Statement on the Subject of Religious Toleration
The policy of Religious Toleration has been understood to apply to those of the Hebrew and Orthodox faiths and, more recently, to those who adhere to the various confessions generally termed as Protestant.
The House of Sieniawski has no quarrel with the notion that a policy of religious toleration should be extended to these religious minorities. Indeed, we would insist that the interests of these groups are represented in the Sejm, and that their welfare, security and practise of their faith are safeguarded through legislation.
The policy of religious toleration, however, has never denied the primacy of the Roman Catholic faith. Furthermore, the policy has never been understood to grant rights to any and every faith that may spring up within the Commonwealth.
It is with an interest in preserving the integrity of our legal code that I feel both obliged to voice these concerns and to petition the authors of the proposed Praw Osób Confederation to consider making the following amendments:
- As it has been the well-regarded custom of our Commonwealth to extend the religious toleration to specific religious groups through the promulgation of legislation, I invite the authors of the Praw Osób Confederation to consider providing a list of the specific religions which would be covered under the terms of religious toleration.
- Our custom has been to elect an adherent of the Roman Catholic faith to the Throne of Poland. This is particularly pertinent, as we have received news of the Duke of Saxony presenting a claim to the Throne, contrary to the lawful and just election of His Majesty Jakub I Sobieski. I invite the authors of the Praw Osób Confederation to also consider codifying what has been our long-standing custom of ensuring that the Crown of Poland-Lithuania is always to be worn by a Catholic.
Statement on the Purpose of the Praw Osób Confederation
Echoing the concerns of our relations, the House of Lubomirski, the purpose of the Praw Osób Confederation still remains unclear to me. Perhaps I, unaccustomed to the political intricacies, am simply blind to the patent relevance of such a Confederation. In addition to discussion regarding the scope of Article A.II (pertaining to religious toleration), further discourse highlighting how the Confederation would serve a function other than that already available to the nobility through the Sejm would be helpful.
As the Praw Osób Confederation calls for parties to swear an oath, it is reasonable that the obligations to which we are being asked to agree are specific and properly understood. I remain hopeful that further discussion will lead to the formation of a consensus regarding the matter at hand.
Adam Mikołaj Sieniawski
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