The letter from Simon Turner (June 3, “Stop the Slide”) brilliantly used the words of our founding fathers to disprove the myth that the U.S. was created as Christian nation.
It was not just their words from our history that came after the Constitution’s First Amendment was written but also their actions even before that document was created and signed.
In 1619, the Church of England was established as the state religion of the Virginia colony.
Citizens were required to pay taxes to pay for all priests’ salaries and for the building of churches. These ministers were granted civil and religious authority, and all citizens were only allowed to marry in that church.
Thomas Jefferson opposed this and viewed government enforced religion as tyranny. Jefferson drafted the bill that became the Viginia Statute for Religious Freedom and, with support from James Madison, was passed into law on January 16, 1786.
The law disestablished the Church of England in Virginia. This new law said that all citizens had religious freedom of choice and could not be penalized or taxed for their religious beliefs.
As we celebrate our nation’s 250th birthday, we should give thanks for the rights found in our first amendment.
Without the religious freedom guaranteed in our country’s Constitution, this nation might not have been created.
Darrell Anderson
Battle Ground
