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Letter To Danbury Baptists
Separation of church and state is one of the primary theological distinctions of the Baptist tradition. History Originally, Baptists supported separation of church and state in England and America. Some important Baptist figures in the struggle were John Smyth, Thomas Helwys, Edward Wightman, Leonard Busher, Roger Williams (who was a Baptist for a short period but became a "Seeker"), John Clarke, Isaac Backus, and John Leland. English Baptists In 1612 John Smyth wrote, "the magistrate is not by virtue of his office to meddle with religion, or matters of conscience". That same year, Thomas Helwys wrote that the King of England could "command what of man he will, and we are to obey it," but, concerning the church—"with this Kingdom, our lord the King hath nothing to do." In 1614, Leonard Busher wrote what is believed to be the earliest Baptist treatise dealing exclusively with the subject of religious liberty. American Baptists The Danbury Baptist Association of Danbury, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Separation Of Church And State
The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular state (with or without legally explicit church-state separation) and to disestablishment, the changing of an existing, formal relationship between the church and the state. Although the concept is older, the exact phrase "separation of church and state" is derived from "wall of separation between church and state", a term coined by Thomas Jefferson. The concept was promoted by Enlightenment philosophers such as John Locke. In a society, the degree of political separation between the church and the civil state is determined by the legal structures and prevalent legal views that define the proper relationship between organized religion and the state. The arm's length principle proposes a relationship wherein the two political entities intera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Establishment Clause
In United States law, the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, together with that Amendment's Free Exercise Clause, form the constitutional right of freedom of religion. The relevant constitutional text is: The Establishment Clause acts as a double security, prohibiting both religious abuse of government and political control of religion. Under it the federal government of the United States as well as the governments of all U.S. states and U.S. territories are prohibited from establishing or sponsoring religion. The clause was based on a number of precedents, including the Constitutions of Clarendon, the Bill of Rights 1689, and the Pennsylvania and New Jersey colonial constitutions. An initial draft by John Dickinson was prepared in conjunction with his drafting the Articles of Confederation. In 1789, then-congressman James Madison prepared another draft which, following discussion and debate in the First Congress, would become part ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soul Competency
Soul competency is a Christian theological perspective on the accountability of each person before God. According to the view, one's family relationships, church membership, or ecclesiastical or religious authorities cannot affect the salvation of one's soul from damnation. Instead, each person is responsible to God for one's own personal faith in Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection. Baptist view The basic concept of individual soul liberty, is that in matters of religion, each person has the liberty to choose what conscience or soul dictates is right and is responsible to no one but God for the decision that is made. A person may then choose to be a Baptist, a member of another Christian denomination, an adherent to another world religion, or to choose no religious belief system, and the church, the government, family and friends may not make the decision or compel the person to choose otherwise. In addition, a person may change one's mind over time. According to Franci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
East Waynesville Baptist Church
East Waynesville Baptist Church is a Baptist church in Waynesville, a small town in the Great Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina, United States of America. It is an independent and autonomous member of the Southern Baptist Convention and the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (BSCNC). As of May 2005 it had 100 members. The church was involved in a 2005 controversy after the pastor allegedly expelled members because of their political views. History The church was built in 1965. Purge of members The church received mass media attention in May 2005. During a May 2 deacons' meeting, its pastor Chan Chandler East Waynesville Baptist Church is a Baptist church in Waynesville, a small town in the Great Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina, United States of America. It is an independent and autonomous member of the Southern Baptist Convention and th ... allegedly told any members who had supported John Kerry in the 2004 United States presidential election to leave. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baptists
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul competency (the responsibility and accountability of every person before God), ''sola fide'' (salvation by just faith alone), ''sola scriptura'' (scripture alone as the rule of faith and practice) and congregationalist church government. Baptists generally recognize two ordinances: baptism and communion. Diverse from their beginning, those identifying as Baptists today differ widely from one another in what they believe, how they worship, their attitudes toward other Christians, and their understanding of what is important in Christian discipleship. For example, Baptist theology may include Arminian or Calvinist beliefs with various sub-groups holding different or competing positions, while others allow for diversity in this matter within t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baptist Distinctives
Baptist beliefs are not completely consistent from one church to another, as Baptists do not have a central governing authority. However, Baptists do hold some common beliefs among almost all Baptist churches. Since the early days of the Baptist movement, various denominations have adopted common confessions of faith as the basis for cooperative work among churches. These would include beliefs about one God, the virgin birth, the impeccability, miracles, vicarious atoning death, burial and bodily resurrection of Christ, the need for salvation (although the understanding of means for achieving it may differ at times), divine grace, the Church, the Kingdom of God, last things (Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to the earth; the dead will be raised; and Christ will judge everyone in righteousness), evangelism and missions. In addition to the distinctive doctrines of Protestantism, Baptist theology in general is committed to a Zwinglian interpretation of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freedom Of Thought
Freedom of thought (also called freedom of conscience) is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints. Overview Every person attempts to have a cognitive proficiency by developing knowledge, concepts, theories and assessing them in the given environment. This cognitive proficiency gives a sense of contentment and replaces the feeling of helplessness. Apart from bringing ease to the ego of a person, new knowledge and ideas also bring a hope for the future. Freedom of thought is the precursor and progenitor of—and thus is closely linked to—other liberties, including freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom of expression. Though freedom of thought is axiomatic for many other freedoms, they are in no way required for it to operate and exist. The conception of a freedom or a right does not guarantee its inclusion, legality, or protection via a philosophical caveat. It is a very important concep ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territories, nine Minor Outlying Islands, and 326 Indian reservations. The United States is also in free association with three Pacific Island sovereign states: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. It is the world's third-largest country by both land and total area. It shares land borders with Canada to its north and with Mexico to its south and has maritime borders with the Bahamas, Cuba, Russia, and other nations. With a population of over 333 million, it is the most populous country in the Americas and the third most populous in the world. The national capital of the United States is Washington, D.C. and its most populous city and principal financial center is New York City. Paleo-Americ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mark David Hall
Mark David Hall (born 22 February 1966) is Herbert Hoover Distinguished Professor of Politics and Faculty Fellow in the Honors Program at George Fox University. He is the author of a number of books on religion and politics in American life. The majority of his research has been in religion in the American founding era. Education In 1988, Hall received a BA in political science from Wheaton College (Illinois) and in 1993 received his PhD in government from University of Virginia. Early career Prior to his 2001 hiring at George Fox University, he taught from 1993 to 2001 at East Central University East Central University (ECU or East Central) is a public university in Ada, Oklahoma. It is part of Oklahoma's Regional University System. Beyond its flagship campus in Ada, the university has courses available in McAlester, Shawnee, and Duran ..., first as an assistant and then an associate professor. He has served as Herbert Hoover Distinguished Professor of Politics at Geor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rob Boston
Robert Boston (born December 7, 1962) is Senior Adviser for Americans United for Separation of Church and State and Editor of ''Church & State'' magazine. He has worked at Americans United since 1987, and formerly served as Assistant Director of Communications and Assistant Editor of ''Church & State'' as well as Director of Communications. Boston is an advocate of separation of church and state and has authored four books on the subject. He frequently appears on television and radio. Prominent media appearances include CNN, ''NBC Nightly News'', Fox News Channel's ''The O'Reilly Factor'' and MSNBC's ''Countdown with Keith Olbermann''. In addition to his monthly contributions to ''Church & State'' magazine, Boston has written articles for ''Free Inquiry'', ''The Humanist'', ''Public Eye'', ''Liberty'', ''Jewish Monthly'' and other publications. He is frequently quoted in the print media on church-state topics, and often delivers public lectures before various audiences. Boston se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Founding Fathers Of The United States
The Founding Fathers of the United States, known simply as the Founding Fathers or Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American Revolution, American revolutionary leaders who United Colonies, united the Thirteen Colonies, oversaw the American Revolutionary War, war for independence from Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, established the United States, and crafted a Constitution, framework of government for the new nation. Historians generally recognize prominent leaders of the American Revolution, Revolutionary Era (1765–1791), such as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton, as Founding Fathers. In addition, signers of the United States Declaration of Independence, Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution are widely credited with the nation's founding, while other scholars include all delegates to the Constitutional Convention (United States), Constitutional Convention in 1787 whether they signed th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Separation Of Church And State
The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular state (with or without legally explicit church-state separation) and to disestablishment, the changing of an existing, formal relationship between the church and the state. Although the concept is older, the exact phrase "separation of church and state" is derived from "wall of separation between church and state", a term coined by Thomas Jefferson. The concept was promoted by Enlightenment philosophers such as John Locke. In a society, the degree of political separation between the church and the civil state is determined by the legal structures and prevalent legal views that define the proper relationship between organized religion and the state. The arm's length principle proposes a relationship wherein the two political entities intera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
