Why did the framers of the US constitution work so hard for religious tolerance, why was it such a problem?

Question

How many heretic killings and so on were there in the USA before 1783

Answer 1

I was just reading a great book on this topic, American Gospel, by Joe Meacham, the editor of Newsweek.

Religious intolerance was a major issue, especially in Massachusetts and Virginia. While there were few outright executions by the 1760s and 1770s, there were still harsh penalties for religious outsiders. People were fined, whipped, imprisoned and even exiled.

The founding fathers, especially Jefferson, recognized the divisive role religion had played in European history and sought to avoid similar problems in the USA.

Answer 2

Several reasons

Many settled in the America to escape religious persecution and seek religious freedom. The European Continent was and had been racked with numerous religious wars. Being of the wrong faith could be fatal. Not being of the same faith as your Liege could also be fatal.
The early American settlements were often made up of persons of the same faith, and the laws of these settlements reflected that Faith. The influence of the church weighed heavily upon the laws of the land.
The forefathers were seeking to include the peoples of America and not exclude.
How many killings? No idea. The Witch hunts would be a good place to start counting.

Answer 3

Different states had different established religions, in fact Massachussetts didn't abolish their state church until sometime in the 1830s. The First Amendment only applied to the federal government until the 14th Amendment extended it to the states.

But Rhode Island, Maryland and Pennsylvania had religious toleration from the beginning. The idea was popular and in the Revolution Virginia and a lot of other states disestablished their state churches. By the 1830s that was the dominant idea.

Answer 4

This was one of the crucial issues in the formation of our nation. Colonists came to America largely because of the religious persecution they suffered in England, where they were told by the state how they were to worship. Their religion was so important to them that they risked everything and came to America in order to practice it freely. The framers of our Constitution deliberately wrote that the state (government) should make no laws regarding religion, with the obvious intent that people would be free to worship as they wished. It's been twisted around a bit (just like a lot of the Constitution) and the seperation of church and state and school prayer arguments were fashioned from this provision of the Constitution, albeit not without controversy.

Answer 5

The pilgrims came to New World for Religious freedom.
So it was a pretty prominent idea to the writers of the Const.
Some colonies were founded by men of various or no religious backgrounds so the proposed union would have to work within these differing beliefs.

Answer 6

Because we were breaking away from Great Britain and The (State) Church of England.