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:
Also on this date:
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