January 16 is Religious Freedom Day. It commemorates the passage of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, which was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and passed on 16 January 1786. A presidential proclamation has been issued annually since 1993. The First Freedom Center holds a commemorative event each year.
The Establishment Clause in the First Amendment (Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion) was based on the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom.
My 9th-great-grandparents Benjamin and Margaret (Woodley) Scott left Widdington, Essex,England because they wanted to be free to practice their religion. They were Quakers. In England, they could be fined for not attending the Church of England. In 1672, Margaret was fined for not going to church. Benjamin Scott was one of the London Commissioners that was sent to West Jersey in 1677 to purchase land from the Lenape.
References
First Freedom Center: About Us
National Religious Freedom Day
ReligiousFreedomDay.com
Religious Freedom Day Guidebook
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