The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was drafted in 1777 by

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

Fredericksburg, Virginia Fredericksburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg with ...

, and introduced into the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 1 ...

in Richmond in 1779. On January 16, 1786, the

Assembly Assembly may refer to: Organisations and meetings * Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions * General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...

enacted the statute into the state's law. The statute disestablished the Church of England in Virginia and guaranteed

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...

to people of all religious faiths, including Christians of all denominations, Jews, Muslims, and Hindus. The statute was a notable precursor of the

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 ...

and

Free Exercise Clause The Free Exercise Clause accompanies the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. The ''Establishment Clause'' and the ''Free Exercise Clause'' together read: Free exercise is the liberty of persons to re ...

of the

First Amendment to the United States Constitution The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws that regulate an establishment of religion, or that prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the ...

. The Statute for Religious Freedom is one of only three accomplishments Jefferson instructed be put in his

epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...

Background

Written in 1777 and first introduced in 1779, Jefferson's statute was repeatedly overlooked in the Virginia Assembly until

Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736June 6, 1799) was an American attorney, planter, politician and orator known for declaring to the Second Virginia Convention (1775): " Give me liberty, or give me death!" A Founding Father, he served as the first an ...

introduced legislation titled "A Bill Establishing a Provision for Teachers of the Christian Religion" in 1784.

James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for hi ...

and others led the opposition to Henry's bill which culminated in Madison's ''Memorial and Remonstrance against Religious Assessments'', published on June 20, 1785. As noted by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

, "Madison revived efferson's statuteas an alternative to Henry's general assessment bill and guided it to passage in the Virginia Assembly in January 1786."

Text of statute

References

External links

* {{Authority control Separation of church and state in the United States Freedom of religion in the United States Virginia law Christianity and law in the 18th century Works by Thomas Jefferson Legal history of Virginia 1786 in Virginia 1786 in law American political philosophy literature 1786 works 1786 in religion

Background

Text of statute

See also

References

External links