Seeds of Religious Freedom: The 500th Anniversary of the Anabaptist Movement

Here's an interesting church history post that delves into the start of the Anabaptist movement that sprung up in the early Reformation. Don't let the Anabaptist name fool you, they are not exactly Baptist forebears (the Baptists coming into being as a distinct movement around 1609-1611). The Anabaptists were known for extreme pacifism and refusal of all oaths among other things. They are much closer to the modern Mennonites of today.

BUT, they played an important role in the development of religious liberty. Prior to this, the Reformers carried on the same philosophy of the Roman Catholic Church - societies needed religious cohesion that was enforced through the government. The Anabaptists began pushing back against this and the Baptists later became full-throated supporters of separation of church and state. This belief was furthered on a national level as the American Founders were persuaded to embrace religious freedom through John Locke's Natural Law Theory (along with some help from key Baptists such as John Leland).

Hopefully this gives you a snapshot of an important church history event.