Topic: Religion
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Notes on the State of Virginia
This document is an excerpt of Thomas Jefferson’s only book-length publication. Jefferson wrote the work during the early 1780s in response to a series of questions from Frenchman Francois de...
Lesson Plan
The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom DBQ
Students will explore primary sources to gain a full understanding of the context, content, and lasting impact of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. Students will evaluate primary source documents...
Article
Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom
Thomas Jefferson wanted his tombstone to list the “things that he had given the people.” It reads: “Here was buried Thomas Jefferson Author of the Declaration of Independence of The Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom And Father of the University of Virginia.” Why did Jefferson want the Statute for Religious Freedom on his tombstone?
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U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights
The first ten amendments to the Constitution make up the Bill of Rights. Its first version, shown here, included twelve amendments, but the first two were dropped. When the Bill...Media › audio
Statute for Religious Freedom (Audio)
This is a dramatic reading of Jefferson’s Bill for Religious Freedom which became a statute (law) in 1786. Along with writing the Declaration of Independence and founding the University of...
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A Bill Establishing a Provision for Teachers of the Christian Religion
In 1784, Patrick Henry proposed this bill, which would have provided tax-supported religious instruction for Virginians. Henry believed that Christian morality made people better citizens. He also thought that the...
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A Declaration by the Representatives of the United Colonies
This document, written by Thomas Jefferson almost exactly one year before the Declaration of Independence, explains the reasons why the Continental Congress established the Continental Army. The document denies that...
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An Act for Establishing Religious Freedom
Thomas Jefferson first drafted this bill in 1777. For him, religious freedom meant the right to have any of religious beliefs, or none at all. It also meant that government...
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An Oration on the Beauties of Liberty
John Allen preached this sermon, which became a popular pamphlet, to the Second Baptist Church in Boston in 1772. Like many colonists, Allen vigorously opposed what he called British “tyranny.”...
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