Should Schools Ban Religious Music?

There have been a great many instances where school administrators banned certain music because it had a religious theme. This even included instances where a song that mentioned "God" was sung with the word God omitted - silence was in its place (not unlike the way some TV shows blank out a profane word).

The usual justification for this is the so-called "separation of church and state" (based on the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment). That is a tremendous mis-use of the clause intended originally to keep the Federal Government from establishing a nation religion that everyone would be forced to follow.

The Rutherford Institute often fights for the rights of students and music teachers in these cases. And the National Association for Music Education (MENC) has even written guidelines for schools on appropriate use of religious music, which is part of our culture and an important part of the world or music in general. The guidelines specify that "the study and performance of religious music within an educational context is a vital and appropriate part of a comprehensive music education. The omission of sacred music from the school curriculum would result in an incomplete educational experience."

I studied Music History in college. This was a totally secular view of music at a state university (i.e. not a Christian college). Much of our time was spent studying various religious music, not as worship but because it was significant in the music history of the world.

Such silly prohibition of religious music from public schools shows yet another "creative" interpretation of the fairly simple words of the First Amendment.

Limiting Religious Speech in Public Park

The First Amendment is short but it covers a lot of territory. It prevents the government from creating a national religion that people are forced to follow; it protect freedom of religion; it protects freedom of speech; it allows citizens to assemble; and it allows redress of grievances from the government.

Given that free speech and freedom of religion are protected, it is hard to understand how the following could happen. A women from Jews for Jesus wanted to distribute literature and talk to people in a city park in Oyster Bay, New York. She was told she needed a permit from the city to do this. In other words, she needed a permit to hand out free literature and to talk to people. She was not selling anything. She was not setting up a structure or having a parade that might disrupt reasonable public use of the park. She was doing anything that was hazardous, such as burning leaves. Etc.

She refused to get a permit and was arrested twice. It's a very good bet our Founders did not assure us of freedom of speech only to have a city limit us from speaking out in the public square.

Read more about the circumstances here:

Fighting for free-speech rights in NY

Can Federal Government Punish Civilians for Supporting Opponents?

90% is a pretty big number. If a baseball player hit the ball 90% of the time at bat, he would be in the record book, probably on page 1. Or if I flipped a coin over and over and and it came up heads 90% of the time, I would start looking closely at the coin to see if someone is playing a trick on me.

2% is also an impressive number. If a student were in the top 2% of her high school class, her parents would probably have a special bumper sticker on their car.

Keep those numbers in mind.

As I have mentioned before on this blog, the Founding Fathers who wrote our Constitution were very, very concerned about not letting the Federal Government take too much power unto itself. This blog focuses on the First Amendment, which keeps the government from limiting our religious rights. And the 10th Amendment, also mentioned a few times on this blog, says that the Federal Government has ONLY the power specifically designated by the Constitution.

While I haven't mentioned it before, the 5th Amendment to our Constitution says that a person may not be "...deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation."

Recently I have seen some rather major assumptions of power by our Federal Government. For one thing, they are investing in private companies in return for a share of or even control of the company. But most disturbing is the takeover of the automobile companies and some of the actions following.

If you read the papers or follow any news source, you will know that the Government is now controlling both General Motors and Chrysler. As part of their effort to make Chrysler profitable, they have insisted that the company eliminate many of its dealers, now announced at a total of 789.

In some cases, the owners of the dealerships have been in business for decades, have purchased a Chrysler franchise (i.e. they "own" the franchise), have an inventory of cars they purchased, and have an inventory of parts. The company is not reimbursing them for their property. They are taking back the franchises. They are taking back their ability to sell the cars as new cars. They are taking back their ability to do warranty repairs. This will force owners who have done nothing wrong into bankruptcy.

The Government is running this operation. But, since the 5th Amendment bars the Government from taking property without either due process of law or reimbursement, how is this possible? That's my first objection. My second one is possibly MUCH more serious.

The 90% Number
The information that follows is still being filled in, but so far the numbers are very troubling. Looking at political donor records, it has been shown that of the 789 dealers whose dealerships and livelihood are being taken away, and who actually contributed to political campaigns, 90% of them donated to Republican causes in the last few years. And of those same people, only 10% gave to Democrats.

The 2% Number
The formula that the Government used to determine who got closed is not totally disclosed, but sales are part of the consideration (logically enough). One of the dealers on the closing list stated that his dealership was in the top 2% of dealers in sales. If you were cutting back dealers, would you eliminate one that was doing so well?

One has to wonder - after I publish this post, will my name suddenly appear on a list of those the IRS needs to audit?

IF the facts above are supported as more data is made available, we should all be concerned. At least I can still pray about it (quietly, if I don't let anyone know I am praying).

More detail on World Net Daily

ADDENDUM:

New stats are now available showing the historic percentage of car dealers who donate to Republicans vs. Democrats. In the last 3 election cycles it has averaged 76% to Republicans. So that makes it less overwhelming. However, it is still out of balance. It off by about 20% (76 vs. 90+) - in other words, about 20% more Republican donors were axed than would be statistically expected.

Religious Signs Prohibited at Public Event, Norfolk VA

The First Amendment (part of the Bill of Rights) from the U.S. Constitution, protects freedom of religion and freedom of speech. It also prohibits the federal government from making a law establishing a religion. Consider whether that framework is balanced correctly in the following story.

The Norfolk Harborfest is an annual public event. Two Christian were prevented by the town from wearing sign boards with a Christian message and distributing Christian literature in a public park. With the help of the Alliance Defense Fund, the Christians won the right to spread their message. The town reversed its stance and said that requirements for permits would be based only on the size of the group.

It's too bad citizens have to go to court to regain such fundamental Constitutional rights, but at least there are groups like the ADF to help them. Read more at the link below:

Norfolk officials: Christians welcome to express faith in public park during local celebration

President Jefferson and the Lord Christ

So we hear that our Constitution mandates a "separation of church and state" even though that phrase is not found in the Constitution. It is a metaphor used by Jefferson in a letter he wrote. Nonetheless, the courts have accepted it as Constitutional principle starting about 60 years ago (funny no one noticed that particular principle before that).

Jefferson's own faith is subject to some debate. He called himself a Christian, although there are other quotes where he seems to denounce some of premises of the Christian faith. His personal faith is not necessarily important to a discussion of the meaning of the First Amendment. Even if he had taken part in the writing of the Constitution (which he did not, officially, because he was in France at the time), he was a man of strong principles and would not have let his personal faith influence the way(s) the document touches religion. (He DID write to the Founders who were drafting the document. In those missives, he never mentioned "separation of church and state" but he often said it was important to protect "freedom of religion.")

An interesting discovery is a document he signed on September 24, 1807, as President of the United States. In stating the date, he did not use the relatively common phrase, "In the year of our Lord..." but instead chose to use, "In the year of our Lord Christ..." This was not a legal requirement of his office or a form required in this type of document.

This is not presented as a closing argument on the fallacy of a required "separation of church and state." But it is an interesting insight into a somewhat complex character in our country's history.

See an image of the original document

Lyndon Johnson, Memorial Day Prayer Speech

In our country, which many think must keep all mention of religion out of government, here we have a Memorial Day speech by Vice President of the United States Lyndon Johnson in 1963. And, is in the proclamation this year, it calls for a reverent prayer. Being given on the historic Gettysburg site, his theme is racial justice, which had made huge strides under President Lincoln with the assistance of many religious groups who fought for an end to slavery.

REMARKS OF VICE PRESIDENT LYNDON B. JOHNSON
MEMORIAL DAY, GETTYSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA
May 30, 1963

On this hallowed ground, heroic deeds were performed and eloquent words were
spoken a century ago.

We, the living, have not forgotten--and the world will never forget--the deeds
or the words of Gettysburg. We honor them now as we join on this Memorial Day
of 1963 in a prayer for permanent peace of the world and fulfillment of our hopes
for universal freedom and justice.

We are called to honor our own words of reverent prayer with resolution in the
deeds we must perform to preserve peace and the hope of freedom.

We keep a vigil of peace around the world.

Until the world knows no aggressors, until the arms of tyranny have been laid
down, until freedom has risen up in every land, we shall maintain our vigil to
make sure our sons who died on foreign fields shall not have died in vain.

As we maintain the vigil of peace, we must remember that justice is a vigil,
too--a vigil we must keep in our own streets and schools and among the lives of
all our people--so that those who died here on their native soil shall not have
died in vain.

One hundred years ago, the slave was freed.

One hundred years later, the Negro remains in bondage to the color of his skin.

The Negro today asks justice.

We do not answer him--we do not answer those who lie beneath this soil--when we
reply to the Negro by asking, "Patience."

It is empty to plead that the solution to the dilemmas of the present rests on
the hands of the clock. The solution is in our hands. Unless we are willing to
yield up our destiny of greatness among the civilizations of history, Americans
--white and Negro together--must be about the business of resolving the challenge
which confronts us now.

Our nation found its soul in honor on these fields of Gettysburg one hundred
years ago. We must not lose that soul in dishonor now on the fields of hate.

To ask for patience from the Negro is to ask him to give more of what he has
already given enough. But to fail to ask of him--and of all Americans--perseverance
within the processes of a free and responsible society would be to fail to ask what
the national interest requires of all its citizens.

The law cannot save those who deny it but neither can the law serve any who do not
use it. The history of injustice and inequality is a history of disuse of the law.
Law has not failed--and is not failing. We as a nation have failed ourselves by not
trusting the law and by not using the law to gain sooner the ends of justice which
law alone serves.

If the white over-estimates what he has done for the Negro without the law, the
Negro may under-estimate what he is doing and can do for himself with the law.

If it is empty to ask Negro or white for patience, it is not empty--it is merely
honest--to ask perseverance. Men may build barricades--and others may hurl themselves
against those barricades--but what would happen at the barricades would yield no
answers. The answers will only be wrought by our perseverance together. It is deceit
to promise more as it would be cowardice to demand less.

In this hour, it is not our respective races which are at stake--it is our nation.
Let those who care for their country come forward, North and South, white and Negro,
to lead the way through this moment of challenge and decision.

The Negro says, "Now." Others say, "Never." The voice of responsible Americans
--the voice of those who died here and the great man who spoke here--their voices say,
"Together." There is no other way.

Until justice is blind to color, until education is unaware of race, until opportunity
is unconcerned with the color of men's skins, emancipation will be a proclamation but
not a fact. To the extent that the proclamation of emancipation is not fulfilled in
fact, to that extent we shall have fallen short of assuring freedom to the free.

President's Memorial Day Prayer Proclamation, 2009

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

_______________________________________________
For Immediate Release May 22, 2009

PRAYER FOR PEACE, MEMORIAL DAY, 2009

- - - - - - -

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION

For over two centuries, Americans have defended our Nation's security and protected our founding principles of democracy and equal justice under law. On Memorial Day, we honor those who have paid the ultimate price in defense of these freedoms.

Members of the United States Armed Forces have placed our Nation's safety before their own for generations. From the first shots fired at Lexington and Concord to the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, these brave patriots have taken on great risks to keep us safe, and they have served with honor and distinction. All Americans who have enjoyed the blessings of peace and liberty remain in their debt.

As we remember the selfless service of our fallen heroes, we pray for God's grace upon them. We also pray for all of our military personnel and veterans, their families, and all those who have lost loved ones in the defense of our freedom and safety.

Today, as we commend their deeds, we also bear a heavy burden of responsibility to ensure that their sacrifices will not have been in vain. This means that, as we uphold the ideals for which many have given their last full measure of devotion, the United States must never waver in its determination to defend itself, to be faithful in protecting liberty at home and abroad, and to pursue peace in the world.

In respect for their dedication and service to America, the Congress, by a joint resolution approved on May 11, 1950, as amended (36 U.S.C. 116), has requested the President to issue a proclamation calling on the people of the United States to observe each Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and designating a period on that day when the people of the United States might unite in prayer. The Congress, by Public Law 106-579, has also designated 3:00 p.m. local time on that day as a time for all Americans to observe, in their own way, the National Moment of Remembrance.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Memorial Day, May 25, 2009, as a day of prayer for permanent peace, and I designate the hour beginning in each locality at 11:00 a.m. of that day as a time to unite in prayer. I also ask all

Americans to observe the National Moment of Remembrance beginning at 3:00 p.m. local time on Memorial Day. I urge the press, radio, television, websites, and all other media to participate in these observances. I also request the Governors of the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the appropriate officials of all units of government, to direct that the flag be flown at half-staff until noon on this Memorial Day on all buildings, grounds, and naval vessels throughout the United States, and in all areas under its jurisdiction and control. I also request the people of the United States to display the flag at half-staff from their homes for the customary forenoon period.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-second day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-third.

BARACK OBAMA

President Reagan's Memorial Day Prayer Proclamation 1981

Memorial Day, previously called Decoration Day, has a history going back to post-Civil-War times. It's a day to honor the soldiers lost in wars.

On May 25, 1981, President Ronald Reagan signed a Memorial Day Proclamation. It called for "a day of prayer for permanent peace and a period during such day when the people of the United States might unite in prayer." The entire text is below.

Proclamation 4842 -- Memorial Day, May 25, 1981

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Over one hundred years ago, Memorial Day was established to commemorate those who died in the defense of our national ideals. Our ideals of freedom, justice, and equal rights for all have been challenged many times since then, and thousands of Americans have given their lives in many parts of the world to secure those same ideals and insure for their children a lasting peace. Their sacrifice demands that we, the living, continue to promote the cause of peace and the ideals for which they so valiantly gave of themselves.

Today, the United States stands as a beacon of liberty and democratic strength before the community of nations. We are resolved to stand firm against those who would destroy the freedoms we cherish. We are determined to achieve an enduring peace -- a peace with liberty and with honor. This determination, this resolve, is the highest tribute we can pay to the many who have fallen in the service of our Nation.

In recognition of those Americans whom we honor today, the Congress, by joint resolution of May 11, 1950 (64 Stat. 158), has requested the President to issue a proclamation calling upon the people of the United States to observe each Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and a period during such day when the people of the United States might unite in prayer.

Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby designate Memorial Day, Monday, May 25, 1981, as a day of prayer for permanent peace, and I designate the hour beginning in each locality at 11 o'clock in the morning of that day as a time to unite in prayer.

I urge the press, radio, television, and all other information media to cooperate in this observance.

I also request the Governors of the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the appropriate officials of all local units of Government to direct that the flag be flown at half-staff during this Memorial Day on all buildings, grounds, and naval vessels throughout the United States and in all areas under its jursdiction and control, and I request the people of the United States to display the flag at half-staff from their homes for the customary forenoon period.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fourth day of April, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fifth.

Ronald Reagan

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:59 a.m., April 27, 1981]

Note: The text of the proclamation was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on April 25.

Graduation Censorship in West Ottowa, MI

Another case where a student's own heart-felt words in a commencement valedictory address are not allowed because the have a religious thought. The student was asked to share a “life lesson” in his words. After seeing the draft, the principal wanted the student to take out any reference to the Bible.

The reason stated for this discrimination is the so-called "separation of church and state" that some feel is the main theme of the First Amendment. As a reminder, those words are not in the First Amendment. The Amendment does prohibit Congress from making a law respecting an establishment of religion. It also prohibits the government from getting in the way of freedom of religion. AND it protects our free speech. There seems to be a worry that a graduation address that mentions the Bible somehow is too close to our Congress establishing an official religion. And the logic is further distorted as it claims to be necessary to trump both the free exercise clause and the free speech clause. But via repeated reporting of a "separation of church and state" in the media, many citizens have come to believe that we can't allow any mention of God in school, even by students!

Read the full story here:
Graduation Censorship

Censorship and Graduations

I seems that every graduation season I hear stories of students chosen to speak, but who had their speeches censored by the school because they contain a religious statement. This year a case is coming up before a court concerning a Butte High School student (Montana). Renee Griffith was one of the valedictorians of her 2008 class. She was to write words about what she experienced and learned from her high school experience. Here are some of her words:

"I learned to persevere these past four years, even through failure or discouragement, when I had to stand for my convictions. I can say that my regrets are few and far between. I didn't let fear keep me from sharing Christ and His joy with those around me. I learned to impart hope, to encourage people to treat each day as a gift. I learned not to be known for my grades or for what I did during school, but for being committed to my faith and morals and being someone who lived with a purpose from God with a passionate love for Him."

I think that's a nice message, but the school officials disagreed. They thought the words were too Christian to be acceptable for a speech in front of the student body. She was supposed to express her thoughts, but the officials wanted to substitute their words for hers. I remember a comedian who said that he took a history test that asked his opinion of a particular battle. He got the answer wrong. He said, "I got MY OPINION wrong!"

Can anyone honestly think that the Founders intended to have this effect when they wrote, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion..."? Or did they forget the next words in the First Amendment: "...or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." Or did they forget that the very same amendment protects free speech?

I would close with the question, "How can this happen?" but I think I have provided a few explanations of the "how" in many other posts in this blog.

By the way, alternate title for this information on the Rutherford Institute's website is, "What I Learned at Graduation: I Have No Rights."

Religious Pressure to Eliminate Slavery

I found the following citations at the Connecticut Historical Society in the space of about 45 minutes. Since I have an actual paying job doing other things, that is all the time I could devote. But in that short time, and focusing only on Connecticut, I found an impressive list of speeches/sermons made against slavery in 1800's America.

As you look over the list, keep in mind the various complaints we hear today when ministers and priest speak out on moral issues. They are said to violate the so-called "separation of church and state." Such an understanding of our First Amendment's limitations is a product of the last 60 years, but this was not the understanding of our Founding Fathers or those who followed for the next 150 years.

Considering the citations below are produced with very little research from one state only, imagine what was happening in the entire country during that time. Then imagine what the national resolve to abolish slavery would have been without the religious leaders speaking out about its evils.


African Civilization Society.
Constitution of the African Civilization Society; Together With the Testimony of Forty Distinguished Citizens of New York and Brooklyn, to the Importance of the Objects Contemplated by its Friends. Also the Anniversary Address, Delivered by Rev. Joseph P. Thompson, D.D., at the Annual Meeting of the Society, May 19th, 1861. New Haven: Thomas J. Stafford, 1861.
Reprinted from the New Englander for Oct. 1861. Constitution and inaugural address of a society intended to foster the "civilization and Christianization of Africa ... the destruction of the African slave-trade ... and generally, the elevation of the condition of the colored population of our own country, and of other lands."

American Tract Society. Hartford Branch.
Speeches of Chief Justice Williams, Judge Parsons, and Ex-Governor Ellsworth: delivered in the Center Church, Hartford, Conn. at the Anniversary of the Hartford Branch of the American Tract Society. January 9th, 1859. Hartford: Elihu Geer, 1859.
Responses, on behalf of the Tract Society, to those critical of the Society for its decision not to include antislavery tracts among its publications.

Anti-Slavery Society of Meriden, Connecticut.
An Apology for Abolitionists: Addressed by the Anti-Slavery Society of Meriden, Conn., to Their Fellow-citizens. Middletown: C. H. Pelton, 1837.
"Free people of color would rapidly improve in their moral and physical condition. A load of prejudice now crushes them in the dust. They cannot rise because they are deprived of the motives and facilities for self-improvement. We ... would correct all these evils, and cause men in this so call christian [sic] and democratic country, to be treated, according to the bible [sic], without distinction of color."

Bacon, Theodore Davenport.
Leonard Bacon, a Statesman in the Church. Ed. Benjamin W. Bacon. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1931.
A biography of the New Haven clergyman intimately involved in the antislavery agitation of the pre-Civil War era. It especially highlights the infighting between advocates of colonization, as Rev. Mr. Bacon was, and the abolitionists and maintains the general historic view that radicals caused the war and the failure of Reconstruction.

Benezet, Anthony.
Serious Considerations on Several Important Subjects; viz., on War and Its Inconsistency With the Gospel; Observations on Slavery; And Remarks on the Nature and Bad Effects of Spiritous Liquors. Philadelphia: J. Crukshank, 1778.
Philadelphia Quaker attacks slavery as inconsistent "with every right of mankind, with every feeling of humanity, and every precept of Christianity."

Brisbane, William H.
Speech of the Rev. Wm. H. Brisbane, Lately a Slaveholder in South Carolina; Containing an Account of the Change in his Views on the Subject of Slavery. Delivered before the Ladies' Anti-slavery Society of Cincinnati, February 12, 1840. Hartford: S.S. Cowles, 1840.
Convinced that slavery was evil he emancipated his slaves and urges others to do the same; but asks: "What is a Christian slaveholder to do, whose State laws forbid the emancipation of his slaves?" Suggests voluntary payment of wages to slaves, and active agitation for repeal of laws forbidding emancipation.

Bushnell, Horace.
A Discourse on the Slavery Question, Delivered in the North Church, Hartford, Thursday Evening, Jan. 10, 1839. 3rd ed. Hartford: Case, Tiffany, 1839.
Condemnation of slavery on the basis of the injustices that bondage inflicts on African-Americans in relation to their marriage and family life, their subjugation to cruel treatment, and that legally it fails to recognise the slave as a being with a "moral and intellectual nature." Responds to those who attempt to excuse the continued toleration of slavery. (Library also has 2nd ed., 1839).

Bushnell, Horace.
The Northern Iron: A Discourse Delivered in the North Church, Hartford, on the Annual State Fast, April 14, 1854. Hartford: Edwin Hunt, 1854.
States that it is both morally and politically wrong to compromise with the evil of slavery from fear that to do so would drive the South out of the Union. Argues that on cultural and economic grounds it would be virtually suicidal for the South to try to stand alone on the foundation of a slave society.

Bushnell, Horace.
Politics Under the Law of God: A Discourse, Delivered in the North Congregational Church, Hartford, on Annual Fast of 1844. 2nd ed. Hartford: Edwin Hunt, 1844.
Christians have a responsibility to participate in public affairs, and to resist compromise with evil measures, among which is the extension of slavery. "Slavery is a great moral wrong and political evil."

Cheever, George Barrell.
The Commission from God, of the Missionary Enterprise, Against the Sin of Slavery.... An Address, Delivered in Tremont Temple, Boston, Thursday, May 27th, 1858, Before the American Missionary Society. Tracts for Thinking Men and Women, No. 3. Boston: J. P. Jewett; Cleveland, OH: H. P. B. Jewett, 1858.
Exposition on the sinfulness of slavery; recounts injustices practiced on African-Americans; stresses duty of Christian to oppose slavery in every possible way.

Church Anti-Slavery Society.
Letter to the Churches. New York: N. Muller, 1859.
Constitution and statement of principles of an organization intended to "unite all Christians ... against slavery, and to concentrate the energies of the Christian ministry and of Christian Churches upon the extinction of that great sin."

Clarke, James Freeman.
The Rendition of Anthony Burns, Its Causes and Consequences: A Discourse on Christian Politics, Delivered in Williams Hall, Boston, on Whitsunday, June 4, 1854. Boston: Crosby, Nichols, and Prentiss & Sawyer, 1854.
Examines return of Burns to slavery, and slavery in general, from a social, legal, and moral perspective and condemns both. States that humane considerations override the purely legal position to which the "respectable" cling in approving Burns' return to servitude.

Cooley, Timothy Mather.
Sketches of the Life and Character of the Rev. Lemuel Haynes, A.M., For Many Years Pastor of a Church in Rutland, Vt., and Late in Granville, New-York. ... With Some Introductory Remarks by William B. Sprague, D.D. New York: Harper, 1837.
Biography and encomium of Rev. Lemuel Haynes, an African-American minister to white churches in Vermont, New York, and Connecticut in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Included are many letters and sermons written by Haynes. The book has a definite theological cast.

Dana, James.
The African Slave Trade; A Discourse Delivered in the City of New-Haven, September 9, 1790, Before the Connecticut Society for The Promotion of Freedom. New-Haven: Printed Thomas and Samuel Green, 1791.
Condemns slave trade on religious and economic grounds; cites statistics from the 1790 census relating to proportions of slaves to free populations in the states, value of trade, etc.

Dexter, Henry M.
Our National Condition, and its Remedy: A Sermon Preached in the Pine Street Church, Boston, on Sunday, June 22, 1856. Boston: John P. Jewett, 1856.
Identifies slavery as the principal national evil; condemns it on ethical and political grounds; notes its vicious effect on the slaveholder, but does not discuss its effect on the slave.

Dwight, William Theodore.
The Work and the Workmen: A Discourse in Behalf of the American Home Missionary Society, Preached in the City of New York, May 8, 1859. New York: American Home Missionary Society, 1859.
Includes section at end stressing the importance of free Christians settling the West to prevent spread of slavery, which he asserts is inimical to the spirit of freedom, industry, and religion.

Edwards, Jonathan.
The Injustice and Impolicy of the Slave Trade, and of The Slavery of the Africans: Illustrated in a Sermon Preached Before the Connecticut Society for the Promotion of Freedom, and For the Relief of Persons Unlawfully Holden in Bondage, at their Annual Meeting in New-Haven, Sept. 15, 1791. 2nd ed. Boston: Wells & Lilly, 1822.
Library also has the third (1833) edition. Asserts that to "hold a negro slave is a greater sin than fornication, theft or robbery." Spirited religious and social condemnation of slavery; challanges the white to put himself in the African-American's position.

Gillette, Francis.
A Review of the Rev. Horace Bushnell's Discourse of the Slavery Question, Delivered in the North Church, Hartford, January 10, 1839. Hartford: S. S. Cowles, 1839.
Condemns Bushnell's Discourse for being antislavery but not aggressively abolitionist. Calls for an aggressive stance in opposing and destroying the institution of slavery.

Granger, Arthur.
The Apostle Paul's Opinion of Slavery and Emancipation: A Sermon Preached to the Congregational Church and Society in Meriden, at the Request of Several Respectable Anti-Abolitionists. Middletown: Charles H. Pelton, 1837.
States that whereas slavery as described in the ancient civilizations and countenanced in the Bible is radically different from American slavery, an appeal to Scripture cannot be used to justify to American slavery. Calls for an early end to American slavery.

Grant, Ellsworth Strong.
The City of Hartford, 1784-1984: An Illustrated History. Hartford: The Connecticut Historical Society, 1986.
Has several references to African-American churches, personages, and organizations in Hartford.

Green, Beriah.
Four Sermons, Preached in the Chapel of the Western Reserve College ... November ... and December ... 1832. Cleveland, OH: Office of the Herald, 1833.
Religious response to the assertion of the Colonizationists that there is a natural prejudice against African-Americans, and that they are best returned to Africa. Asserts this prejudice is not Christian.

Gregory, Caspar R.
A Sermon Preached before the United Congregations of Oneida, by Caspar R. Gregory, Pastor of Presbyterian Church, Nov. 24, 1859. Oneida: Office of the Oneida Sachem, 1859.
Opposes the ugly ulcer of slavery, but cautions moderation in dealing with it, lest in destroying slavery, the Republic be also destroyed.

Grosvenor, D. A.
The Laws of Ohio Respecting Colored People, Shown to be Unjust, Impolitic and Disgraceful: A Discourse Delivered on Thanksgiving Day, by Rev. D. A. Grosvenor, Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Elyria, Nov. 20, 1845. Hudson, OH: Office of the Ohio Observer, 1845.
Detailed examination on legal, moral, and sociological grounds.

Gulliver, J. P.
The Lioness and Her Whelps: A Sermon on Slavery Preached in the Broadway Congregational Church, Norwich, Connecticut, December 18, 1859. Norwich: Manning, Perry, 1860.
Condemns slavery, but more from perspective of its evil effects on the slaverholder and the commonwealth, than on its evil consequences for African- American people themselves.

Hartford. Fourth Congregational Church.
The Unanimous Remonstrance of the Fourth Congregational Church, Hartford, Conn., Against the Policy of the American Tract Society on the Subject of Slavery. Hartford: Silas Andrus & Son, 1855.
Criticism of the American Tract Society for its weak stance on the antislavery movement.

James, Horace.
Our Duties to the Slave: A Sermon Preached Before the Original Congregational Church and Society in Wrentham, Mass., on Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 1846. Boston: Richardson & Filmer, 1847.
Appeals to his hearers to defend the slave from being defrauded of his labor; from cruel treatment; to grant the slaves justice by granting freedom and by securing jury trials for those accused of crimes or fleeing from servitude.

McLeod, Alexander.
Negro Slavery Unjustifiable: A Discourse by Alexander McLeod, A.M. New York: T. & J. Swords, 1802.
Equates slavery with man-stealing, as condemned in Scripture (Exodus 21:16). Preached in response to call to serve a Presbyterian Church in New York State, in which he knew there were slaveholders in the congregation.

Niles, John Milton.
Speech of Mr. Niles, of Connecticut, on the Petitions of a Society of Friends in Pennsylvania, Praying for the Abolition of Slavery in the District of Columbia. In Senate, February 15, 1836. Washington, D.C.: Blair & Rives, 1836.
Defends right of citizens to petition Congress for the abolition of slavery and asserts it is the duty of Congress to receive such petitions; discusses legal and philosophical aspects of slavery from an antislavery point of view.

Porter, Noah.
Two Sermons on Church Communion and Excommunication, With a Particular View to the Case of Slaveholders in the Church. Hartford: Case, Tiffany, 1853.
While opposed to slavery as a moral evil, the church should not exclude the slaveholder from the sacraments of the church. Attempts to distinguish between the slaveholder and the system of slavery in this regard.

Putnam, Alfred Porter.
A Discourse on William Lloyd Garrison, and the Anti-slavery Movement, Delivered at the Church of the Savior, Brooklyn, N. Y., Sunday Evening, June 1, 1879. Brooklyn: Tremlett, 1879.
Appreciative funeral eulogy, stressing Garrison's leadership of the antislavery cause.

Richmond, Legh.
Little Jane: Or, the Young Cottager, and Other Stories. New York: Carlton & Phillips, 1855.
Juvenile. Reprint of an English collection by the publishing house of the Methodist Episcopal Church; includes story entitled "The Negro Servant," vehicle for a condemnation of slavery and the slave trade (pp. 5-50).

Rockwell, John A.
California and New Mexico: Speech of Mr. John A. Rockwell, of Connecticut, in Relation to Slavery in the Territories, Delivered in the House of Representatives of the United States, February 17, 1849. Washington, D.C.: J. & C. Gideon, [1849].
Supports resolutions of the Connecticut legislature of 24 June 1847, praying that territories acquired as result of the Mexican War remain forever free from slavery. Quotes resolutions and excerpts from various related documents.

Silliman, Benjamin.
Some of the Causes of National Anxiety: An Address, Delivered in Centre Church in New-Haven, July 4, 1832. [s. l.: s. n., ca. 1832]
Characterizes slavery as an "enormous evil"; believes colonization to be the best solution because it "holds out an inducement for emancipation, which proves to be effectual; tends to allay fears of insurrection"; and prepares the way "for the final redemption of Africa."

Stanton, R. P.
Slavery Viewed in the Light of the Golden Rule: A Discourse Delivered in the Fourth Congregational Church, of Norwich, at Greeneville, Conn., December 19, 1860. Norwich: Published by Members of the Congregation, 1860.
Spirited attack on slavery as vicious, cruel, and unjust to the slave and sinful in itself. Scornful of apologists for slavery as a benevolent institution.

Stowe, Harriet Elizabeth Beecher.
Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp. 2 vols. Boston: Phillips, Sampson, 1856.
Mrs. Stowe's second antislavery novel shows the damaging effect of slavery on whites, whose destruction is predicted by Dred, a God-obsessed runaway slave. Dred is cast as the son of Denmark Vesey; and Milly, a majestic bonds-woman, is based on Sojourner Truth. The appendix includes Nat Turner's confessions, some judicial records of masters killing slaves, and the abysmal record of the church on slavery.

Thacker, George.
No Fellowship With Slavery: A Sermon Delivered June 29th, 1856, in the First Congregational Church, Meriden, Conn. Meriden: L. R. Webb, 1856.
Condemns slavery on moral, economic and political grounds. Speaking from the point of view of the African-American person: "It is enough to know that the slaves themselves regard their bondage as unprofitable for they have the best facilities for understanding its nature, as they have clearly the best right to judge of the advantages of their condition."

Thomas, Herman Edward.
An Analysis of the Life and Work of James W. C. Pennington, a Black Churchman and Abolitionist. Hartford Seminary Foundation Ph.D., 1978.
A critical study of the life and work of religious leader and abolitionist Pennington, including two appendices (award of honorary Doctor of Divinity degree to Pennington by University of Heidelberg and Pennington's activities in the temperance movement) and a bibliography.

Tyng, Dudley A.
Our Country's Troubles: A Sermon Preached in the Church of the Epiphany, Philadelphia, June 29, 1856 . Boston: John P. Jewett, 1856.
Opposes extension of slavery in relation to settlement of Kansas; states that slave labor demeans free labor, but does not reflect on its effect on the slave.

Updike, Wilkins.
History of the Episcopal Church in Narragansett, Rhode Island; Including a History of Other Episcopal Churches in the State; With an Appendix, ... Entitled, "American Dissected," by the Rev. J. Macsparren, ... With Notes Containing Genealogical and Biographical Accounts of Distinguished Men, Families, etc. New York: Henry M. Onderdonk, 1847.
Contains a history of slavery in Rhode Island with statistics furnished by E. R. Potter (pp. 168-188) and a brief account of Thomas Hazard and his antislavery activities.

Warner, Robert A.
Amos Gerry Beman, 1812-1874, A Memoir of a Forgotten Leader. Offprint from The Journal of Negro History, 22, No. 2 (April 1937): 200-221.
Brief biography of the life of Beman, born in Colchester, CT, pastor of the Temple Street African Church in New Haven in 1841, active in the temperance movement and antislavery organizations in Connecticut and nationally.

Westerly, RI.
The First Hundred Years: Pawcatuck Seventh Day Baptist Church, 1840-1940. Westerly: Utter, 1940.
Includes "Slavery and the Church," a general discussion of slavery in Rhode Island and the abolitionist attitudes of the Seventh Day Baptist Church (190- 199).


More information can be found at the Connecticut Historical Society

Francis Scott Key and Our National Anthem

Francis Scott Key, who wrote the Star-Spangle Banner during the Way of 1812, had a somewhat religious background. From 1814 to 1826, he was a delegate to the general conventions of the Episcopal Church, and was the lay reader at St. John's Church in Georgetown.

Notice the words near the end of the National Anthem, which we seldom sing these days.

The Star-Spangled Banner

O say, can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming ?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming !
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that Star-spangled Banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave ?
On the shore, dimly seen through the mist of the deep
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses ?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam--
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream;
'Tis the Star-spangled Banner, O long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave !
O thus be it ever when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the foe's desolation !
Bless with victory and peace, may our heav'n-rescused land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, for our cause it is just--
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust !"
And the Star-spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Learn more about Key from Maryland, the Seventh State

School Teacher Rants Against Christianity

At the Capistrano Unified School District in California, a history teacher spent considerable time (regularly, apparently) ranting about the South, church, Republicans, Christians, conservatives and Rush Limbaugh. The law firm said the teacher, "...has gone as far as stating, 'When you put on your Jesus glasses, you can't see the truth.'" In addition, "Corbett has made derogatory remarks about Christian viewpoints regarding homosexuality, Viagra, birth control and sexual activities of teenagers. As a result of Dr. Corbett's hostility toward Christianity, Mr. Farnan has filed this federal lawsuit for a violation of his First Amendment rights," the law firm said.

Here is an example, which was recorded on a cell phone:

"What part of the country has the highest murder rate? The South. What part of the country has the highest rape rate? The South. What part of the country has the highest … church attendance? The South. Oh, wait a minute. You mean there is not a correlation between these things …

You know, you go down to Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, all these states that are as red as they could possibly be, as right-wing Republican as you could possibly be. When you first present these people with the economic policies of the Democratic party, they are all Democrats. Virtually all the social programs, they like. They lead the Democratic party on social issues. That's it. Social issues, can you imagine what they're saying on Rush Limbaugh now? About, 'Middle school people in New England giving people birth control pills. My God. What next?' I love Rush Limbaugh. A fat, pain in the a?liar. And, boy, is he a liar. Unbelievable."

The article says this teacher's action violates the First Amendment's Establishment Clause. I disagree. It just violates decency! A ranting teacher does not equal the government establishing an official religion, but the above was way out of line.

The students parents had to go to court for satisfaction (and won). Why didn't school system step in first? What if a history teacher spoke out as strongly against gays? Does anyone think that he would still be working for the school today?

Read the whole story on World Net Daily

U.S. Faith History - Confederate Prayer

Here is some more U.S. History from the Library of Congress. It is an etching from the Civil War, showing soldiers in Stonewall Jackson's army at prayer. As President Lincoln said, both sides pray to the same God.

Today we seem to want to deny the faith of our history. Biblical faith or Christian faith were a part of the United States before it was the United States. And this continued after the country was officially formed.

Print # 24, Prayer in Stonewall Jackson's camp [Etching] Volck, Adalbert John, 1828-1912.
SUMMARY
Confederate camp with soldiers gathered in prayer, many leaning on their swords.



NOTES
Published under the name 'V. Blada'

CALL NUMBER
PR-010-1-26

SOURCE COLLECTION
Confederate War Etchings

REPOSITORY
New-York Historical Society

Civil War Treasures from the New-York Historical Society, [Digital ID, e.g., nhnycw/ad ad04004]

U.S. Faith History - Prayer at Valley Forge

This is from the wonderful collection found at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Here we have a painting depicting General Washington praying during the dark days at Valley Forge.

This is one more in a long chain of examples showing the faith our forefathers possessed. We do indeed have a Biblical foundation or a Christian foundation.

The Prayer at Valley Forge / painted by H. Brueckner ; engd. by John C. McRae. McRae, John C., engraver.

CREATED/PUBLISHED
New York : John C. McRae, c1866.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

SUMMARY
George Washington praying under trees; military camp in background.

Media Bias Among National Reporters

There are all kinds of places where bias can be noticed in the various sources of media we may follow today. There are the very independent and granular sources such as Twitter or blogs, where one expects to find a bias. But the broader (i.e more national) the source, the more we would hope the bias would not be distracting. Every human being will have a built-in bias about issues with which they have any familiarity, but we expect (or used to) that larger, mainstream sources will employ journalist who keep their opinions to themselves when reporting the news. And one might even hope (or dream) that the hiring of professionals would try to include people with a diversity of views so some balance is assured overall.

If I sounded sarcastic in the above paragraph, I hope you will forgive me. But it is becoming harder to believe that there is a great deal of effort to achieve real balance. I some of my other posts I have suggested ways one could personally watch for and test for bias. In this post I will just document/compile information that has been available for a while.

The graphs below show the political affiliation of the press corps who report on national elections. I combined data from the Washington, D.C. Press Corps and from journalists with large, national media sources. I could not readily obtain data for the election year 2000, but the trends below suggest it would not be remarkably different.

It is most interesting to compare the democrat/republican balance in the media vs. the balance of the voters.

Click the images to see larger versions that are easier to read.






More details can be found here: Media Bias Basics

Presidents Swearing in on a Bible

Here's a trivia question for history buffs. How many Presidents of the United States did NOT use a Holy Bible for their searing-in ceremony?

The answer is one. According to the Architect of the Capitol:

"September 4, 1901 -- Theodore Roosevelt
The only President not sworn in on a Bible. Mr. Ansley Wilcox, at whose home Roosevelt took the oath of office, wrote in 1903, 'According to my best recollection no Bible was used, but President Roosevelt was sworn in with uplifted hand.'"

One. In our entire history. One. That means that 43 Presidents have used the Bible for this ceremony. But remember what we're told: this country has no Christian roots.

U.S. Capitol Rotunda - Pilgrims in Prayer

According to the Architect of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., there is a painting in the Rotunda showing the pilgrims about to embark on their voyage to the New World. Here is the description (as you read it, keep in mind all those who say our country has no Christian roots):

Robert W. Weir
Oil on canvas, 12' x 18'
Commissioned 1837; placed 1844
Rotunda

"Protestant pilgrims are shown on the deck of the ship Speedwell before their departure for the New World from Delft Haven, Holland, on July 22, 1620. William Brewster, holding the Bible, and pastor John Robinson lead Governor Carver, William Bradford, Miles Standish, and their families in prayer. The prominence of women and children suggests the importance of the family in the community. At the left side of the painting is a rainbow, which symbolizes hope and divine protection.

"Weir (1803–1890) had studied art in Italy and taught art at the military academy at West Point."



See more at the Architect of the U.S. Capitol website

Christianity for Public Schools, in Washington, D.C.

It has already been pointed out a few times in this venue that Thomas Jefferson, as first president of the Washington, D.C. PUBLIC Schools approved the Bible and the Watts Hymnal as the two main sources of reading. Now here is a bill from the House of Representatives that codifies a similar idea. It specifies Christianity as a foundation of good morality. It also demonstrates that in matters of religion, our Founders (even 80 years after the Constitution) considered Christianity to be optimum, but wished to avoid preference to one Christian sect over another Christian sect.

H.R. 374

January 14, 1868

"A Bill To establish a system of schools for the District of Columbia, which shall serve as a model for similar institutions throughout the nation. Whereas the capital of a great nation, though a political necessity, is generally a social evil; and whereas it is incumbent upon the nation to lessen, as far as practicable, by its aid, this evil, which, though local in its direct operation, is national in its effects as well as its causes; and whereas the proper training of youth is, next to Christianity, the surest remedy for such evil and the best foundation for virtue and safeguard of republicanism: Therefore,..."

One of its provisions: "Seventh. That the school books used shall be such as shall best promote the acquirement of the branch of knowledge to which each relates, and shall be Christian in their character without affording preference to any sect or denomination."

View the bill at the Library of Congress

First Amendment - Founders vs. 20th-Century Court

As I have said, there is a lot of conflict over the meaning of the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment. My belief is that we need to look at the words and actions of the Founders to understand the meaning. In fact, Thomas Jefferson, who gave us the metaphor "separation of church and state" that we hear so much today, believed the same thing. He was also very suspicious that courts would gradually grab more power and change their co-equal role under the Constitution. Jefferson would not be happy about where we are today. If you look at many current issues, especially religious issues like graduation prayer, displaying the ten commandments, etc., how did those become restricted? It happend at the hand of the courts, not the voters or their elected representitives.

Compare the three statements below, all of which relate to the Religion Clauses. The first two are by Founding Fathers. The third is from a court decision in 1947 that was the first time Jefferson's metaphor "separation of church and state" came to be used in a decision at the expense of the actual words of the First Amendment.

In the words of Richard Henry Lee (Founding Father) in 1784, advising how the Bill of Rights should be written:

"And he must be a very inattentive observer in our Country, who does not see that avarice is accomplishing the destruction of religion, for want of a legal obligation to contribute something to its support. The declaration of Rights, it seems to me, rather contends against forcing modes of faith and forms of worship, than against compelling contribution for the support of religion in general. I fully agree with the presbyterians, that true freedom embraces the Mahomitan and the Gentoo as well as the Xn [=Christian] religion."

In the words of James Madison (Founding Father), after the First Amendment was drafted:

"The First Amendment was prompted because the people feared one sect might obtain preeminence, or two combine together and establish a religion to which they would compel others to conform."

In the words of Justice Black in the 1947 Everson decision:

"The establishment of religion clause of the First Amendment means at least this: neither a state nor the federal government can set up a church [no argument here]; neither can pass laws which aid one religion, aid all religions, or prefer one religion over another. No tax in any amount, large or small, can be levied to support any religious activities or institutions whatever they may be called or whatever form they may adopt to teach or practice religion. In the words of Jefferson, the clause against establishment of religion by law was intended to erect 'a wall of separation between church and state.'"

So what does "wall" mean? If you live in a gated community, for example, a wall surrounds you and your neighbors. That wall could be there for any of three reasons:

1) to lock others out
2) to lock you and your neighbors in
3) both the above

Which is correct? I suspect most who live in a gated community believe it is #1. However, if you live in a prison, the wall is primarily for #2, but also for #3. Concerning the Constitution and religion, a wall could be for any of:

1) to keep the government out of religion
2) to keep religion out of the government
3) both the above

It would appear from the Founders' statements above and from many others on this blog that the reason is #1. But Justice Black sees it as #2 only - he does not talk about disallowing government restrictions on religion (#1).

Learn more about the Founders' intentions in some of these great books: The First Amendment and the U.S. Consitution

Richard Henry Lee - Government's Relationship to Religion

More from the Library of Congress' American Memory collection. The words are from Richard Henry Lee, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. It is he who authored the Resolution of Independence calling for the colonies to break away from England.

In many such documents at the Library of Congress we can see the formation of intent for our Constitution (in this case, explaining what the Bill of Rights may have been meant to establish). Nearly 200 Years after this letter was written, Justice Black seemed to find the our Constitution was intended to prohibit any support of religion. What a surprise that would have been to Mr. Lee if he had still been alive.

Letters of Delegates to Congress: Volume 22 November 1, 1784 - November 6, 1785
Richard Henry Lee to James Madison

Dear Sir, Trenton November 26. 1784
I received your agreeable letter the day after mine of the 28th instant had been dispatched.(1) I thank you Sir for the very particular and satisfactory information that you have favord me with. It is certainly comfortable to know that the Legislature of our country is engaged in beneficial pursuits---;for I conceive that the Gen. Assessment, and a wise digest of our militia laws are very important concerns: the one to secure our peace, and the other our morals. Refiners may weave as fine a web of reason as they please, but the experience of all times shews Religion to be the guardian of morals---;And he must be a very inattentive observer in our Country, who does not see that avarice is accomplishing the destruction of religion, for want of a legal obligation to contribute something to its support. The declaration of Rights, it seems to me, rather contends against forcing modes of faith and forms of worship, than against compelling contribution for the support of religion in general. I fully agree with the presbyterians, that true freedom embraces the Mahomitan and the Gentoo as well as the Xn [=Christian] religion. And upon this liberal ground I hope our Assembly will conduct themselves.

RC (DLC: Madison Papers).

John Adams: Religion Ensures Freedom

The Library of Congress has a vast repository of words by our Founding Fathers. They can be instructive. Here is a passage from John Adams that gives insight into some of his beliefs.

Letters of Delegates to Congress: Volume 4 May 16, 1776 - August 15, 1776
John Adams to Zabdiel Adams

"Statesmen my dear Sir, may plan and speculate for Liberty, but it is Religion and Morality alone, which can establish the Principles upon which Freedom can securely stand.... The only foundation of a free Constitution, is pure Virtue, and if this cannot be inspired into our People, in a greater Measure, than they have it now, They may change their Rulers, and the forms of Government, but they will not obtain a lasting Liberty. They will only exchange Tyrants and Tyrannies. You cannot therefore be more pleasantly, or usefully employed than in the Way of your Profession, pulling down the Strong Holds of Satan. This is not Cant, but the real sentiment of my Heart..."

LB (MHi). Adams, Family Correspondence (Butterfield), 2:20-21

Choosing a Supreme Court Nominee - Do Not Do Injustice!

There are many, many instances on this blog showing how much our nation's roots were influenced by the Holy Bible. Our Founders found great wisdom in the Bible and quoted it frequently in their writings.

President Obama has said during his campaign (more so than after the election) that his Christian faith is a strong influence in his life. He has also said what he is looking for in a Supreme Court nominee. Obama said that his choice would know "that justice isn’t about some abstract legal theory." He also said, "I view that quality of empathy, of understanding and identifying with people's hopes and struggles, as an essential ingredient at arriving at just decisions and outcomes."

It also came out in the campaign and since then that Obama would like to redistribute wealth, taking more from those who have much and giving it to those who have little. Is that part of what he means in the above statements?

Consider the advice given to us in Leviticus 19:15 (thanks to Michael Medved for this idea):

"You shall not render an unjust judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great; with justice you shall judge your neighbor." *

So God, who had great mercy on the poor and often instructed us to do likewise, says not to give the poor an advantage over the wealthy, but rather to simply judge fairly. That's not a bad model for a Supreme Court Justice. I hope we get one who will judge fairly regardless of a person's position in life.

* Scripture quotation from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright ©1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA and used by permission.

Founders Had Very Religious Background

In a follow-up to yesterday's post about our religious roots as a country, here is a list of our Founders' religious background. I listed as many as I could find in a full day of research. There may be others, but this is a pretty compelling list (98 Founders!). The Founders listed below were taken from the signers of the Declaration of Independence, delegates to the Constitutional Convention, and signers of the U.S. Constitution.

• Adams, John - Congregationalist and later a Unitarian (he did not accept the Trinity). He said, "To enable me to maintain this declaration I rely, under God, with entire confidence on the firm and enlightened support of the national legislature and upon the virtue and patriotism of my fellow citizens." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Adams, Samuel - Congregationalist. "We have this day restored the Sovereign to Whom all men ought to be obedient. He reigns in heaven and from the rising to the setting of the sun, let His kingdom come." Also: "The rights of the colonists as Christians...may be best understood by reading and carefully studying the institutes of the Great Law Giver and Head of the Christian Church, which are to be found clearly written and promulgated in the New Testament." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Baldwin, Abraham - Chaplain in the American Revolution (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Bartlett, Josiah - Bartlett was a Congregationalist. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Bassett, Richard - Participated in writing the Constitution of Delaware, which states: "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, an din 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.'" (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Bedford, Gunning - Funeral oration on the death of Washington: "Now to the triune God, The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, be ascribed all honor and dominion, forevermore." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Blair, John - Member of the Episcopal Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Blount, William - Member of the Presbyterian Church. Helped draft the Tennessee Constitution, which said, “No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this State.” (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Braxton, Carter - Braxton was a member of the Episcopal church. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Brearly, David - A warden of St. Michael's Church, a compiler of the Protestant Episcopal Prayer Book, and a delegate to the Episcopal General Convention in 1786 (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Broom, Jacob - Writing to his son: "[D]on't forget to be a Christian. I have said much to you on this head and I hope an indelible impression is made. " (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Butler, Pierce - Member of the Episcopal Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Carroll, Charles - Roman Catholic. Carroll said, "Without morals a republic cannot subsist any length of time; they therefore who are decrying the Christian religion, whose morality is so sublime and pure...are undermining the solid foundation of morals, the best security for the duration of free governments." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Carroll, Daniel - A Catholic who studied under the Jesuits at the College of St. Omer in Flanders (one of two Roman Catholics to sign the Constitution) (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Chase, Samuel - Chase was an Episcopalian. As a Supreme Court Justince he said, "Religion is of general and public concern, and on its support depend, in great measure, the peace and good order of government, the safety and happiness of the people. By our form of government, the Christian religion is the established religion; and all sects and denominations of Christians are placed upon the same equal footing, and are equally entitled to protection in their religious liberty." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Clark, Abraham - Clark was a Presbyterian, and said once, ""Nothing short of the Almighty Power of God can Save us-it is not in our Numbers, our Union, or our Valour that I dare trust." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Clymer, George - Was both a Quaker and an Episcopalian (Signer of Declaration of Independence, Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Davie, William Richardson - Member of the Presbyterian Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Dayton, Jonathan - Member of the Episcopal Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Dickinson, John - From his will: "To my Creator I resign myself, humbly confiding in His goodness and in His mercy through Jesus Christ for the events of eternity." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Ellery, William - Ellery was known as a Congregationalist and a devout Christian. From Lossing's "Signers of the Declaration of Independence" we hear, "As a patriot and a Christian, his name will ever be revered." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Ellsworth, Oliver - Studied in theology at Princeton University. Became a religious leader in Connecticut during his later years. (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Few, William - Few was a devout Methodist and was known to donate generously to philanthropic causes. (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Fitzsimons, Thomas - Member of the Roman Catholic Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Floyd, William - Floyd was a Presbyterian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Franklin, Benjamin - Considered much more a Deist than a Christian. He was nonetheless a follower of the Bible, and said: "I have lived, sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth -- God Governs in the Affairs of Men, And if a Sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, Is it possible that an empire can rise without His aid?...Except the Lord build the house, They labor in vain who build it." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Gerry, Elbridge - Gerry was an Episcopalian. Promoted Massachusetts' Religious Freedoms Act. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Gilman, Nicholas - Gilman was a Congregationalist. (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Gorham, Nathaniel - A Congregationalist who helped write the Massachusett's Constitution, which required this in the oath for office: "...I believe the Christian religion, and have a firm persuasion of its truth." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Gwinnett, Button - Gwinnett was an Episcopalian and a Congregationalist. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Hall, Lyman - Hall was a Congregationalist and served as a minister in Connecticut. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Hamilton, Alexander - Proposed formation of the Christian Constitutional Society to spread Christian government around the world. After the Constitutional Convention of 1787, he stated: "For my own part, I sincerely esteem it a system which without the finger of God, never could have been suggested and agreed upon by such a diversity of interests." - from Diffine, D.P., One Nation Under God - How Close a Separation? (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Hancock, John - Hancock was a Congregationalist. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Harrison, Benjamin - Harrison was a member of the Episcopal church. He professed that religion was necessary to society and that government should support it. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Hart, John - Hart was a Presbyterian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Hewes, Joseph - Hewes was a Quaker and an Episcopalian. He was the son of a pious and well-to-do Quaker farmer and received a strict religious upbringing. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Heyward, Thomas - Heyward was a member of the Episcopal church. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Hooper, William - Hooper was an Episcopalian. He was trained at Harvard as a minister. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Hopkins, Stephen - He was a Quaker with an active interest in the church. He believed in the divinity of the Christian religion. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Hopkinson, Francis - Hopkinson was an Episcopalian. He became a Church music director and edited a hymnal that set all of 150 psalms to music. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Houston, William Churchill - Member of the Presbyterian Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Huntington, Samuel - He was a Congregationalist. According to B. J. Lossing's “Signers of the Declaration of Independence,” it is known that “Governor Huntington lived the life of the irreproachable and sincere Christian... as a devoted Christian and a true patriot, he never swerved from duty...” (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Ingersoll, Jared - Member of the Presbyterian Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Jefferson, Thomas - Jefferson was probably best called a Deist, but he is also claimed by Unitarians and some Christian denominations. He was the one who penned the idea that our rights come from God (“Creator”) (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Johnson, William Samuel - Speaking as President of Columbia University to the first graduating class after the Revolutionary War: "Remember, too, that you are the redeemed of the Lord, that you are bought with a price, even the inestimable price of the precious blood of the Son of God." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• King, Rufus - Selected as manager of the American Bible Society. In a speech made before the Senate at the time Missouri was petitioning for statehood, he said: "I hold that all laws or compacts imposing any such condition [as involuntary servitude] upon any human being are absolutely void because contrary to the law of nature, which is the law of God." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Langdon, John - Vice President of the American Bible Society (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Lansing, John - Member of the Dutch Reformed Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Lee, Francis Lightfoot - Lee was an Anglican and a devout Christian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Lee, Richard Henry - Lee was an Anglican and known as a sincere Christian. He professed that religion was necessary to society and that government should support it. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Lewis, Francis - Lewis was an Episcopalian. His father was an Episcopal clergyman, his mother was a clergyman's daughter. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Livingston, Philip - Livingston was a Presbyterian and belonged to an eminent Christian family. He followed the Christian religion. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Livingston, William - Said, "I believe the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, without any foreign comments or human explanations... I believe that he who feareth God and worketh righteousness will be accepted of Him..." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Lynch, Thomas - Member of the Episcopal Church (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Madison, James - Member of the Episcopal Church. He said, "The belief in a God, all powerful, wise, and good, [is] essential to the moral order of the world, and to the happiness of man." (Signer of Declaration of Independence, Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Martin, Alexander - Member of the Presbyterian and Episcopal Churches (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Martin, Luther - He described himself as being devoted to: "The sacred truths of the Christian religion." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Mason, George - Called the 'Father of the Bill of Rights' because he insisted they be written to clarify what the federal government was not allowed to do. He also said "The laws of nature are the laws of God, whose authority can be superseded by no power on earth." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• McHenry, James - President of the first Bible Society in Baltimore. In soliciting funds for distribution of Bibles, he wrote: "...Consider also, the rich do not possess aught more precious than their Bible, and that the poor cnnot be presented by the rich with anything of greater value." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• McKean, Thomas - McKean was a member of the Presbyterian Church. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Mercer, John Francis - An Episcopalian who said, "Civil and religious liberty are inseparably interwoven..." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Middleton, Arthur - Member of the Episcopal Church (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Mifflin, Thomas - Known as both a Quaker and a Lutheran (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Morris, Gouverneur - [T]he most important of all lessons [from the Scriptures] is the denunciation of ruin to every State that rejects the precepts of religion (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Morris, Lewis - Morris was an Episcopalian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Morris, Robert - Member of the Episcopal Church (Signer of Declaration of Independence, Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Morton, John - Member of the Episcopal Church. In his will he said, “...for the settling of such temporal estate as it hath pleased God to bless me with in this life...” (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Nelson, Thomas Jr. - Nelson was a member of the Episcopal church. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Paca, William - Paca was an Episcopalian and a consistent Christian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Paine, Robert - Paine left Calvinism to become a Unitarian. He served as a military chaplain. He said, "I am constrained to express my adoration of . . . the Author of my existence . . . [for] His forgiving mercy revealed to the world through Jesus Christ, through whom I hope for never ending happiness in a future state." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Paterson, William - Supreme Court Justice and a signer of the Constitution, declared that `Religion and morality ... [are] necessary to good government, good order, and good laws'; (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Penn, John - Penn was a member of the Episcopalian church. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Pierce, William Leigh - Member of the Episcopal Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Pinckney, Charles Cotesworth - President of the Charleston Bible Society; Vice President of the American Bible Society (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Randolph, Edmund Jennings - Member of the Episcopal Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Read, George - Read was an Episcopalian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence, Signer of Constitution)
• Rodney, Caesar - Rodney was an Episcopalian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Rush, Benjamin - Rush was a Presbyterian. He was founder and manager of the Philadelphia Bible Society (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Ross, George - Ross was an Anglican. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Rutledge, Edwards - Rutledge was an Anglican. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Rutledge, John - Member of the Episcopal Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Sherman, Roger - (Signer of all 4 of our founding documents). When asked by his church, White Haven Congregational, to help revise the wording of their creed: "I believe that there is one only living and true God, existing in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, the same in substance, equal in power and glory. That the Scriptures of the old and new testaments are a revelation from God and a complete rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Smith, James - Smith was a Presbyterian. He was quite strick that those in his presense should not speak ill of Christianity. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Spaight, Richard Dobbs - Member of the Episcopal Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Stockton, Richard - Stockton was a Presbyterian. He said, "I think it proper here not only to subscribe to . . . doctrines of the Christian religion . . . but also, in the bowels of a father's affection, to exhort and charge them [my children] that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, that the way of life held up in the Christian system is calculated for the most complete happiness." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Stone, Thomas - Stone was an Episcopalian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Strong, Caleb - Vice President of the American Bible Society (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)
• Taylor, George - Taylor was a Presbyterian and the son of a clergyman. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Thomson, Charles - Made the first translation of the Greek Septuagint into English. (Signer of the Declaration of Independence, Secretary of the Continental Congress - 1774 to 1781)
• Thornton, Matthew - Thornton was a member of the Presbyterian Church and known as a devout Christian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Walton, George - Walton was an Episcopalian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Washington, George - Member of the Episcopal Church. In his prayer at Valley Forge he said, "Almighty and eternal Lord God, the great Creator of heaven and earth, and the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; look down from heaven in pity and compassion upon me Thy servant, who humbly prorate myself before Thee." (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Whipple, William - . (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Williams, William - Williams was a Congregationalist and a devout Christian. He studied for the ministry. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Wilson, James - Wilson was an Episcopalian and a Presbyterian. Supreme Court Justice. He declared that "Human law must rest its authority ultimately upon the authority of that law which is Divine ... Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and mutual assistants" (Delegate to Constitutional Convention, Signer of Constitution)
• Witherspoon, John - Witherspoon was a Presbyterian. He said, "[S]hun, as a contagious pestilence,... those especially whom you perceive to be infected with the principles of infidelity or [who are] enemies to the power of religion" (Signer of Declaration of Independence, Signer of Constitution)
• Wolcott, Oliver - He was a Congregationalist and a devout Christian. (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Wythe, George - Wythe was a member of the Episcopal church. He helped draft instructions for an embassy in Canada, which said, "You are further to declare that we hold sacred the rights of conscience, and may promise to the whole people, solemnly in our name, the free and undisturbed exercise of their religion. And...that all civil rights and the right to hold office were to be extended to persons of any Christian denomination." (Signer of Declaration of Independence)
• Yates, Robert - Member of the Dutch Reformed Church (Delegate to Constitutional Convention)

(More documentation on the religious affiliations, including the more authoritative sources of the information, can be found on this site: www.adherents.com)

America's Christian Roots

There seems to a lot of discussion these days about whether the United States was founded as a Christian Nation. Sometimes that discussions broadens to discuss whether our nation was founded on Biblical principles. Everything you see below has been posted elsewhere on this blog (the title is linked to the original post), but I thought it might be worthwhile to gather many of these samples together in this post. What you see here represents some of the stronger arguments for our Christian and/or Biblical background, but these are by no means the only posts on this blog that support that idea. Watch tomorrow for a list of our Founders' religious roots.

Note that when the Bible is discussed, it would be the standard Holy Bible, consisting of the Old Testament and New Testament. That would be a Christian reference

The Bible in Early America

From Newsweek, 12/27/82: [In America’s early history] Bible study was the core of public education…” … “Scripture had profoundly shaped the new world to which [the immigrants] had come.”

No King but King Jesus

The Committees of Correspondence in Boston, 1774, penned a rallying cry for independence that was later used during the Revolutionary War:

"No King but King Jesus!"

George Washington as General of the Continental Army

While serving as General of the Continental Army, George Washington issued the following general order the day after he took command on July 4, 1775:

"The General most earnestly requires and expects a due observance of those articles ... which forbid profane cursing, swearing, and drunkenness. And in like manner, he requires and expects of all officers and soldiers not engaged in actual duty, a punctual attendance of Divine services to implore the blessing of heaven upon the means used for our safety and defense."

And later, on July 9, 1776, General Washington issued this general order to troops directing that:

"...every officer and man... to live and act as becomes a Christian Soldier defending the dearest Rights and Liberties of his country..."

Alexis de Tocqueville

Alexis de Tocqueville was a noted French political commentator in the 1800's. After a trip to learn more about the United States he wrote:

"The Americans combine the notions of Christianity and of liberty so intimately in their minds that it is impossible to make them conceive the one without the other."

From:
de Tocqueville, Alexis, The Republic of the United States and Its Political Institutions Reviewed and Examined, Henry Reeves translator, (Garden City, NY, A.S. Barnes & Co.) 1851, Vol. I p.335.

Jedediah Morse on Christianity and Government

Jedediah Morse is known as the "father of American geography." He authored several geography texts that were used in the early days of our country and was a contributor to Dobson's Encyclopedia. He said this about our government:

"To the kindly influence of Christianity we owe that degree of civil freedom, and political and social happiness which mankind now enjoys... Whenever the pillars of Christianity shall be overthrown, our present republican forms of government, and all the blessings which flow from them, must fall with them."

Samuel Adams on Education

According to Wikipedia:

"Samuel Adams ... was an American statesman, politician, writer and political philosopher, brewer, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Adams was instrumental in garnering the support of the colonies for rebellion against Great Britain, eventually resulting in the American Revolution, and was also one of the key architects of the principles of American republicanism that shaped American political culture."

On October 4, 1790, Samuel Adams said:

"Let divines and philosophers, statesmen, and patriots unite their endeavors to renovate the age, by impressing the minds of men with the importance of educating their little boys and girls, of inculcating in the minds of youth the fear and love of the Deity and universal philanthropy... In short, of leading them in the study and practice of the exalted virtues of the Christian system." *

* From Marshall Foster & Mary E. Swanson, The American Covenant (Santa Barbara, CA: The Mayflower Institute) p. XIV

Religion Prescribed for Army and Navy

According the the Library of Congress website:

Army
Congress was apprehensive about the moral condition of the American army and navy and took steps to see that Christian morality prevailed in both organizations. In the Articles of War, seen below, governing the conduct of the Continental Army (seen above) (adopted, June 30, 1775; revised, September 20, 1776), Congress devoted three of the four articles in the first section to the religious nurture of the troops. Article 2 "earnestly recommended to all officers and soldiers to attend divine services." Punishment was prescribed for those who behaved "indecently or irreverently" in churches, including courts-martial, fines and imprisonments. Chaplains who deserted their troops were to be court-martialed.

Navy
Congress particularly feared the navy as a source of moral corruption and demanded that skippers of American ships make their men behave. The first article in Rules and Regulations of the Navy (below), adopted on November 28, 1775, ordered all commanders "to be very vigilant . . . to discountenance and suppress all dissolute, immoral and disorderly practices." The second article required those same commanders "to take care, that divine services be performed twice a day on board, and a sermon preached on Sundays." Article 3 prescribed punishments for swearers and blasphemers: officers were to be fined and common sailors were to be forced "to wear a wooden collar or some other shameful badge of distinction."

Supreme Court 1799 - Christianity is Our Established Religion

In the case of Runkel v. Winemiller, 1799, Justice Samuel Chase said:

"Religion is of general and public concern, and on its support depend, in great measure, the peace and good order of government, the safety and happiness of the people. By our form of government, the Christian religion is the established religion; and all sects and denominations of Christians are placed upon the same equal footing, and are equally entitled to protection in their religious liberty."

It is important to note that he is not saying the government established Christianity as our religion. He is simply recognizing a fact of life in the U.S. at that time.

New York Supreme Court, 1811 - Ties Christianity with Civil Government

The NY case of People vs. Ruggles was about a man tried and convicted for publicly saying:

"Jesus Christ was a bas- - - -"

and also that his mother must be a w----" He was sentenced to 3 months in jail and fined $500. Think what that amount was worth in 1811 dollars. This case affirmed the original judgment after the case was appealed.

James Kent, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New York, rendered this opinion in the case:

"...Whatever strikes at the root of Christianity tends manifestly to the dissolution of civil government... (such offenses are) punishable at common law... The people of this state, in common with the people of this country, profess the general doctrines of Christianity, as the rule of their faith and practice, and to scandalize the author of these doctrines is not only ... impious, but ... is a gross violation of decency and good order....We are a Christian people, and the morality of the country is deeply engrafted upon Christianity, and not upon the doctrines or worship of those [other religions]...

Though the Constitution has discarded religious establishments, it does not forbid judicial cognizance of those offenses against religion and morality which have no reference to any such establishment.

The [Constitutional] declaration... never meant to withdraw religion... from all consideration and notice of the law. To construe it as breaking down the common law barriers against licentious, wanton, and impious attacks upon Christianity itself would be an enormous perversion of its meaning... Christianity in its enlarged sense, as a religion revealed and taught in the Bible, is part and parcel of the law of the land.... judgment affirmed"

Our Flag Bows to Christianity??

In 1923 our current U.S. Flag Code was developed by representatives of the Army, Navy and other groups. Most adults familiar with such things know that the U.S. flag is to flown above any other flag on the same mast or pole... EXCEPT for this provision in the Flag Code, where the church pennant may fly above the Stars and Stripes:

TITLE 4--FLAG AND SEAL, SEAT OF GOVERNMENT, AND THE STATES
CHAPTER 1--THE FLAG
Sec. 7. Position and manner of display

"(c) No other flag or pennant should be placed above or, if on the
same level, to the right of the flag of the United States of America,
except during church services conducted by naval chaplains at sea, when
the church pennant may be flown above the flag during church services
for the personnel of the Navy. ..."

Source: United States Government Printing Office

Religion in Our Early National Government, part 1

According to the Library of Congress there was considerable friendliness between religion and our early national government:

"The Continental-Confederation Congress, a legislative body that governed the United States from 1774 to 1789, contained an extraordinary number of deeply religious men. The amount of energy that Congress invested in encouraging the practice of religion in the new nation exceeded that expended by any subsequent American national government. Although the Articles of Confederation did not officially authorize Congress to concern itself with religion, the citizenry did not object to such activities. This lack of objection suggests that both the legislators and the public considered it appropriate for the national government to promote a nondenominational, nonpolemical Christianity."

See Religion and the Congress of the Confederation, 1774-89

Religion in Our Early National Government, part 2

From the Library of Congress:

"Congress appointed chaplains for itself and the armed forces, sponsored the publication of a Bible, imposed Christian morality on the armed forces, and granted public lands to promote Christianity among the Indians. National days of thanksgiving and of "humiliation, fasting, and prayer" were proclaimed by Congress at least twice a year throughout the war. Congress was guided by "covenant theology," a Reformation doctrine especially dear to New England Puritans, which held that God bound himself in an agreement with a nation and its people. This agreement stipulated that they "should be prosperous or afflicted, according as their general Obedience or Disobedience thereto appears." Wars and revolutions were, accordingly, considered afflictions, as divine punishments for sin, from which a nation could rescue itself by repentance and reformation."

See: IV. Religion and the Congress of the Confederation, 1774-89

New Messages Religion in Our Early National Government, part 3

The Library of Congress has some interesting articles about our history. The following quote if from Religion and the Founding of the American Republic and comes right before several reproductions showing how our early faith and government were intertwined.

The first national government of the United States, was convinced that the "public prosperity" of a society depended on the vitality of its religion. Nothing less than a "spirit of universal reformation among all ranks and degrees of our citizens," Congress declared to the American people, would "make us a holy, that so we may be a happy people."

Early America - Morality in the Army

The Library of Congress has some excellent exhibits on early America, including images of the original hand-written documents. One can learn there many of the connections between our Founders' religious background and the early foundations of our government. Consider this quote:

Congress was apprehensive about the moral condition of the American army and navy and took steps to see that Christian morality prevailed in both organizations. In the Articles of War, seen below, governing the conduct of the Continental Army (seen above) (adopted, June 30, 1775; revised, September 20, 1776), Congress devoted three of the four articles in the first section to the religious nurture of the troops. Article 2 "earnestly recommended to all officers and soldiers to attend divine services." Punishment was prescribed for those who behaved "indecently or irreverently" in churches, including courts-martial, fines and imprisonments. Chaplains who deserted their troops were to be court-martialed.

See the L.O.C. article Religion and the Congress of the Confederation 1774-89

Early America - Morality in the Navy

In my previous post I mentioned the Library of Congress, which has some excellent exhibits on early America. The first dealt with the Army; this one is about the Navy:

Congress particularly feared the navy as a source of moral corruption and demanded that skippers of American ships make their men behave. The first article in Rules and Regulations of the Navy (below), adopted on November 28, 1775, ordered all commanders "to be very vigilant . . . to discountenance and suppress all dissolute, immoral and disorderly practices." The second article required those same commanders "to take care, that divine services be performed twice a day on board, and a sermon preached on Sundays." Article 3 prescribed punishments for swearers and blasphemers: officers were to be fined and common sailors were to be forced "to wear a wooden collar or some other shameful badge of distinction."

See the L.O.C. article Religion and the Congress of the Confederation 1774-89

John Quincy Adams - Christian Foundations of U.S. Government

John Quincy Adams gave his perspective on the influence of Christianity on our government.

"The Declaration of Independence first organized the social compact on the foundation of the Redeemer's mission upon earth and laid the corner stone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity."

(John Quincy Adams, 1837. An Oration Delivered Before the Inhabitants of the Town of Newburyport at their Request on the 61st Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence)

Christianizing the Delawares (1787)

According to the U.S. Library of Congress website, here is one of many ways the early government supported religion:

Christianizing the Delawares
In this resolution, Congress makes public lands available to a group for religious purposes. Responding to a plea from Bishop John Ettwein (1721-1802), Congress voted that 10,000 acres on the Muskingum River in the present state of Ohio "be set apart and the property thereof be vested in the Moravian Brethren . . . or a society of the said Brethren for civilizing the Indians and promoting Christianity." The Delaware Indians were the intended beneficiaries of this Congressional resolution.

Library of Congress - Religion and the Congress of the Confederation
Records of the Continental Congress in the Constitutional Convention, July 27, 1787
National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C. (119)

King James Bible in American History

The Library of Congress presented a lecture by Mark Noll on April 24, 2006 called "The King James Version of the Bible in American History." It was presented at the Library of Congress in the Thomas Jefferson Building. Their summary of the talk said:

"According to Noll, the King James version of the Bible has been ubiquitous in American history as the prime source of language for literature, politics and popular culture, as well as for religion. His lecture will sketch the dimensions of that broad presence, while also examining how this version of the Bible has functioned as a force for cohesion and a force for strife."

More at the Library of Congress website.

Journals of the Continental Congress (January 2, 1776)

In many places on this blog I have shown examples of how Christian principles and thought are found throughout our history and official actions. Here is another example from the earliest days of our nation (boldface added):

...Resolved, That it be recommended to them, to continue mindful that humanity ought to distinguish the brave, that cruelty should find no admission among a free people, and to take care that no page in the annals of America be stained by a recital of any action which justice or Christianity may condemn, and to rest assured that whenever retaliation may be necessary or tend to their security, this Congress will undertake the disagreeable task...


See: Library of Congress

Taxes for the Benefit of the Church? Sure, No Problem!

Well, at least that's what George Washington and John Adams thought about the issue, although this opinion was only for State taxes, not Federal. This is not going to happen today, but it points out to what extent the Founding Fathers did NOT think we had to keep religion and government separate.

According to the Library of Congress:

"The country's first two presidents, George Washington and John Adams, were firm believers in the importance of religion for republican government. As citizens of Virginia and Massachusetts, both were sympathetic to general religious taxes being paid by the citizens of their respective states to the churches of their choice. However both statesmen would have discouraged such a measure at the national level because of its divisiveness. They confined themselves to promoting religion rhetorically, offering frequent testimonials to its importance in building the moral character of American citizens, that, they believed, undergirded public order and successful popular government."

Learn more at the Library of Congress.

The U.S. Marine Band Used for Worship Service Music

There is an interesting little article on the Library of Congress web site that documents one of the few times The U.S. Marine Band ("The President's Own") did not do a superior job! This is from around 1798.

Hymns Played at Congressional Church Service
According to Margaret Bayard Smith, a regular at church services in the Capitol, the Marine Band "made quite a dazzling appearance in the gallery . . . but in their attempts to accompany the psalm-singing of the congregation, they completely failed and after a while, the practice was discontinued."

Principles of Christianity Embedded in Our Founding

On June 28, 1813, John Adams wrote this to Thomas Jefferson:

The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were. . . . the general principles of Christianity. . . . I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God; and that those principles of liberty are as unalterable as human nature.

From: The Writings of Thomas Jefferson (Washington D. C.: The Thomas Jefferson Memorial Association, 1904), Vol. XIII, p. 292-294.

Charles Carroll: Christianity and a Free Government

Charles Carroll was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. He was the longest lived signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Continental Congress. Consider his words:

"Without morals a republic cannot subsist any length of time; they therefore who are decrying the Christian religion, whose morality is so sublime and pure...are undermining the solid foundation of morals, the best security for the duration of free governments."

From a letter to James McHenry on November 4, 1800. See Google Books for Quotes of the Founders

Justice Richard Storey on Christianity and Society

Richard Storey was appointed to the Supreme Court by James Madison. Storey wrote the first major commentary of our Constitution. In it he said,

"I verily believe Christianity necessary to the support of civil society. One of the beautiful boasts of our municipal jurisprudence is that Christianity is a part of the Common Law. . . There never has been a period in which the Common Law did not recognize Christianity as lying its foundations."

See extract from Google Books

Benjamin Rush on Bibles in School

Benjamin Rush was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Rush was a leader in calling for free public education, and is also known as a leading proponent of opportunities for women in education.

Consider his definition of what education should contain:

"The only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty..."

Benjamin Rush, Essays, Literary, Moral, and Philosophical, Philadelphia: Thomas & William Bradford, 1806, Ch. 'Of the Mode of Education Proper in a Republic' pp. 57-73

Read more here:
Benjamin Rush