The Sacred Rights of Conscience (Paperback)

The Sacred Rights of Conscience contains original documents from both public and private papers, such as constitutions, statutes, legislative resolutions, speeches, sermons, newspapers, letters, and diaries. These documents provide a vivid reminder that religion was a dynamic factor in shaping American social, legal, and political culture and that there has been a struggle since the inception of the Republic to define the prudential and constitutional role of religion in public culture.

Daniel L. Dreisbach is Professor in the School of Public Affairs at American University in Washington, D.C.Mark

David Hall is Herbert Hoover Distinguished Professor of Political Science at George Fox University.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations xix
INTRODUCTION: The Pursuit of Religious Liberty in America xxi

PART I

Antecedents of the Principles Governing Religious Liberty and Church-State Relations in America

CHAPTER ONE
Biblical and European Heritages 3

KING JAMES VERSION OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES 4
Genesis 1:26–27; 3:1–24 4
Exodus 1:15–21; 18:13–27; 20:1–17 6
Leviticus 25:10 7
Leviticus 26:1–46 8
Deuteronomy 13:1–5; 17:1–20 9
I Samuel 8 11
II Chronicles 7:14 12
Proverbs 14:34; 29:2 12
Isaiah 49:22–23; 60:12 12
Matthew 5:38–48; 22:15–22 12
Luke 22:38 13
John 18:36 13
Acts 5:27–29 13
Romans 13:1–8 14
II Corinthians 6:14–18 14
I Peter 2:9–3:6 14

EUROPEAN INFLUENCES 15
St. Augustine, City of God, 410–26 16
St. Augustine, On the Correction of the Donatists, c. 417 16
St. Thomas Aquinas, On the Government of Princes, 1267 17
Martin Luther, Temporal Authority: To What Extent It Should Be Obeyed, 1523 19
The Schleitheim Confession of Faith, 1527 21
John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 1559 24
Act of Supremacy, 1534 27
Act of Uniformity, 1559 27
Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England, 1562, and 1801 American Revisions 27
Richard Hooker, Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity, 1590s 30
The First London Baptist Confession of Faith, 1646 34
Westminster Confession of Faith, 1646, and 1788 American Revisions 36
Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, 1651 39
William Penn, The Great Case of Liberty of Conscience, 1670 42
John Locke, A Letter on Toleration, 1689 47
John Locke, The Second Treatise, 1690 47
Toleration Act, 1689 51
John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon, Cato's
Letters: Letter 66, 1721 55
Montesquieu, The Spirit of the Laws, 1748 60
William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England, 1769 62
Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations, 1776 76
Recommendations for Further Reading 79

PART II

Creating the Principles Governing Religious Liberty and Church-State Relations in Colonial America

CHAPTER TWO
Fundamental Laws, Declarations of Rights, and Public Acts on Ecclesiastical Establishments and Religious Liberty in Colonial America 83

Articles, Laws, and Orders, Virginia, 1610–11 84
The Mayflower Compact, 1620 86
Providence Agreement, 1637 88
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, 1638–39 88
The Laws and Liberties of Massachusetts, 1647 89
Selected Laws of Rhode Island, 1647 103
An Act Concerning Religion, Maryland, 1649 103
Provisional Regulations for the Colonists of New Netherland, 1624 107
Dutch West India Company Instructions, 1656 107
Flushing Remonstrance, 1657 107
Dutch West India Company Instructions, 1663 107
Massachusetts General Court, An Act Made at a General Court, Held at Boston, the 20th of October, 1658 110
Massachusetts General Court, A Declaration of the General Court of the
Massachusetts Holden at Boston in New-England, October 18, 1659.
Concerning the Execution of Two Quakers 110
An Act for the Suppressing the Quakers, Virginia, 1659 113
Charter of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, 1663 114
William Penn, Frame of Government of Pennsylvania, 1682 116
William Penn, Laws Agreed Upon in England, &c., 1682 116
The Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina, 1669 119
Recommendations for Further Reading 121

CHAPTER THREE
Letters, Tracts, and Sermons on Religious Liberty and Duty in Colonial America 122

John Winthrop

, A Modell of Christian Charitie, 1630 123
John Winthrop, Little Speech on Liberty, 1645 123
John Cotton, A Discourse about Civil Government, 1637–39 133
Roger Williams, Mr. Cottons Letter Lately Printed, Examined and Answered, 1644 146 Roger Williams, The Bloudy Tenent, of Persecution, for Cause of Conscience, 1644 146
Roger Williams, Letter to the Town of Providence, 1654 146
Nathaniel Ward, The Simple Cobbler of Aggawam in America, 1646 155
The Cambridge Platform, 1648 165
Elisha Williams, The Essential Rights and Liberties of Protestants, 1744 173
Charles Chauncy, Civil Magistrates Must Be Just, Ruling in the Fear of God, 1747 179 Samuel Davies, State of Religion among the Protestant Dissenters in Virginia, 1751 195
Samuel Adams, The Rights of the Colonists, a List of Violations of Rights and a Letter of Correspondence, 1772 202
Isaac Backus, An Appeal to the Public for Religious Liberty, 1773 204
Recommendations for Further Reading 212

PART III

Framing the Constitutional Principles Governing Religious Liberty and
Church-State Relations in the American Founding

CHAPTER FOUR
The Continental and Confederation Congresses and Church-State Relations 215

John Adams, Letter to Abigail Adams, September 16, 1774 216
Congressional Resolution Calling for a Day of Public Humiliation, Fasting, and Prayer, June 1775 217
Rules and Orders for the Continental Army, June 1775 218
Congressional Chaplains, 1775–88 218
The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776 220
Congressional Resolution Calling for a Day of Thanksgiving, November 1, 1777 222
The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, November 1777 224
Congressional Resolution Recommending the Promotion of Morals, October 1778 225
Congressional Resolution Calling for a Day of Fasting, Humiliation, and Prayer, March 20, 1779 226
Congressional Resolution Calling for a Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer, October 1780 228
Texts Concerning the National Seal, August 1776 and June 1782 229
Aitken's Bible, January 21, 1781, and September 12, 1782 231
Congressional Resolution Calling for a Day of Thanksgiving, October 18, 1783 235
An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States, North
West of the River Ohio [Northwest Ordinance], July 1787 236
Recommendations for Further Reading 238

CHAPTER FIVE
State Constitutions, Laws, and Papers on Church and State in Revolutionary America 239

Virginia Declaration of Rights, 1776 241
Pennsylvania Constitutions, 1776 and 1790 241
South Carolina Constitution, 1778 243
Massachusetts Constitution, 1780 245
A Bill Concerning Religion, Virginia, 1779 247
A Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom, Virginia, 1779 and 1786 250
A Bill for Punishing Disturbers of Religious Worship and Sabbath Breakers, Virginia, 1786 251
A Bill for Appointing Days of Public Fasting and Thanksgiving, Virginia, 1779 252
A Bill Establishing a Provision for Teachers of the Christian Religion, Virginia, 1784 252
Resolutions and Address by the Maryland House of Delegates, January 8, 1785 253
B. F. Morris, State Constitutional Provisions and Proclamations Related to Religion 257
Recommendations for Further Reading 265

CHAPTER SIX
Petitions, Essays, and Sermons on Church and State in Revolutionary America 266

Petition of the German Congregation of Culpeper, Virginia, October 1776 267
Petition of Sundry Inhabitants of Prince Edward County, Virginia, October 11, 1776 268
Memorial of the Presbytery of Hanover, Virginia, October 24, 1776 269
Memorial from Clergy of the Established Church, Virginia, November 8, 1776 270
Memorial of the Presbytery of Hanover, Virginia, June 3, 1777 272
Worcestriensis, Number IV, September 4, 1776 273
Isaac Backus, A Declaration of the Rights, of the Inhabitants of the State of Massachusetts-Bay, in New-England, 1779 276
John Witherspoon, Sermon Delivered at a Public Thanksgiving after Peace, 1782 278
Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia, Query XVII and Query XVIII, 1782, 1787 290
Petition for Equality by the Philadelphia Synagogue to Council of Censors of Pennsylvania, 1783 294
George Washington, Circular to the States, 1783 296
Memorial of the Presbytery of Hanover, Virginia, May 26, 1784 298
Memorial of the Presbytery of Hanover, Virginia, November 12, 1784 301
Memorial of the Presbytery of Hanover, Virginia, November 2, 1785 304
Petition in Favor of Religious Assessments from Westmoreland County, Virginia, November 2, 1784 307
Petition Against Religious Assessments from Westmoreland County, Virginia, November 2, 1784 307
James Madison, A Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments, 1785 309
Publius [James Madison], The Federalist Papers, Number 10, 1787 314
Publius [James Madison], The Federalist Papers, Number 51, 1788 314
Thomas Reese, An Essay on the Influence of Religion in Civil Society, 1788 316
John Leland, The Rights of Conscience Inalienable, 1791 335
Recommendations for Further Reading 345

CHAPTER SEVEN
References to God and the Christian Religion in the U.S. Constitution 346

Benjamin Franklin, Call for Prayer in the Constitutional Convention, June 28, 1787 348
U.S. Constitution, 1788 349
Publius [James Madison], The Federalist
Papers, Number 37, 1788 350
William Williams, Letter to the Landholder, February 11, 1788 351
Essay by Elihu, February 18, 1788 352
Benjamin Rush, Letter to Elias Boudinot(?), July 9, 1788 353
Benjamin Rush, Letter to John Adams, June 15, 1789 355
Address of the Presbytery of the Eastward to George Washington, October 28, 1789 355
George Washington, Letter to the Presbyterian Ministers of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, November 2, 1789 357
Timothy Dwight, Jr., A Discourse, in Two Parts, 1812 358
Timothy Dwight, Jr., President Dwight's
Decisions of Questions Discussed by the Senior Class in Yale College, in 1813 and 1814, 1833 359
Alexander McLeod, A Scriptural View of the Character, Causes, and Ends of the Present War, 1815 359
James R. Willson, Prince Messiah's Claims to Dominion over All Governments: and the Disregard of His Authority by the United States, in the Federal Constitution, 1832 360
James A. Bayard, Jr., A Brief Exposition of the Constitution of the United States, 1833 364
Recommendations for Further Reading 365

CHAPTER EIGHT
The Religious Test Ban of the U.S. Constitution 366

Benjamin Franklin,

Letter to Richard Price, October 9, 1780 368
Noah Webster, On Test Laws, Oaths of Allegiance and Abjuration, and Partial Exclusions from Office, March 1787 368
Records of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 370
U.S. Constitution, Article VI, Clause 3, 1788 373
Jonas Phillips, Letter to the President and Members of the Constitutional Convention, September 7, 1787 374
James Madison, Letter to Edmund Pendleton, October 28, 1787 375
An American Citizen [Tench Coxe],
An Examination of the Constitution for the United States of America, 1788 375
A Landholder [Oliver Ellsworth], No. 7, December 17, 1787 376
William Williams, Letter to the Landholder, February 11, 1788 379
Publius [James Madison], The Federalist Papers, Number 52, 1788 380
Publius [James Madison], The Federalist Papers, Number 57, 1788 381
James Madison, Letter to Edmund Randolph, April 10, 1788 381
Luther Martin, The Genuine Information, 1788 382
Essay by Samuel, Boston, January 10, 1788 382
A Friend to the Rights of the People, New Hampshire, February 8, 1788 383
Letter by David, March 7, 1788 383
Aristocrotis, The Government of Nature
Delineated; or An Exact Picture of the New Federal Constitution, 1788 385
Debate in Connecticut Ratifying Convention, January 9, 1788 388
Debate in Massachusetts Ratifying Convention, January 19, 23, 30, and February 4, 1788 388
Debate in Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 6, 10, and 12, 1788 391
Debate in North Carolina Ratifying Convention, July 30, 1788 394
Proposed Amendment, South Carolina Ratifying Convention, May 23, 1788 400
Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States, 1833 400
Recommendations for Further Reading 404

CHAPTER NINE
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution 405

George Mason, Objections to This Constitution of Government, c. September 16, 1787 407
Richard Henry Lee, Proposed Amendments, October 1, 1787 407
John Leland, Objections to the Constitution, February 28, 1788 408
John Francis Mercer, A Farmer, No. 1, February 15, 1788 409
John Francis Mercer, A Farmer, No. 7, April 11, 1788 410
Thomas Jefferson, Letter to James Madison, December 20, 1787 412
James Madison, Letter to Thomas Jefferson, October 17, 1788 413
Selected Amendments Proposed by the State Ratifying Conventions 415
James Madison, Speech in the First Congress Introducing Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, June 8, 1789 418
Debates in the First Congress on the Religion Clauses, 1789 426
U.S. Constitution, Amendment I, 1791 433
Joseph Story, Commentaries on the
Constitution of the United States, 1833 433
Recommendations for Further Reading 438


PART IV

Defining and Testing the Constitutional Principles Governing Religious Liberty and Church-State Relations in the New Nation

CHAPTER TEN
Religion and the Public Policy and Culture of the New Nation 441

OATHS OF OFFICE, 1788–91 442
U.S. Constitution, 1788 442
An Act to Regulate the Time and Manner of Administering Certain Oaths, June 1, 1789 442
B. F. Morris, Christian Life and Character of the Civil Institutions of the United States, 1864 443
U.S. Constitution, Fourth Amendment, 1791 445

RELIGION AND THE PRESIDENCY 446
George Washington, inaugural address, April 30, 1789 446
John Adams, inaugural address, March 4, 1797 448
Thomas Jefferson, inaugural address, March 4, 1801 449
James Madison, inaugural addresses, March 4, 1809, and March 4, 1813 452
George Washington, presidential proclamations, October 3, 1789, and January 1, 1795 453
John Adams, presidential proclamations, March 23, 1798, and March 6, 1799 455
James Madison, presidential proclamations, July 9, 1812, July 23, 1813, November 16, 1814, and March 4, 1815 458
George Washington, Letter to the United Baptist Churches of Virginia, May 10, 1789 461
George Washington, Letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island, August 18, 1790 464
Alexander Hamilton, Draft of Washington's Farewell Address, July 1796 465
George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796 468
George Washington, Letter to the Philadelphia Clergy, March 3, 1797 470
John Adams, Letter to the Officers of the First Brigade of the Third Division of the Militia of Massachusetts, October 11, 1798 471

CONGRESSIONAL CHAPLAINS AND ACTIONS
OF CONGRESS 471
Congressional Chaplains, 1789 472
An Act to Provide for the Government of the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio [Northwest Ordinance], August 7, 1789 473
An Act for the Punishment of Certain Crimes against the United States, April 30, 1790 473
Military Chaplains and Regulations, 1791, 1806 473
An Act Regulating the Grants of Land
Appropriated for Military Services, and for the Society of the United Brethren, for Propagating the Gospel among the Heathen, June 1, 1796 475

TREATIES 475
Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the United States of America and the Bey and Subjects of Tripoli, of Barbary, 1797 475
Treaty with Kaskaskia Indians, 1803 476
Recommendations for Further Reading 477

CHAPTER ELEVEN
Religion and Politics in the Election of 1800 478

PAMPHLETS 480
[William Linn], Seri