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The Mennonites, Brethren, Amish, Quakers, and other dissenters who would not take up weapons in War found a country that tolerated them while not embracing their convictions. But the Republic that sprang from Revolutionary War victory provided an almost unheard-of environment in which to live one\u2019s religious convictions. Most dissenters have been very grateful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When Anna Gerber Yoder\u2019s descendants were conscripted to fight in every American War since the Revolutionary War, they sought ways to avoid taking up arms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nearly 250 years after the country\u2019s founding, on May 6, 2026, I attended an annual Shenandoah Valley Prayer Breakfast in Harrisonburg, Virginia. About 400 guests arrived early for breakfast, coffee, conversation, and prayer. We came from all walks of life, occupations, and denominations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We prayed for business and nonprofits in our community and for our clergy. With several uniformed police in attendance, we prayed for them and first responders. We prayed for the least of these in our region, for our higher education institutions, for the government, and for students in our communities. Another led us in praying for healthcare and counseling professionals, for agricultural workers, and finally for our world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When a speaker gave a faith testimony at the Prayer Breakfast, held at James Madison University, I looked at the university\u2019s seal above the podium. The school reduced one of Madison\u2019s statements to \u201cKnowledge is Liberty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n
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I\u2019d revise the JMU seal by adding a concept: \u201cKnowledge, Liberty, and Grace.\u201d In 1779, when Anna Gerber Yoder endured the Revolutionary War, wondering how it would end, and when James Madison was elected in Virginia to serve in the Continental Congress, John Newton wrote the lyrics to \u201cAmazing Grace.\u201d Newton\u2019s memorable lyrics became the most popular gospel song in American history. Knowledge and liberty are great, but without an understanding of grace amid the fragility of human nature, knowledge and liberty hold little value. I\u2019m very grateful for a U.S. environment that accepts dissenting groups and fosters religious freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Anna Gerber Yoder, my 7th great-grandmother, lived about 75 miles from where the nation\u2019s founders adopted the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Anna lived on a 160-acre farm in Berks County, Pennsylvania. Age 70 when the Revolution began, she lived through the War as a widow. Some of Anna\u2019s adult children moved to a remote … Continue reading Religious Freedom: A Distinctive American Virtue<\/span>