Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1903-07-21
THE CORVALLIS GAZETTE,
TUESDAY, JULY 81, 1905.
SOLVED BY AMERICANS.

uGUlOuStl dlSI W liII WIN " WA
government that the absolute dl-
yorcement of church and state is
not only practicable, but is to the
best interests of both. At no
time previous to the formation
and adoption of our constitution
had any people been able to erect
a government not dominated IN
some measure by a recognized
eclesiasticism. Much had been ac-
complished in the world in hehalf
of individual freedom Of thought
and action, but this had multi
piled the numb Der of sects rather
than mitigated religious intoler-
ance. Each sect was intolerant
of all others. Each claimed for
itself to be the only true and
Divinely authorized exemplar OF
religious faith and practice, and
each contemplated the time when
its tenents should be legalized
and established by the state to
the exclusion of all others. En-
glish history is a long record of
savage, sanguinary conflict grow
ing out of religious intolerance
and the efforts of the established
faith odestroy all differing forms
Of religious belief and practice.
Men who demanded religious
freedom for themselves denied
the privilege to others.
This intolerance found its way
into the American colonies. 1t
has been said as truthfully as
facetiously that "the Puritans
sought country where they
might worship God according to
conscience and compel others to
do likewise" This expresses
the greatest advancement then
made toward religious tolerat1on.
Our colonial history cannot be
written without defacing many
of its pages with the shameful
record of religious intolerance
and persecution. While it is
true that Lord Baltimore declar-
ed for religious toleration in
Maryland he was too devout a
Catholic TO neglect preference fol
that sect, We see the govern
ment of each colony Influenced
more or less by some religious
sect which sect determined the
character of the laws enacted OF
adopted.
It was fortunate for the colon-
lists that the work of carving
homes out of an unbroken wild
erness left scant time for indulg.
ing in polemics. The necessity
for united action in the presence
of their common foe, the wary,
cruel savage, taught them in a
measure to forget their religious
animosites. Their long struggle
for independence had proved
that, after all, their religious diff
ferences were at most of but sec
ondary importance. Through
all the colonial period down to
the formation of the constitution
influences were quietly at work
which ultimately destroyed or
held in leash the spirit of reli-
gieus intolerance and made the
separation of church and state in
the new government not only
possible but desirable. The
jealousy with which the sects re-
garded each other was strong
barrier against a religious estab-
lishment. Even the much de-
plored prevalence of French in
fidelity contributed in no small
measure to make church estab-
lishment impossible. Franklin
and Jefferson and Randolph and
others were fortunately not Sec
tarians. It may, indeed, be said
that it was fortunate they were
unbelievers in revealed religion.
While every possible considera-
ton made the formation of a
constitutional government desira-
BILE and necessary, SO with equal
force every consideration, whether
drawn from history or expert
ence, whether grounded in appre-
hension or based upon en1ighten-
ed views of the purposes of hu-
man governments made union of
church and state forever impos-
sible in the American Republic.
The results have been even
more beneficial than the fran ers
of the constitution foresaw. The
cause of religion has been pro-
NOTED more rapidly and to
much greater extent than ever
L &.