Isaac Backus and the Influence of Evangelical Separationism on the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment

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Edmonds, Christian

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2023-09

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The twofold focuses of this article are, first, to introduce Backus to those who may not have been aware of his importance and of his approach to issues of religious freedom. And second, to present and evaluate the evidence of Backus and evangelical separatists’ impact on the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment. The article will begin by offering a brief history of Backus’s life, highlighting the impressions and advances he made as a proponent of religious liberty. As a delegate from Middleborough to the Massachusetts Ratifying Convention, Backus entered the convention as a staunch Anti-Federalist, leery of a Constitution without a Bill of Rights. But after Federalists and Anti-Federalists agreed to put forward amendments if the document went into effect, Backus acquiesced and chose to vote in favor of ratification. Without his vote, the Constitution could never have been. This later became known as the Massachusetts Compromise, and Backus was directly involved in this historically significant moment. Furthermore, Backus’s tracts and pamphlets persuasively demonstrated the religious pulse of colonial Americans and their conviction for individual freedom of conscience and ecclesiastical separation. Next, the article will turn to Backus’s theology and demonstrate how it fashioned his views on the separation of church and state. The article will focus on two of Backus’s tracts: A Seasonable Plea for Liberty of Conscience, which offers Backus’s strongest explanation of freedom of conscience, and An Appeal to the Public for Religious Liberty. Regarding freedom of conscience, Backus believed true freedom could only be found through conversion to Christianity. As conversion was a volitional act, facilitated by the Holy Spirit, taxation, censure, and church discipline disincentivized acting on the Holy Spirit’s promptings and, therefore, interrupted experience with Christ. To Backus, if humans were to reach their full potential ordained by God, government-sanctioned restrictions on one’s freedom of conscience needed to stop. As to ecclesiastical separation, Backus believed humans were subject to two forms of government: divine and civil. Backus thought civil governments had no power over religious affairs because they were assembled and maintained by human choice. Since God is the lone savior of humanity, humans must be subject only to his divine government in religion. Backus also thought civil governance was necessary for true freedom but only for a limited purpose: to protect against the depravity of man. Without law and order, individuals would be free to hurt one another and pursue selfish undertakings to the detriment of others. For Backus, “the goal of religious liberty is thus not to leave man free to seek his salvation, but to leave the Spirit free to act within man without external constraint.” The paper will conclude by highlighting why Backus’s views and writings are critical to understanding the context in which the Religion Clauses were written and ratified. If jurists and scholars insist on using history as a means to interpretation, they must discuss the prominent American tradition that influenced the drafting of the First Amendment — evangelical separationism. Backus’s perspective on government and religion represented the majority of Americans in the eighteenth-century, and therefore, his church–state theory provides scholars and jurists with a focused synopsis of the evangelical separationist tradition and a way to better understand the 18th century cultural climate.

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Creighton University School of Law

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