…our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions, more than our opinions in physics or geometry…

Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly: That no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burdened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess—and by argument to maintain—their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in nowise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.

Thomas Jefferson on religious freedom, 1779. Fast-forward a few dozen decades, and research confirms what Jefferson intuited — narcissism mixed with religious righteousness breeds bad things. (via explore-blog)