For more than two centuries, Thomas Jefferson and his Statute for Establishing Religious Freedom have shaped Americans’ understanding of religious liberty and the First Amendment. Jefferson argued that both religious freedom and political freedom depend on keeping church and state separate—a view long embraced by the Supreme Court and historians. But in 1985, Justice William Rehnquist challenged the historical accuracy of relying on Jefferson and his colleague James Madison to understand the First Amendment. Since then, critics have used Rehnquist’s argument to support greater government involvement in religion.
Historian John Ragosta defends Jefferson’s vision, tracing it to his religious beliefs and reexamining the origins of the First Amendment. Ragosta argues that the amendment was intended to impose a strict limit on federal involvement in religion. At the time, it was also intended to preserve states' authority to maintain their own religious establishments, something unconstitutional since the post-Civil War amendments. He ultimately shows that Jefferson advocated a firm separation of church and state without seeking to exclude religion from public life, offering a fresh perspective on Jefferson, the First Amendment, and religious liberty in the United States.
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