First Freedom

Recent attacks against worshippers in Sri Lanka, California, New Zealand and the South have targeted people of all different faiths and beliefs;  but they also are attacks on one of our most cherished freedoms.  The first line of the 1st Amendment to our Bill of Rights clearly states:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

First Freedom: The Fight for Religious Liberty is the story of how the most basic of human freedoms - freedom of conscience - was codified for the first time in human history as an inalienable human right protected by law.  Most of us believe we understand what religious liberty means and that it is part of the U.S. Constitution. However, religious liberty is not an absolute freedom and poses many unanswered questions.

By 1630, the Puritans had set up a colony in Massachusetts to practice their own form of Christianity without interference from king or pope. Though they established democratic communities, they did not allow any serious dissent to their beliefs. Faith in God was absolute and could not deviate from what the Bible said or what the leaders said it said. When Anne Hutchison challenged this doctrine and began to preach the Bible as men were doing, the leaders stopped her and banished her from the colony. This incident presented one of the major tests for any democracy:

1) Can a society that seeks religious freedom for itself also extend it to others who don’t believe the same way?

2) What freedom does religious liberty grant members of a society?

3) Does religious liberty allow followers to practice a religious act that might bring harm to themselves or worshippers?

4) Does religious liberty allow individuals to wear religious clothing or jewelry that reflects their religious beliefs even if others find it offensive?

5) Does religious liberty allow individual to disregard or break a law in the practice of their religion?