On October 9, 1635, the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony delivered a sentence that echoed across centuries.
Roger Williams, a fiery preacher and uncompromising advocate for liberty of conscience, was banished for the heresy of questioning the colony’s authority to pass laws about religion.
For Williams, faith was a gift between the soul and God—no government, no matter how pious, had the right to interpose itself. In the cold New England winter, with little more than his unwavering conviction, Williams walked into exile…