Separating Church and State

Roger Williams, founder of the colony of Rhode Island, is famous as an

        apostle of religious tolerance and a foe of religious establishments.

      In Separating Church and State, Timothy Hall combines impressive

        historical and legal scholarship to explore Williams's theory of religious

        liberty and relate it to current debate. Williams's fierce religious dogmaticism,

        Hall argues, is precisely what led to his religious tolerance, making

        him one of the most articulate champions of the argument for the necessary

        separation of church and state.

      "Both timely and provocative. . . . Offers Williams's largely overlooked

        but deeply important perspective on the peaceful coexistence of committed

        believers of diverse faiths. The book also brings into question crucial

        tenets of the United States Supreme Court's First Amendment religion clause

        jurisprudence at a time when many are raising questions about it."

        -- Marci A. Hamilton, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, New York City

      "Hall has the entire Williams corpus under his command, and he plays

        the relevant texts like a master organist. He also has the legal corpus

        equally at his fingertips. One of the great strengths of his book is that

        it bridges the too often separate fields of history and jurisprudence."

        -- Edwin Gaustad, author of Liberty of Conscience: Roger Williams in

        America