The daily union., 1854-10-24
JEFFERSON ON RELIGIOUS TOLERATION.


JEFFERSON ON RELIGIOUS TOLERATIoN.
tFrom Jerson Notes Virginia, and volume of his works
The Different Religions reeeired into that STATE.
The first settlers in this country emigrants from
England of the English church, Just at point OF time
when it flushed with complete victory over the re
gons of all other persuasons Possessed they became
of the powers of making administering and executing the
laws they showed equal intolerance in this country with
their PRESBYTERIAN brethren who had emigrated the
northern governments. The poor Quakers were flying
from persecution in England. They cast their eyes on
these new countries asylums of civil and religious free
dom but they found them free only for the reignng sect
Several of the Virginia assembly OF 1859 1862 and
had made penal in parents to refuse TO have their
children baptized had prohibited the unlawful assembling
of Ouakers had made ii penal for any master of vessel
to bring Quaker into the State; had ordered those al
ready here and such should come thereafter to be inn
prisoned until they should abure the country provided
mder punishment for their first and second return but
death for their third had inhibited all persons from suffer
ing their meetings in near their houses entertaining
them individually dsposing OF books which supported
their enets If no execution took place here did in
New England it not owing TO the moderation of the
church. spirit of the legislature as may be inferred from
the law itself but to historical circumstances which
have not been handed down to us. The Anglicans
retained full possession of the country about centu-
ry Other opinions began then to creep in and the great
of the to support their church having
begotten equal degree of Incidence in its clergy two
thirds of the people had become dssenters at the
mencement of the present revolution The laws, indeed
were still oppressive hem but the spirit the party
had subsidized into moderation and of the other had risen
TO degree of determination which commanded respect.
The present state of laws on the subject of religion is
this The convention of May, lT76 in their declaration of
rights declared it to be truth and natural right that
the exercise of religion should be free but when they pro-
cceded form that declaration the ordinance of
ernmen instead of taking up every principle declared in
the bill of rights and guarding it by legislative sanction
they passed that which asserted religious rights
leaving them they found them The convention,
however when they met member of the general as
sembly in October l176, repealed all acts PdTla-
men which had rendered criminal the maintaining
any opinions in matters of religion the forbearng to
| apair IN church aodth he
ship and suspended the laws giving salaries to the cer-
gy which suspension made perpetual in October, l779.
Statutory expressions in religion being thus wiped away
remain at present under those only imposed by the
common law, by acts of assembly. At the
common law heresy capital offence, punishable by
burning Its definition left to the ecclesiastical judges
before whom the conviction was till the statute OF the
El, circnmscrbed il, by declaring that nothing
should be deemed erey but what had been determined
by authority of the canonca Scriptures by OF the
four first general councils by other council having for
the grounds Of their declaration the express and plain
words of the Scriptures Herey thus circumscrbed being
offence against the common law, our act OF assembly OF
October l7T IT. gives cogpi9auce of it the general
court by declaring that the jurisdiction of that court shall
be general in all matters at the common law The cxecu-
ton by the writ DE h6rdico combrendo BY own
of assembly of7o5 80 if brought up in the
Christian religion denies the being of God or the Trni-
ty, asserts there more gods than one, or denies
the Christian religion to be true or the Scriptures to be OF
divine authority, he Is punishable the first offence by
ncapacy TO hold any Office or employment ecclesasii-
cal, civil military on the second by disability to sue,
minstrator and by three years imprisonment without
bail fathers right to the custody of bis own children
being founded in law his right of guardianship this
being taken away they may of course be severed from
him. and put by the authority OF court into more ortho-
dox hands This is summary view of that religious sa-
under which people have been willing to remain
who have layshod their lives and fortunes for the estab-
shment of their civil freedom Furneaua passim) The
not sufficiently eraicated that the operations
of the mind well the acts Of the body subject to
the coercion of the laws.
But our rulers can have authority such natrai
rights only have submitted to them. The rights OF
conscience we never submitted--we could not submit
We are answerabe for them to God The Legitimate
of extend to such acts only as are
urous to others But it does me no injury for my neigh
Dor TO say there are twenty gods God 1t neither
picks my pocket breaAE my leg If it be said his esti-
mony in court of justice bs relied on, reject it.
then and be the stigma him. Constraint may make
him by making him hypocrite, but it will never
make him trucr 1t may fix him obstinately in his
errors but will not them Reason and free inquiry
the cuy cectual agents against error Give loose to
them they will sappcrt the religion by bringing every
false one TO their tribunal the of their investigation
They the natural enemies OF aDd OF error only
Had not the Roman government permitted free inquiry,
Christianity could have been introduced Had not free
inquiry been INDUCED in at the the Reformation the
cofrupops Of Christianity could not have been purged
away If it be restrained now, the present corrupons
will be protected and encouraged Was the gov
ernmen to prescribe to us our medicine and diet our
bodies would be in such keeping as our souls are now.
Thus in France the emetc forbidden as medi
cine and the article of food Government is
Just us infaible too when it fixes systems in physics.
Calico was sent to the ngusitop for affirming that the
earth was sphere the government had declared it TO be
fiat trencher and Calico obliged to abjure his
error however at length prevaedthe earth became a
globe and Descares declared it whirled round its
axis by vortex.
The government in which he lived wise enough TO
see that this question of civil jurisdiction,
should all have been involved by authority in vertce In
sao the verces have been exploded and the Newtonian
principle aS gravitaon is more firmly established on
the basis of an it woud be the government
to step in and make il a8 aricle of necessary faith
Reason and experiment have been indulge and has
ned before them. Ii is alone which needs The
support Of government Truth stand by itself Sub
iec opinion to coercion, whom viii you make your in
qnistors Fallible mennen governed by bad passions
by private well pubc reason And why subject j,
70 coercion 10 produce uniformity Bat is uniformity
of opinion desirable No than of face and stature
Introduce the bed of Procrusss them and there is
danger that the large may beat the small, make MS
all Of size by looping the former and stretching the latter
Difference of opinion is advantageous to religion The
several perform the Office of each