April 21, 1649

Posted on April 21, 2020 by Joel Byers

On April 21, 1649, the English colony, Maryland, passed the Maryland Toleration Act, which allowed all in the colony to worship freely. Well, if they were Christian. Moslems, pagans, atheists, Native Americans, and Jews weren’t allowed the right to worship or even NOT worship. This law actually made it a crime to blaspheme the Christian god, the Holy Trinity, the Virgin Mary, or even the early apostles and evangelists. It also forbade one Christian resident from referring to another Christian resident’s religion in a disparaging way. The Act even provided for the honoring of the Christian Sabbath. So, the Maryland Toleration Act really only allowed and enforced toleration of different sects of Christianity, which to be honest, was a step up. Since Christians of that time seemed to really love killing other, different Christians, even more than they did Jews or pagans.

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About Joel Byers

Born in North Georgia and educated at some very fine public institutions. Real education started after graduating from college and then getting married and raising two boys. Has the ability to see the funny and absurd in most things and will always remark on it, even if it means getting the stink-eye from his victims.
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