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Were our Founding Fathers Christian with a fervent
4GodandCountry
Member Posts: 3,968
Were our Founding Fathers Christian with a fervent love for the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
Or were they primarily Deists, who only acknowledged the existence of a distant, impersonal god?
Patrick Henry: "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ! For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity and freedom of worship here."
George Washington: His personal prayer book, written in his own handwriting, declares continual fidelity to the Lord Jesus Christ: "O most Glorious God, in Jesus Christ my merciful and loving Father, I acknowledge and confess my guilt, in the weak and imperfect performance of the duties of this day."
John Marshall: Chief Justice of the Supreme Court described Washington: "Without making ostentatious professions of religion, he was a sincere believer in the Christian faith, and a truly devout man."
The Continental Congress, on September 11, 1777, recommended and approved that the Committee of Commerce "import 20,000 Bibles from Holland, Scotland, or elsewhere," because of the great need of the American people and the great shortage caused by the interruption of trade with England by the Revolutionary War.
John Adams: On March 6, 1789, President Adams called for a national day of fasting and prayer so that the nation might "call to mind our numerous offenses against the most high God, confess them before Him with the sincerest penitence, implore his pardoning mercy, through the Great Mediator and Redeemer, for our past transgression, and that through the grace of His Holy Spirit, we may be disposed and enabled to yield a more suitable obedience. . ."
John Quincy Adams: "The highest glory of the American Revolution was this; it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity." (July 4, 1821)
John Jay: First Chief Justice of the U. S. Supreme Court: "Unto Him who is the author and giver of all good, I render sincere and humble thanks for His manifold and unmerited blessings, and especially for our redemption and salvation by His beloved Son."
Patrick Henry: In a letter to his sister Anne: "My heart is full. Perhaps I may never see you in this world. O may we meet in heaven, to which the merits of Jesus will carry those who love and serve Him."
George Mason: "Father" of the Bill of Rights; "My soul I resign into the hands of my Almighty Creator, whose tender mercies are all over His works, who hateth nothing that He hath made, and to the justice and wisdom of whose dispensations I willingly and cheerfully submit, humbly hoping from His unbounded mercy and benevolence, through the merits of my blessed Savior, a remission of my sins".
James Madison: "Chief Architect" of the U. S. Constitution, wrote in the margin of his Bible, "Christ's Divinity appears by St. John chapter XX, 2; 'And Thomas answered and said unto Him, my Lord and my God!' Resurrection testified to and witnessed by the Apostles, Acts IV, 33."
The First Act of Congress following their agreement of the precise wording of the First Amendment (Congress shall make no law concerning the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...) was to ask President Washington to declare a national day of fasting and prayer!
Constitution of the State of Delaware: Art. XXII Every person who shall be chosen a member of either house, or appointed to any office or place of trust... shall...make and subscribe the following declaration, to wit: "I, do profess faith in God the Father and in Jesus Christ His only Son, and in the Holy Ghost, one God, blessed for evermore and I do acknowledge the holy scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by divine inspiration."
United States Supreme Court: Church of the Holy Trinity v. United States, 1892, 143 US 457, "These, and many other matters which might be noticed, add a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic utterances that this is a Christian nation." (p.471) [This U. S. Supreme Court opinion includes a lengthy and detailed record of the historic evidences of America's Christian heritage.]
When Clinton left office they gave him a 21 gun salute. Its a damn shame they all missed....
Or were they primarily Deists, who only acknowledged the existence of a distant, impersonal god?
Patrick Henry: "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ! For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity and freedom of worship here."
George Washington: His personal prayer book, written in his own handwriting, declares continual fidelity to the Lord Jesus Christ: "O most Glorious God, in Jesus Christ my merciful and loving Father, I acknowledge and confess my guilt, in the weak and imperfect performance of the duties of this day."
John Marshall: Chief Justice of the Supreme Court described Washington: "Without making ostentatious professions of religion, he was a sincere believer in the Christian faith, and a truly devout man."
The Continental Congress, on September 11, 1777, recommended and approved that the Committee of Commerce "import 20,000 Bibles from Holland, Scotland, or elsewhere," because of the great need of the American people and the great shortage caused by the interruption of trade with England by the Revolutionary War.
John Adams: On March 6, 1789, President Adams called for a national day of fasting and prayer so that the nation might "call to mind our numerous offenses against the most high God, confess them before Him with the sincerest penitence, implore his pardoning mercy, through the Great Mediator and Redeemer, for our past transgression, and that through the grace of His Holy Spirit, we may be disposed and enabled to yield a more suitable obedience. . ."
John Quincy Adams: "The highest glory of the American Revolution was this; it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity." (July 4, 1821)
John Jay: First Chief Justice of the U. S. Supreme Court: "Unto Him who is the author and giver of all good, I render sincere and humble thanks for His manifold and unmerited blessings, and especially for our redemption and salvation by His beloved Son."
Patrick Henry: In a letter to his sister Anne: "My heart is full. Perhaps I may never see you in this world. O may we meet in heaven, to which the merits of Jesus will carry those who love and serve Him."
George Mason: "Father" of the Bill of Rights; "My soul I resign into the hands of my Almighty Creator, whose tender mercies are all over His works, who hateth nothing that He hath made, and to the justice and wisdom of whose dispensations I willingly and cheerfully submit, humbly hoping from His unbounded mercy and benevolence, through the merits of my blessed Savior, a remission of my sins".
James Madison: "Chief Architect" of the U. S. Constitution, wrote in the margin of his Bible, "Christ's Divinity appears by St. John chapter XX, 2; 'And Thomas answered and said unto Him, my Lord and my God!' Resurrection testified to and witnessed by the Apostles, Acts IV, 33."
The First Act of Congress following their agreement of the precise wording of the First Amendment (Congress shall make no law concerning the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...) was to ask President Washington to declare a national day of fasting and prayer!
Constitution of the State of Delaware: Art. XXII Every person who shall be chosen a member of either house, or appointed to any office or place of trust... shall...make and subscribe the following declaration, to wit: "I, do profess faith in God the Father and in Jesus Christ His only Son, and in the Holy Ghost, one God, blessed for evermore and I do acknowledge the holy scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by divine inspiration."
United States Supreme Court: Church of the Holy Trinity v. United States, 1892, 143 US 457, "These, and many other matters which might be noticed, add a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic utterances that this is a Christian nation." (p.471) [This U. S. Supreme Court opinion includes a lengthy and detailed record of the historic evidences of America's Christian heritage.]
When Clinton left office they gave him a 21 gun salute. Its a damn shame they all missed....
Comments
indeed Christians and not deists as the revisionists teach. Good information for the upcoming 4th of July. Thanks 4GodandCountry.
"Congress shall make no law regarding the establishment of religion,"
Meaning the state or government could not make a national religion, or mandate a religion.
No where does it say the supreme court has the power to define what is religion , or where it may be practiced.
And for the courts to allow one ATHIEST, to shove his agenda down the throats of the majority is assinine..
LR
"A wise man is a man that realizes just how little he knows"
Little people talk about people,regular people talk about things,and big people talk about ideas.
Edited by - Bushy AR on 07/02/2002 16:28:42
lot worse language on T.V. and movies and few complaints. Is it
just to make big thing for themselves. If so, burn all your money
that says "in God we trust" as a deminstration. Or better yet
just give it away.
I still say that no where in the consitiution or ammendments does it say "separation of church and state.
"Congress shall make no law regarding the establishment of religion,"
Meaning the state or government could not make a national religion, or mandate a religion.
LR
Sorry to disagree classic95.
It is very important that when deciding what the first amendments religion clause means, you have to read the entire clause.
I am certain that the founders did not write the firstamendment to mean "the STATE or government could not make a national religion or mandate a religion"
You are half right-the government(fed) could not make or mandate a national religion-but the first amendment does not prohibit the individual states from doing so. As a matter of fact, a few states at the founding of the Union collected taxes for the church, and had a state religion. If the states were able to "freely exercise" their religious beliefs during the founding of this country, one would be hard pressed to say that the 1st amendment prohibits religious exercise on the state level. None of these states were doing anything unconstitutional, because the states were free to decide religious issues on their own, without interference from the federal government.
Might make more sense if reading the religious clause IN ITS ENTIRETY:
"Congress shall make no law establishing religion, OR PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF"
I have mentioned this many times to members of the "se[eration of church and state" gang, but they choose to ignore the "or prohibit the free exercise thereof" they have to ignore it in order to say that their doctrine is constitutional. Unfortunately for them, ignoring parts of the constitution does not make ones actions constitutional.
Hypothetical: A state has a plaque with the ten commandments in there state capital building.
Is this a violation of the first amendment? Lets see
Congress shall make no law establishing religion- Is congress establishing a religion? No, the state is establishing religious principles.
Is the state free to establish religious principles as they see fit, without interference from the federal government? Yes.
Congress shall make no law... PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF" Is Congress not allowing a state to have a plaque on there state capital building "prohibiting the free exercise of religion"? I do not see how you can say that the federal government banning religion on a state level as being constitutional. Quitethe contraryt, it is unconstitutional, for it prohibits the free exercise of religion. The 1st amendment specifically tells congress to stay out of the religion business-it makes no provision for banning the states from having religion, it is a limitatiuon on congress.
The federal government ordsering a state to remove a religious plaque is about as unconstitutional as you can get.
"The powers delegated by the proposed constitution to the federal governmentare few and defined, and will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace negotiation, and foreign commerce"
-James Madison
- Life NRA Member
"If cowardly & dishonorable men shoot unarmed men with army guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary...and not by general deprivation of constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Pack slow, fall stable, pull high, hit dead center.
Pack slow, fall stable, pull high, hit dead center.
No matter in what usual religion. And no matter what called. But
most religions still believe in a God. It just happened that in WW 2
my Batallion had a Prodestant Chaplin (3rd Bn.) one other had a
Catholic Chaplin, other Bn. had a Jewish Chaplin. What ever we could
get to was great. Most times I did not make services of my own faith,
but was happy to have a service when I could make it of any faith.
Yes, I attended all services of any faiths when possible. All belived
in God. Athiests in foxholes, ????? Very few after a while.
Maybe things have changed in a new and liberal society where God
is not allowed in schools, and you like what happenens in schools.
Sounds reasonable to me, but there are those here who seem compelled to take issue with anything but the most narrow "party line." You'll find you are a liberal around here.... Heheheh!
- Life NRA Member
"If cowardly & dishonorable men shoot unarmed men with army guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary...and not by general deprivation of constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
But this I know for sure:
The God I believe in is merciful,and loving.
The most heinous things happen in this world for a reason,and
I am not so weak in my faith that it is threatened by wheather"under
God" is in the pleadge of allegence or not,or if "In God we trust"
in on our currency or not.
My faith,is my faith, and no ammount of government intervention will
take that away from me and my family.
Leave "under God" in ,or don't leave it in.It will have no bearing
on MY relationship with God.
www.waveformwear.com
fighting censorship...with an attitude
One kind of legalism is as abhorent and unimportant to the individual's relationship with the Creator as the other. "Where I stand with God" is not for anyone else to judge, because they would certainly be in error -- even a translator of the good book we like to refer to for spiritual inspiration from time to time could not determine, from a distance, where I stand with God or He with me. That would be a fool's exercise indeed.
- Life NRA Member
"If cowardly & dishonorable men shoot unarmed men with army guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary...and not by general deprivation of constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Edited by - offeror on 07/03/2002 01:01:55
When Clinton left office they gave him a 21 gun salute. Its a damn shame they all missed....
there? Revisionists are those who rewrite historical facts into
PC pablum.
Little people talk about people,regular people talk about things,and big people talk about ideas.
Revisionists can also be those who can only read information through agenda-colored glasses.
You see everything through a filter that just doesn't exist in the minds of many other Christians, let alone members of other groups.
I don't think that's a good thing. Obviously, you do. End of story.
I'd say it was Bushy getting on YOUR nerves, but then I'm just an objective observer. Trouble with you is, you don't know when you're getting whupped in a debate among equals. Stir, stir.
- Life NRA Member
"If cowardly & dishonorable men shoot unarmed men with army guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary...and not by general deprivation of constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878