Published: May 01, 2008 12:52 pm            

A Lesson in History

To The Editor,

Let me begin by expressing through your publication my most sincere appreciation to everyone who spoke kind words of appreciation, support, and encouragement regarding the recent letter submitted regarding President Ronald Reagan and his legacy. The response was overwhelm-ing. I am also writing to respond to a statement made by Mr. Ferrara in his Write On column, A Shiny Black Lincoln, which was published back in January, in which he made the following statement:

“America was not founded as a Christian country, no matter how many politicians and preachers want to tell you that it was. Our history simply denies this. The proof is what is in the Constitution of the United States. Many of its author—principally Thomas Jefferson—were men who thought of themselves as Deists and not Christians. A deist believes in one Supreme Being, not in any particular religion. The more we lose sight of where this country came from, the more we forget about what makes it great and what it means to be an American. This election year is a good time to remember this.”

Once again, Mr. Ferrara has taken license to make statements without offering any evidence backing up those claims. I find myself perturbed when Mr. Ferrara openly attacks great men and the heritage by which our nation is founded upon with statements like the ones above without offering anything to substantiate their validity. Therefore, taking up the proverbial “red pen” in order to correct that which is wrong, I submit the follow-ing that will firmly establish that the this nation was founded as a Christian nation and that we have a strong Christian heritage that cannot be denied.

First of all, let’s take into consideration the term “Deist”. The accurate definition of this term is “One who subscribes to or professes the belief in the existence of a personal God, based solely on the testimony of reason and reject-ing any supernatural revelation; also believing that God created the world and set it into motion, subject to natural laws, but takes no interest in it.”

If you look at a good portion of this definition and compare it to many quotes made by the Found-ing Fathers, you could almost find substantiation to Mr. Ferrara’s claim; however, there is that one phrase at the end. He [God] “takes no interest in it [the world]”. If Thomas Jefferson and the other Founding Fathers were deists, they sure had a strange way of expressing it. Truly, you will find that the context of many of their quotes is in direct contradiction to the underlying doctrine of deism.

Since Mr. Ferrara brought him up, let’s first look at Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States. Let’s look at some excerpts and quotes that would seem to indicate not only acknowledgement of God, but deep faith in Him and in his Son Jesus Christ:

• “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions…And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our Sacred Honor.” - Declaration of Independence, adopted July, 4, 1776.

• “Had the doctrines of Jesus been preached always as pure as they came from His lips, the whole civilized world would now have been Christian.” - The Writings of Thomas Jefferson, page 220.

• “Almighty God, Who has given us this good land for our heritage; We humbly beseech Thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of Thy favor and glad to do Thy will. Bless our land with honorable ministry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion, from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitude brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endow with Thy spirit of wisdom those to whom in Thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that through obedience to Thy law, we may show forth Thy praise among the nations of the earth. In time of prosperity fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in Thee to fail; all of which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen" – National Prayer for Peace, March 4, 1805.

• "God who gave us life, gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that the liberties are the gift of God?" – Jefferson Memorial.

• It is interesting that in 1774, while serving in the Virginia Assembly, Jefferson personally introduced a resolution calling for a Day of Fasting and Prayer.

• Also in 1779, as Governor of Virginia, Jefferson decreed a day of “Public and solemn thanksgiving and prayer to Almighty God.”

• History also records that as President, Jefferson signed bills that appropriated financial support for chaplains in Congress and the armed services. (This could be construed as somewhat erratic behavior for a deist, wouldn’t you agree?)

Let’s also take a brief look at some quotes and statements from George Washington, our distinguished first President:

• “It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible.”

• “Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair; the rest is in the hands of God.”

• “Bless, O Lord, all the people of this land, from the highest to the lowest, particularly those whom thou has appointed to rule over us in church and state.”

• “Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted; for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.” – Taken from his Thanksgiving Proclamation, October 3, 1789.

May we also look at some quotes from John Adams, our second President:

• “It must be felt that there is no national security but in the nation’s humble acknowledged dependence upon God and His overruling providence.”

• “I pray heaven to bestow the best of blessings on this house and on all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof!” – November 2, 1800.

• “The great and Almighty author of nature, who at first established those rules which regulate the world, can as easily suspend those laws whenever his providence sees sufficient reason for such suspension. This can be no objection, then, to the miracles of Jesus Christ.” – March 2, 1756.

Let us also consider the words of James Madison, our fourth President:

• “Before any man can be considered a member of civil society, he must be considered as a subject of the Governor of the Universe.” – Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments, June 1785.

• “We have all been encouraged to feel the guardianship and guidance of that Almighty Being, whose power regulates the destiny of nations.” – Inaugural Address, March 4, 1809.

• “We’ve staked the whole future of American civilization not on the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all political institutions upon the capacity of each and all of us…to govern ourselves according to the commandments of God. The future and success of America is not in this Constitution, but in the laws of God upon which this Constitution is founded.”

Let us finally take into consideration the words of James Monroe, our fifth President:

• “With a firm reliance on the protection of Almighty God, I shall forthwith commence the duties of the high trust to which you have called me.” – Second Inaugural Address, March 5, 1821.

• “For those blessings we owe to Almighty God, from which we derive them, and with profound reverence, our most grateful and unceasing acknowledgements.” – Eighth Annual Address, December 7, 1824.

• “I enter on the trust to which I have been called by the suffrage of my fellow-citizens with my fervent prayers to the Almighty that He will be graciously pleased to continue to us that protect which He has already so conspicuously displayed in our favor.” – First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1817.

I could go on, but I think it is clear to see that our Founding Fathers were not only not deists, but were indeed devoutly Christian men who that had a deep trust and reliance on God. Their statements undermine the very claim that they were deists in that they regularly acknowledge the provident hand of God in raising up this nation and they profess faith in the fact that God will continue to intervene in the course of the growth of this nation. If they truly believed that God took no interest in the affairs of this world, then their statements contradict their beliefs.

Moreover, we find in the statements of the Founding Fathers not a belief in many gods but in one God, and in His Son Jesus Christ. Profession of faith in Jesus Christ is distinctly Christ-ian, and speaks to the fact that America has a very distinct Christian heritage. Again, the overwhelming weight of fact cannot be denied.

As I wrap up this dissertation regarding the Christian heritage of our nation, let me leave you with one last quote from John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States:

“The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the prin-ciples of civil government with the principles of Christianity.”

I welcome any rebuttal that Mr. Ferrara or those that agree with him may have.

Sincerely,

Mike Gregory

Pine Knot, KY 42635

        

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