Faith and Freedom
“ religion is a matter which lies solely between Man and his God...”
The Idea
Thomas Jefferson sought to create a “wall of separation between Church & State,” rejecting the historical entanglement of government and religion he believed denied people a fundamental right of conscience and the right to think and decide for oneself so essential to a republic.
Jefferson was not anti-religious, but felt that religion was a private matter, not to be interfered with by government, or by others. He believed people should exercise forbearance in matters of religion, writing: “Perhaps the single thing which may be required to others before toleration to them would be an oath that they would allow toleration to others.”
Throughout our history as a multi-religious country, Americans have faced challenges in the safe-guarding of religious freedom, and it remains a relevant issue in American society today.
“ But it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.”
Making the Idea a Reality
The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
Jefferson considered the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom one of his three greatest achievements. James Madison ushered the statute through the Virginia legislature and incorporated its commitment to religious freedom and the separation of church and state into the Bill of Rights. These principles would end state-sponsored religion in the United States and the denial of full rights to its citizens of other faiths. Today, Americans may take this right for granted, yet it was the hard-won result of a decade-long effort by Jefferson and Madison.
“ ...that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry... nor shall otherwise suffer, on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.”
Jefferson first proposed the Statute of Religious Freedom in 1779 and was met with resistance. Years later, while Jefferson was in France, James Madison appealed to the Virginia Assembly to finish the ideals of the American Revolution to fully break with British practices, reject government support of religion, pass Jefferson's statute, and embrace religious freedom in the new nation. The new law would protect the rights of all faiths and was finally enacted in 1786. Historian John Ragosta discusses Jefferson's views on religious freedom and how it set the United States apart from European nations.
“ I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ thus building a wall of separation between Church & State.”
Religious Practices in the Black Community
For Virginia's enslaved population, there was power in religious congregating that often lead to political movements, including events like Nat Turner's Rebellion or later in election campaigns for Black candidates. To suppress resistance, many states passed laws to prohibit religious meetings among both free and enslaved Blacks. The establishment of Black churches afforded sociopolitical standing not often open to the Black community. Monticello's enslaved community engaged in a vital spiritual life of different faiths, from Christian prayer meetings to the use of a local practitioner of African traditional beliefs. After freedom, many freedmen from Monticello and their descendants became ministers and lay readers.
Commodore Uriah Levy saves Monticello
The first person of the Jewish faith to attain the rank of Commodore in the U.S. Navy, Uriah Phillips Levy (1792-1862) highly valued Jefferson’s commitment to freedom of religion. It inspired him to protect and preserve Monticello as a memorial to Jefferson. Levy's own values as one of the first officers to condemn corporeal punishment led him to be honored by the U.S. Navy. In 2005, the Commodore Uriah P. Levy Center and Jewish Chapel at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland was dedicated in Levy’s honor.
Moving Forward
Uriah Levy said, "[Jefferson] did much to mold our Republic in a form in which a man's religion does not make him ineligible for political or governmental life." Freedom of religion -from prayer in school and government funding of religious groups, to private businesses refusing to provide services- remains a controversy in American life. Religious views, practices, and rights continue to play a role in all aspects of public life and politics. How can we continue to use Jefferson's principles to find the proper relationship between church and state for a vibrant democracy?
“ ...religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions...”
PODCASTS ON FAITH AND FREEDOM
-
There was a third force behind the passage of the Statute of Virginia for Religions Freedom in 1786: the Dissenters. Primarily Presbyterians and Baptists, Virginia's Dissenters were members of a growing and increasingly powerful community that had real worries about state involvement in religion.
-
Edward Larson, author of A Magnificent Catastrophe: The Tumultuous Election of 1800, spoke at Monticello on the role religion played in the campaigns. In this excerpt, he highlights some of the arguments, from the clever to the absurd, each side published in the months prior to the election.
-
Learn about the man who served as the first Jewish Commodore of the United States Navy and as steward of Monticello in the 1800s.
JEFFERSON ENCYCLOPEDIA BIOGRAPHIES AND ARTICLES ON FAITH AND FREEDOM
-
Learn more about Peter Fossett, who was born into slavery at Monticello but attained freedom before relocating to Ohio and becoming a caterer and minister.
-
Monticello Historian John Ragosta explores Jefferson's views on religion and government.
-
Robert Hughes was born into slavery at Monticello but went on to become the founding minister of the still-flourishing Union Run Baptist Church after the Civil War.
-
Jefferson's letter to the Baptist Association of Danbury, Connecticut offers his interpretation of the First Amendment regarding freedom of religion.
VIDEOS ON FAITH AND FREEDOM
-
Monticello Historian John Ragosta discusses Jefferson and the Statute for Religious Freedom.
-
This panel discussion included Baptist minister Dr. Michael Cheuk and attorney Holly Hollman, moderated by Monticello historian John Ragosta, discusses the ideal of religious freedom and how it intersects with social movements and legal doctrine today.
-
Jefferson’s copy of a religious portrait, Salome Bearing the Head of St. John the Baptist, would almost certainly have inspired discussions between Jefferson and his guests about religious persecution and liberty.
A Civic Engagement Initiative sponsored by and in collaboration with The New York Community Trust – The Peter G. Peterson Fund.
Next page in
The Art of Citizenship