Sara Layland
Professor Kris Teters
Survey of United States History
23 September 2018
C121 Task Five
1a. The appeal for religious liberty by Isaac Backus, a leader of the Baptist Church, speaks about the reverend pioneering the idea of keeping religious matters out of government positions; particularly in positions where authority is present over tax-paying townsmen (Backus, 1999).
1b. During this time, taxes were imposed on New Englanders some thought to be unfair in recovering from the war the high tariffs caused in part by the Boston Tea Party (Norton, 2015). Supporters of the Church of England felt that too few religious peoples held state office and did not benefit from tax breaks (Backus, 1999).
2a. This section illustrates the conflict between a group of persons and their opposition to fighting in war or paying taxes. Some felt that being required to pay taxes that would, in any way, benefit the war efforts to be disturbing. The author clarifies that the issue before a conference in the state of Pennsylvania, anti-war citizens questioned whether it was appropriate to financially compensate a “substitute” to take one’s place in war (Brock, 2002).
2b. The article goes on to explain the spiritual absolution from evading taxes or paying someone to fight on one’s behalf in war by asking for salvation from sin and repenting (Brock, 2002). In Chapter 6 of the textbook, Norton highlights the growing tensions between the US and England as the country heads for war with its mother-country when Thomas Jefferson began writing the Declaration of Independence (2015).
3. The two articles relate to each other through two major themes: taxes and religion. In both instances, the population of this time period were opposed to paying taxes. While religious persons sought more tax-free positions in the first article, the second article discusses a subculture that was against any money going toward war. Also, both pieces discuss a religious aspect, separating religious views and practices from any governmental activities (Backus, 1999) (Brock, 2002).
References
Backus, I. (1999). An appeal to the public for religious liberty. In Patrick, John J. and Long, Gerald P. (Eds.), Constitutional debates on freedom of religion (pp. 24–27). Retrieved from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/westerngovernors/reader.action?docID=5007075&ppg=46 (Original work published 1773)
A peace sect wrestles with the problem of hiring a substitute. (2002). In P. Brock (Ed.), Liberty and conscience: A documentary history of the experiences of conscientious objectors in America through the Civil War(pp. 55–56). Retrieved from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/westerngovernors/reader.action?docID=10085232&ppg=68 (Original work published 1781)
Norton, M.B. (2015). A people & a nation. Retrieved from http://lrps.wgu.edu/provision/53540310
