In his letter, Jefferson endorsed the Danbury Baptists' desire for religious freedom. Declaring that religion is a matter between a man and his God, and that the powers of government reach actions and not opinions, Jefferson affirmed his reverence for the First Amendment. He noted that its Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses denied Congress (the national legislature) the authority to establish a religion or to dictate one's religious beliefs, "thus building a wall of separation between Church and State.."

Jefferson's Motive

"One of the things Jefferson wanted to address," says Dreisbach, "was the question of the relationship between the national government and state governments on matters pertaining to religion. The constitutional framers wanted to avoid the creation of a national church like that which existed in England."

Thus, in 1802, and indeed, for the first 150 years of American history under the U.S. Constitution, laws prohibiting an establishment of religion applied only to the national government. State governments could maintain religious establishments if they so chose. The word "respecting" in the First Amendment confirms that Congress could neither establish a national church, nor disestablish existing state religious establishments.

So, in essence, what Jefferson was telling the Danbury Baptists was that he, as president of the national  government, had no authority to proclaim a religious holiday because that authority belonged to the individual states.

The Wall Today

Dreisbach's book points out that following this one letter, Jefferson's metaphor slipped into obscurity in both public and private papers. It was not until 1947 that it was rediscovered by Justice Hugo L. Black in a Supreme Court case, Everson v. Board of Education. In that decision, which concerned the use of state funds to transport children to religious schools, Justice Black cited the "wall of separation," and characterized it as "high and impregnable."