Humanists Honor Religious Freedom Anniversary
January 11, 2007
(Washington, D.C., January 11, 2007) This year marks the 230th anniversary
of Thomas Jefferson's Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom. Drafted in 1777
it was passed nine years later on January 16, 1786. It went on to serve as a
model for the religious liberty clauses in the First Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution. Since 1993 each president of the United States has
commemorated January 16 as Religious Freedom Day, calling on Americans to
"observe this day through appropriate events and activities in homes,
schools, and places of worship."
"Humanists in particular have cause to honor this day," said Mel Lipman, a
constitutional lawyer and president of the American Humanist Association.
"One of our central humanist principles is the separation of church and
state as expressed in the Virginia statute and the First Amendment. And this
necessarily includes both the freedom to believe as well as the freedom to
disbelieve."
"The principle of governmental neutrality on matters of faith is one of the
most unique contributions and identifying characteristics of the American
experiment," added AHA Executive Director Roy Speckhardt. "We call on all
Humanists, indeed all Americans, to honor Religious Freedom Day by
celebrating our rights, our liberties, and our diversity. We must always
remember the ideal of America's founders that this nation be a pluralistic
society with a secular government."
