The Fourth of July. This unique, and perhaps most popular, American holiday conjures up visions of fireworks, political speeches, baseball games and backyard barbecues.
As we observe the Fourth of July, it is appropriate to express gratitude for our freedom, especially our religious liberty.
First, we should pause to thank God. All freedom starts with God.
The Bible teaches us in Genesis that the sovereign God of the universe created you and me in His image.
This means that we were made to have a relationship with God. For that relationship to be genuine, it must be voluntary, entered into freely and based on love, not in any way compelled or based on fear. It means that each of us has free will and is competent to respond to God as our conscience dictates, unimpeded and uncoerced by earthly authorities.
The apostle Paul carried this theme forward in his letter to the Galatians when he wrote that for freedom, Christ has set us free; do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
Yes, religious liberty is a right — a natural, inalienable right — that we receive as a gift from God. Thanks be to God.
Second, it is appropriate to give thanks to our nation’s founders. They took the bold, radical step of separating church and state in civil society.
They provided in Article VI of the Constitution that there would be no religious test or requirement for public office.
One’s status in the civil community simply would not depend on the willingness to espouse any particular religion.
These architects of the new nation decided that the government would not be permitted, in the words of the First Amendment, to make any law "respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
Our founders protected our God-given freedom by barring government from meddling in religion or taking sides in religious disputes.
As a result, and as a consequence of their foresight and wisdom, America is one of the most religious and most religiously diverse nations on the face of the earth.
Despite our religious passion and pluralism, we have been able to avoid, for the most part, the religious conflicts and wars that have punctuated history and continue to plague much of the world today.
Yes, most of our founders were Christians of various ilk, but they were committed to ensuring religious liberty for all, not enshrining their own particular religious views in our founding documents.
Thanks be to God for Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and other founders of this great nation.
Third, we should acknowledge our debt to our Baptist ancestors. Next year, Baptists will celebrate their 400th anniversary.
For nearly four centuries, Baptists have fought for, and in some cases, died to protect, religious liberty — not just for themselves but for everyone else as well.
Roger Williams, the great apostle of religious liberty and founder of the first Baptist church in America, called it soul freedom — a God-infused liberty of conscience.
And Baptists over the ensuing centuries — Isaac Backus, John Leland, George Truett — have taken up the cause and fought to turn that heritage into a legacy for future generations.
In courtrooms, classrooms and pulpits across Alabama and across America, Baptist advocates of religious liberty continue to advance this basic freedom.
Courtrooms clarify the relationship between our religious liberty and separation of church and state. Classrooms influence future generations to appreciate this national heritage, which is almost unique in the world. Pulpits remind us that religious liberty comes from God and that no man or government dare tread in this sacred space.
Without such tireless efforts by modern-day champions, our heritage of religious liberty could be lost.
Thanks be to God for our Baptist forebears and modern-day advocates for religious liberty.
This year, as you celebrate our nation’s birth and enjoy this quintessential American holiday, pause to give gratitude to those whose efforts have made America a land of liberty and a place where religious freedom is cherished.
EDITOR’S NOTE — J. Brent Walker is the executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, which seeks to defend and extend God-given religious liberty for all and champions the principle that religion must be freely exercised, neither advanced nor inhibited by government.
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