This amendment to our state constitution was the foundation for our First Freedom as defined in the U.S. Constitution a few years later. Drafted by Thomas Jefferson — it is one of the three accomplishments for which he wanted to be remembered and engraved on his tombstone; the others being author of the Declaration of Independence and founder of the University of Virginia — the Statute recognizes that our right to exercise our faith

. . . can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence; and, therefore, all men are equally entitled to the free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience.

It adds:

No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but all men shall be free to profess and by argument to maintain their opinions in matters of religion, and the same shall in nowise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.

As attacks on the religious liberty of Americans continue to grow, it is important to remember the real meaning of the term and take the opportunity to educate our friends and neighbors who may be buying into some of the secular left’s notion of “separation of church and state.” For example, we often call our First Freedom a “constitutional right to religious freedom,” but the reality is that this freedom comes from God and is simply to be protected by the constitution; it doesn’t come from our constitution.

It is important to note that we have the freedom to be involved in “civil capacities” and express our “opinions in matters of religion” in these capacities. This is particularly important to remember as the radical secular left in Virginia has attacked us for our support of pro-life and pro-family legislation as a violation of “separation,” something that flies in the face not just of the Statute but over 230 years of American history. This is not only our right, it’s our duty.

This year, we are supporting initiatives that we hope will restore the real meaning of Jefferson’s Statute. One, an amendment to the state constitution by Senator Stanley — working with Senator Bill Carrico (R-40, Galax) — would seek to reestablish our rights as citizens to pray at public government meetings, a longstanding tradition that the secular left has sought to stop, successfully in many cases, throughout Virginia.

Of course, one major threat to the freedom of all Americans is the federal government’s mandate that citizens fund the birth control of others through President Obama’s health insurance scheme, a mandate that is currently being challenged in nearly 30 lawsuits across the nation. While the secular left and abortion industry call this mandate about “access” to birth control, the truth is that it requires a redefinition of the word “access” to mean “paid for by somebody else at the expense of their freedom of conscience.”

The two groups, studying the issues of the restoration of parental rights and kinship care, will make recommendations to the full commission. Some of these recommendations materialize into legislation. As The Family Foundation has learned, the earlier we can be involved with policy proposals, the more we can influence the outcome. While many Virginians are focused on vacation, back to school and the elections, we are here in Richmond working every day to ensure that your values are included in these important debates.

The issues of restoration of rights and kinship care are as important as they are complex. While proposals to improve these situations often are well intended, they come with far reaching consequences that must be evaluated. They must be reviewed from every angle, something that can’t always be done efficiently during the frenzied pace and spotlight of a General Assembly session.

For example, the work group discussing kinship care, the process of allowing extended family members to provide childcare in crisis situations rather than the foster care system, found itself discussing a potential expansion of the definition of “relative.” Should kinship care include non-relatives — such as an ex-girlfriend or boyfriend? While we wholly support the concept of kinship care and supported legislation this year that would have removed a serious barrier to kinship care regarding schooling, the consequences of redefining “relative” are far-reaching. The goal of kinship care is to prevent children from entering the foster care system even temporarily and, more importantly, to improve the outcome for those children and their families; the key word being families — mom, dad, grandparents, et al.

While we are confident that with your support and prayers we would be able to prevent the redefinition of an important term like “relative” from becoming law if proposed, participating in the discussion early on helps ensure that January won’t be the first time we’ve heard about it. It also allows us to educate legislators on our position in advance. We’re hopeful that the work group will focus instead on other issues it discussed, such as removing barriers to kinship care and incentivizing local Social Service Departments to increase their use of kinship care.

This is the kind of work we do every day at The Family Foundation. While the “controversial” legislation makes headlines, it’s the day-to-day work in the trenches of the legislative process on issues like this where the real decisions are made. You can be assured that whenever possible, we’ll be there to protect your values and to make Virginia a great place to raise children.

Last year we had a particularly clever young man who cracked us up repeatedly with his spontaneous observations. Perhaps nothing was funnier than his pronouncement of “The Canine Caucus”:

Speaker William Howell

Delegate Algie Howell

Senator Janet Howell

Senator George Barker

Senator Frank Ruff.

Get it? 

This year, an equally bright page by the name of Andrea Corwin noticed the irony of the election of freshmen Delegates David Ramadan and Israel (O’Quinn) and how, despite their philosophical compatibility, if necessary, they can always count on the mediation of their colleagues (Patrick) Hope and (Chris) Peace.

In introducing the bill, Delegate Marshall told the committee that the Congressional Budget Office cited the fact that Congress in 220 years never has mandated an individual purchase of any product — and if it hasn’t done so in that time, it means it knows it can’t do so. In typical Marshall style, he also quoted Alexander Hamilton, the most ardent supporter among the Founding Fathers of an influential central government, in Federalist 83, where he explicitly stated Congress’ power extends only to certain enumerated powers and defined the “welfare” clause quite differently than do most politicians today.

In addition, the committee scheduled a late vote on SB 283, SB 311 and SB 417, the health care freedom bills passed in historic fashion by the Senate. The Senate bills are patroned by Senators Fred Qualye (R-13, Suffolk), Steve Martin (R-11, Chesterfield) and Jill Vogel (R-27, Winchester), respectively. Easy victories were expected for those bills as well.

Virginia now is only a few steps from leading on, and asserting, what it so profoundly led and asserted two centuries ago: That the states and the people, as explicitly stated in the 10th Amendment of the United States Constitution, are the sovereigns of this country and commonwealth, and where the central government has no stated role, the people have natural rights to make decisions for themselves. Virginia now has the opportunity, in a new era, once again to lead the country in respect for constitutionally guaranteed limited government.

Even with this great momentum, nothing — nothing — should ever be taken for granted around here. These four bills – HB 10, SB 283, SB 311 and SB 417 – now go to the House floor. Anyone of the Senate bills that passes will go to Governor Bob McDonnell for his signature. E-mail your delegate (here) (or find your delegate here) and ask him or her to vote in favor of Virginians’ rights to make their own health care decisions without the federal government’s intrusion.

While President George Washington declared a National Day of Thanksgiving in 1789, Thanksgiving has been an American tradition officially celebrated on the 4th Thursday of November annually since 1863. Our federal holiday was not formalized until 1941. As Virginians we can take great pride in the fact that our ancestors arrived on the banks of the James River at what is now Berkeley Plantation in 1619 and gave the first thanks to God for His provisions.

Thanksgiving Day Prayer For Your Family:

Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we beseech thee, faithful stewards of thy great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of thy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer)

From the entire family at The Family Foundation of Virginia — Board, volunteers and staff — extend to you and your loved ones the very best wishes for a happy and safe Thanksgiving.