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The first ever decree on religious liberty was passed at the Diet of Torda held from 6 to13 January 1568. It was presided by the elected Hungarian King and Transylvanian prince János Zsigmond. The decree enshrined the right to the freedom of conscience and religion, and the free choice of clergy for congregations as well, to an extent never known before.

The Torda Parliament's religious resolution is perhaps Transylvania's most valuable contribution to European culture. In Europe, which had been raging since the religious wars of the 16th century, the decision made in consensus by the Transylvanian orders, namely the Hungarians, the Szeklers and the Saxons, secured the peaceful conditions for religious coexistence for centuries. For the rest of Europe, it took almost a century and a half for the idea of peaceful coexistence to take root.