This thread is a joke right? Religious freedom seeing its beginnings in the US? Willem I of Orange? Eighty Year's War? The establishment of freedom of conscience in the Netherlands in 1648?

Mr U