Thomas Jefferson was the author of the Declaration of Independence and the third President of the United States. He was this nation’s greatest champion of representative democracy and human rights and our most eloquent spokesman on the founding principles of American self-government. As he himself said, “I know my own principles to be pure and therefore am not ashamed of them”.

Thomas Jefferson was profoundly convinced of the importance of freedom of religion. He felt that this was the best guarantee that the religious intolerance and bloodshed seen in many European countries would not be exported to America.

In 1777, Jefferson drafted an Act for Establishing Religious Freedom and two years later, as Governor of Virginia, he introduced it into the legislature. The bill was opposed for many years, but finally became law on January 16, 1786. It is often called the precursor to the religion clauses of the First Amendment.

“Whereas Almighty God hath created the mind free; that all attempts to influence it by temporal punishments or burthens, or by civil incapacitations, tend only to beget habits of hypocrisy and meaness, and are a departure from the plan of the Holy author of our religion, who being Lord both of body and mind, yet chose not to propagate it by coercions on either, as was in his Almighty power to do; that the impious presumption of legislators and rulers, civil as well as ecclesiastical, who being themselves but fallible and uninspired men, have assumed dominion over the faith of others, setting up their own opinions and modes of thinking as the only true and infallible, and as such endeavoring to impose them on others, hath established and maintained false religions over the greatest part of the world, and through all time;…Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place or ministry whatsoever; nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief;