As an official "day," Religious Freedom Day is about as obscure as they come, and yet it marks one of the most important milestones in the history of freedom of thought. Recognized by the Congress in 1993, the day celebrates the passage in 1786 of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. The White House has issued the obligatory statement from the president -- reprinted below, and its worth a careful read.
The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was written by Jefferson, but it took a decade to get it finally enacted in 1786, thanks to the efforts of Governor James Madison. The following year, Madison served as the principle author of the Constitution (and a few years later, the First Amendment) and so it is fair to say that the difficult experience of steering the Virginia Statute into law was a defining part of his political life; and the text itself prefigures his approach to the relationship between church and state he brought to the creation of the federal Constitution, and later to the drafting of the First Amendment.
To celebrate and discuss all this is, I believe, as worthwhile an activity as we can engage in as we struggle for the broad narrative of religious freedom and pluralism in American history -- even as Christian Nationalists who seek to revise our history en route to justifying their vision of a contemporary Christian Nation, continue to gain strength.
Rob Boston at the Wall of Separation blog reports:
Alas, some Religious Right organizations are trying to use the day to promote their misguided ideas about the role of religion in public schools and government. One group, Gateways to Better Education, asserts on its website "Religious Freedom Day is not ‘celebrate-our-diversity day.’"
Actually, it is. If the Gateways people would actually take the time to reflect on Jefferson’s Statute, they would see that it’s all about your right to choose your own faith instead of having one imposed on you by government.
The Statute guarantees that "all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.
What's more, the phrase freedom of religion is unambiguously synonymous with freedom of conscience or even free thought. This is recognized by President Obama in his statement below, but I will highlight it here first:
The writ of the Founding Fathers has upheld the ability of Americans to worship and practice religion as they choose, including the right to believe in no religion at all. However, these liberties are not self-sustaining, and require a stalwart commitment by each generation to preserve and apply them.
Charles Haynes of the First Amendment Center notes that soon after the vote, Jefferson wrote to James Madison, observing:
"It is honorable for us to have produced the first legislature who had the courage to declare that the reason of man may be trusted with the formation of his own opinions."
We have, as Haynes and Obama note, a long way to go. But it is also fair to say we have come a very long way, and have much to celebrate -- except perhaps that Religious Freedom Day is about as obscure as Bill of Rights Day, December 15th.
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release January 14, 2011
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM DAY, 2011
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BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION
Our Nation was founded on a shared commitment to the values of justice, freedom, and equality. On Religious Freedom Day, we commemorate Virginia's 1786 Statute for Religious Freedom, in which Thomas Jefferson wrote that "all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinion in matters of religion." The fundamental principle of religious freedom -- guarded by our Founders and enshrined in our Constitution's First Amendment -- continues to protect rich faiths flourishing within our borders.
The writ of the Founding Fathers has upheld the ability of Americans to worship and practice religion as they choose, including the right to believe in no religion at all. However, these liberties are not self-sustaining, and require a stalwart commitment by each generation to preserve and apply them.
Throughout our Nation's history, our founding ideal of religious freedom has served as an example to the world. Though our Nation has sometimes fallen short of the weighty task of ensuring freedom of religious expression and practice, we have remained a Nation in which people of different faiths coexist with mutual respect and equality under the law. America's unshakeable commitment to religious freedom binds us together as a people, and the strength of our values underpins a country that is tolerant, just, and strong.
My Administration continues to defend the cause of religious freedom in the United States and around the world. At home, we vigorously protect the civil rights of Americans, regardless of their religious beliefs. Across the globe, we also seek to uphold this human right and to foster tolerance and peace with those whose beliefs differ from our own. We bear witness to those who are persecuted or attacked because of their faith. We condemn the attacks made in recent months against Christians in Iraq and Egypt, along with attacks against people of all backgrounds and beliefs. The United States stands with those who advocate for free religious expression and works to protect the rights of all people to follow their conscience, free from persecution and discrimination.
On Religious Freedom Day, let us reflect on the principle of religious freedom that has guided our Nation forward, and recommit to upholding this universal human right both at home and around the world.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 2011, as Religious Freedom Day.
I call on all Americans to commemorate this day with events and activities that teach us about this critical foundation of our Nation's liberty, and to show us how we can protect it for future generations here and around the world.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fourteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fifth.
BARACK OBAMA
