Massachusetts Constitution, March, 1780 (I.1.6)

This is a lengthy document and a close reading of it lies beyond the purposes of this blog. A few observations will suffice.

Striking, but not surprising, given Massachusetts history (the Puritans having left England for reasons of religious intolerance, wishing to find a place where there was more of it), is the salience of religion in this document. The second and third articles of the first part of it state that there is a duty to worship God, a right to worship him according to one's conscience, a duty of the state to require local governments to fund and provide for public Protestant worship, and a right of the state government to require all subjects of the state to attend these services. Each subject may earmark his taxes to go for whichever Protestant service he prefers, all such sects being equal before the law.

Much of the rest of the document resembles the U.S. Constitution and the Virginia Constitution, with the three branches of government and so forth. The text also requires the state to promote civil society, literature and morals - including punctuality and generosity!