An Act Concerning Religion (The Maryland Toleration Act)

Issued in 1649; reprinted on AMDOCS: Documents for the Study of American History (Web site)

A seventeenth-century Maryland law sets the stage for future religious freedoms

"Inforceing of the conscience in matters of Religion hath frequently fallen out to be of dangerous Consequence in those common wealthes where it hath been practiced."

In 1649, in the English colony of Maryland, a law was issued by Cecilius Calvert, Lord Baron of Baltimore (1605–1675; known as Lord Baltimore), the governor of the colony, banning criticism of various forms of Christianity and allowing people to practice their Christian religion freely. It was the first law establishing freedom of religion (or at least, Christianity) in North America. The law, the Maryland Toleration Act, helped set the...