Handout B: Defining Toleration and Liberty

Handout B: Defining Toleration and Liberty

Directions: Read each of the following quotations on toleration and liberty and discuss them with a partner. Then write a complete definition of each term using ideas from the Handout A: From Establishment to Free Exercise Essay, the focus quotes below, and your own ideas. Be prepared to share your definitions with the class.

Quotation A: Toleration

“All men should enjoy the fullest toleration in the exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience.” – Mason’s draft for Virginia’s Declaration of Rights

Quotation B: Liberty

“All men are equally entitled to the full and free exercise of religion according to the dictates of conscience.” – Madison’s amendment to Mason’s draft