It is with great pleasure that I write this letter to you all, as I have been overjoyed at the passage of Thomas Jefferson’s “Statute for Establishing Religious Freedom” in Virginia. The time has come for our respective churches to relieve themselves from the unholy throws of government and to return our praise to God alone. Virginia has joined the few states who have disestablished a state religion, and in doing so, joins the few who have prospered both economically and socially. The only responsible course of action would be to adopt this same measure of disestablishment for the entire country. In the past, not only have the tyrannical rulers used their power to corrupt the Bible and their governments, but they have also misused it to create
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New York, being an early trading post of the Dutch West India Company, did not want religious tensions to interfere with its economy. In the past one hundred years, the economy has grown to be a great success, despite having no established religion. Jews occupy parts of the state, but even still, the shipping industry has risen to become the most successful in the country. Two other states, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania, were both born by exiled men. After the Congregationalists expelled Roger Williams from Massachusetts, he took his views and formed Rhode Island, which became a flourishing colony. William Penn did the same and made a haven for, but not limited to, Quakers. With the dense, lush forests that occupy the state, its forestry industry prospered, along with the rest of the colony, despite a conglomeration of religions, including Mennonites, Catholics, and Jews (Gaustad 23). These three colonies are proof that colonies do not need a uniform religious identity in order to function. In fact, Connecticut with its Congregationalist establishment and Virginia with its Anglican establishment were not thriving as much as the aforementioned ones (Gaustad 23). Even with completely distinct industries, diverse colonies flourished devoid of ecclesiastical governments, showing how as a whole, the United States with its many factions can sustain a …show more content…
There is no doubt that Whitfield’s preaching directly challenged the upper echelons of Anglican authority, but those in favor of a state-established religion still worked to dismantle a man who believed in God. Anglicanism still bears a social hierarchy that does not exist in Evangelicalism or Quakerism. In Virginia, a man had to be licensed by the state in order to preach, which lends itself the government dominating another branch of life, a branch that should be ruled by a person’s conscience. Thankfully, this licensure procedure has changed with the passage of Jefferson’s
New York, being an early trading post of the Dutch West India Company, did not want religious tensions to interfere with its economy. In the past one hundred years, the economy has grown to be a great success, despite having no established religion. Jews occupy parts of the state, but even still, the shipping industry has risen to become the most successful in the country. Two other states, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania, were both born by exiled men. After the Congregationalists expelled Roger Williams from Massachusetts, he took his views and formed Rhode Island, which became a flourishing colony. William Penn did the same and made a haven for, but not limited to, Quakers. With the dense, lush forests that occupy the state, its forestry industry prospered, along with the rest of the colony, despite a conglomeration of religions, including Mennonites, Catholics, and Jews (Gaustad 23). These three colonies are proof that colonies do not need a uniform religious identity in order to function. In fact, Connecticut with its Congregationalist establishment and Virginia with its Anglican establishment were not thriving as much as the aforementioned ones (Gaustad 23). Even with completely distinct industries, diverse colonies flourished devoid of ecclesiastical governments, showing how as a whole, the United States with its many factions can sustain a …show more content…
There is no doubt that Whitfield’s preaching directly challenged the upper echelons of Anglican authority, but those in favor of a state-established religion still worked to dismantle a man who believed in God. Anglicanism still bears a social hierarchy that does not exist in Evangelicalism or Quakerism. In Virginia, a man had to be licensed by the state in order to preach, which lends itself the government dominating another branch of life, a branch that should be ruled by a person’s conscience. Thankfully, this licensure procedure has changed with the passage of Jefferson’s