JAMES MADISON ON RELIGIOUS LIBERTY

by Robert S.--Ed. Alley ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 10, 1985

Published on the 200th anniversary of the ratification of the Constitution, this anthology features the prinicpal writings on religious liberty by the ""Father of the Constitution,"" and essays by prominent politicians and scholars--including Lowell Weicker, Michael Novak, Henry Steele Commager, and Daniel Boorstin--on Madison's politics, philosophy, and legacy. Assembled with care and intelligence by Alley, its narrow scope limits it to an audience of constitutional scholars and Madison buffs. Madison's own writings constitute perhaps 20% of the text. They include private correspondence, debate notes, and the classic Memorial and Remonstrance against a Virginia tax to support religious teachers. No stylist, his writings are a bit stuffy, a bit clunky, but always lucid and often brilliant in their insights into the nature of civil liberties. As for the 26 companion essays, which cover everything from New Testament writings on church-state relations to the Supreme Court's recent wrestling with school prayer, almost all posit certain common premises: that Madison led the way among the Founding Fathers in replacing the idea of religious toleration with that of religious freedom; that the principles he set forth are as valid today as they were 200 years ago; that strict separation of church and state lies at the heart of the success of the American experiment. Among the roses and kudos, one subversive essay stands out: Donald Drakeman's piece, in which, drawing on other sources, he spotlights some cracks in the venerated facade, suggesting that Madison originally opposed the Bill of Rights, didn't draft the First Amendment, and favored national days of prayer and fasting. One more step in the commendable scholarly reassessment of the man JFK deemed the most underrated American president.

Pub Date: Dec. 10, 1985

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Prometheus

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1985

Categories: NONFICTION