Demanding Liberty

"Brandon O'Brien has done us a great service. He has addressed the current, hot issue of religious liberty by reminding us of one of its greatest American champions, Isaac Backus. He brings to life the contentions of Backus's day to illumine our own and helps us pursue a liberty that will be a blessing to unbelievers and religious alike. As is often the case, looking backward is the soundest way to go forward."

"In this enjoyable history, O'Brien, content director for the N.Y.C.-based Christian leadership organization Redeemer City to City, proposes that born-again activist Isaac Backus should be thanked for the development of religious freedom within the United States. . . . O'Brien provides strong evidence that government and traditional churches have long used each other to maintain authority and illustrates that civil disobedience has been necessary since the Colonial era to advocate for minority rights. Those interested in the origins of America's policy on religious regulations will enjoy this assured history of the battles Backus fought when freedom of belief was no foregone conclusion."

"Brandon O'Brien's Demanding Liberty reintroduces us to a forgotten hero who deserves to be remembered and emulated. Isaac Backus found the courage through his faith and earnest conviction to pursue religious liberty for all Americans. He was willing to work with Deists and anyone else who would help to ensure that all Americans could choose to either worship God or not based on the dictates of their conscience rather than the demands of the majority. In these days of hyper-partisanship, it is important to be reminded that we can only secure freedom for ourselves when we secure it for all. Brandon O'Brien achieves this and more in his excellent popular biography of Isaac Backus. I recommend it for your reading pleasure as we prepare to celebrate our nation's birth."