Showing posts with label religious freedom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label religious freedom. Show all posts

June 16 - Universities Open to All!

   Posted on June 16, 2022     


This is an update of my post published on June 16, 2011:



Above and below: Oxford


When they were founded, the famous and prestigious British universities of Oxford and Cambridge were open only to Anglicans (also known as adherents of the Church of England).

Catholics, Quakers, other non-conforming Christians, and Jews (let alone Muslims, avowed atheists, and folks who practiced other faiths) were not welcome.


Oxford Museum of Natural History

Actually, it is not so simple. Apparently the law required students to sign “39 Articles” of agreement with particular Anglican dogma; those who were unwilling to sign were not awarded diplomas. Also, the universities had rules about non-adherents being employed as professors or university officers, or being awarded fellowships, and students and staff were required to attend Anglican religious services.

Even some people who belonged to the Church of England weren't able to earn diplomas in the school because they didn't agree with all 39 statements and wouldn't “sell out” their beliefs by pretending they did. The artist William Morris is in this category.


William Morris is considered by some to be "the Father
of the Arts and Crafts Movement."

On this date in 1871, Parliament passed the Universities Test Act, thereby opening the universities to all who were academically qualified, regardless of religion or lack of religion. The act also abolished the rule of mandatory worship for students and staff.

Many see this act as a great advancement in freedom of religion.


Above and below: Cambridge





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July 9 – Freedom of Religion, 17th Century Style

Posted on July 9, 2019


The framers of the U.S. Constitution definitely did not invent freedom of religion!




Even in ancient times, many societies allowed, not just freedom of belief (people can believe whatever they wish about god, the universe, and humanity), but also freedom of religious practice, also known as freedom of worship. For example, Cyrus the Great established freedom of worship throughout the Achaemenid Empire, around 550 B.C.E.

One reason this kind of freedom was often adopted was to make a community open to traders and merchants, who wanted to be able to maintain their customs and holy days as they journeyed and bought and sold.

On the other hand, there have also been some societies that have not allowed free expression of certain religious beliefs, nor freedom to do certain religious rites and customs. This can occur when leaders fear that they will lose control if they allow religious freedom.

Sometimes a nation says that its people enjoy freedom to worship any way they want - but actually that nation uses taxation, policies, and laws to punish people who practice a minority religion. That's not freedom; that's lip service!

Of course, even worse is open religious persecution - when a government imprisons, exiles, or executes people who practice certain religions or no religion!


Many nations that have official state religions or established state churches still allow complete religious freedom. For example, Denmark has a state religion - the Church of Denmark, a form of Lutheranism - but also guarantees freedom of religion.

The reason I'm talking about religious freedom today is that July 9 is the anniversary of an event that occurred in 1609: Catholic Pope Rudolf II signed the "Letter of Majesty," thus granting the citizens of Bohemia tolerance no matter what their religious beliefs and practices.

You may not know where Bohemia is located. It is now joined with other historical regions to create the modern nation of Czechia, aka the Czech Republic. 


Bohemia has its fair share of loveliness:










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January 28 - Freedom of Religion...in Poland

Posted on January 28, 2018



Some Americans seem to think that the idea of Freedom of Religion started in the good ole' U.S. of A. But that's just not true.

"Freedom of religion" is a phrase that is generally used to refer to tolerance of different beliefs - and different systems of beliefs, such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Scientology, and so on.

"Freedom of worship" is a phrase that is defined as individual liberty - you may kneel five times a day in prayer, for example, or chant mantras before an image of Ganesh, or follow special dietary restrictions, without being imprisoned, fined, or otherwise punished.

Religious freedom has been established here and there, at various times, all through history. Cyrus the Great established religious freedom in his Achaemenid Empire in the 500s BC (BCE), and Ashoka the Great issued edicts about religious freedom in India in the 200s BC. Muhammad declared religious freedom for Muslims, Jews, and pagans in the Constitution of Medina in the 600s AD (CE), and Roger II led the Norman Kingdom of Sicily to be multi-ethnic and tolerant of multiple religions in the 1100s.

Unfortunately, the opposite of religious freedom has ALSO occurred in many different places and times. Europe was often a place of religious divides: persecution, punishment, war, extermination. Catholics vs. Protestants vs. Church of England vs. Puritans vs. Jews vs. pagans - yikes!

On this date in 1573, the Polish national assembly signed a Warsaw Confederation granting religious freedoms. At the time, there were some unwritten customs of religious tolerance in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (and some other places), but this law may have been the first formal, written religious freedom law created by a European assembly.


Obviously, a law cannot end prejudice and conflicts, but this law did help the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth a safer and more tolerant place than most of Europe during that time. 

Poland was then situated between Orthodox Muscovy in the East (a region centered around Moscow), the Muslim Ottoman Empire in the South, and the warring Reformation and Counter-Reformation (basically, Protestants and Catholics) in the North and West. So Poland was able to be a refuge for people from all over, a sort of home for heretics.

This was an important step toward religious freedom in Europe.

Flash forward to today...

One of the most
popular recent
popes, Pope John
Paul II, was
from Poland.
I always think of Poland being almost entirely Catholic, these days, but all of Europe that belongs to the European Union have signed onto this statement of religious freedom:

"Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching, practice and observance."



Also on this date:

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