Christianity does not require state support to flourish. History shows that state support of Christianity has meant its debasement. Good government does not need assistance from an established religion. It is folly to believe religious discord will be solved by the assessment. A measure of the magnitude of the assessment ought not to be imposed without a clear majority of citizens favoring it.
Freedom of conscience is the only policy consistent with deity.
There cannot be freedom of religion, safeguarded by the state, and intervention by the church or its agencies in the state's domain or dependency on its largesse. This is classic Madisonian doctrine. Madison collated eighty amendments proposed by seven of the states in the form of the nineteen amendments he submitted to the House of Representatives in the First Congress. After proposing this amendment, he was a member of the committee of eleven to consider it, and then was the head of the House conference committee that negotiated with the Senate to produce its current wording. This fact is not mentioned by those who hang on the apparent meaning of Madison's first draft.