Preserving the Republic: Christian Morality and the American Founders

While many regard the American Founders as ambivalent to Christianity, the legislative and historic evidence paints a painstakingly clear picture that–regardless of their personal faith–at the very least, the Founders had every intention to preserve morality as defined by Christian doctrine. In 1779, James Madison convinced the Virginia Assembly to adopt Thomas Jefferson’s “Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom,” and thereby, disestablishing the Church of England in the state.[1] Yet, this was not an attempt to secularize Virginia, and it is unlikely that anyone held such intentions. Rather, the bill was a means to preserving the faith by protecting it from the influence of an established church, which would have a dangerous extent of power over its members. After all, colonial Era Americans and by extension, the Founders, were conscious of the seemingly tyrannical behavior of the Catholic Church in the past and thus, had no desire to recreate such an environment in the colonies. Once independence was attained, disestablishment and plural establishment swept through the majority of states, thus preventing any one institution from wielding too much influence over the people.[2]

That said, the environment in which the Founders lived was far from hostile to religion, nor were the Founders themselves. According to historian Roger Schultz, within the colonial context, Isaiah 49:23 which declares “kings shall be thy nursing fathers,” held particular significance.[3] [4] As far as the nineteenth century, politicians were often framed as nursing fathers, and expected to fulfill that role as a sacred obligation, protecting the faith and interests of the people. In 1783, citizens of Virginia reminded their representatives of their obligations as nursing fathers, and likewise, five years later, the American Presbyterian Church reminded the civil magistrate of his duty as a “nursing father” to ensure the religious liberty of all Christian sects.[5]

The effort to preserve religion and promote adherence to Christian tenets varied by state and the federal government made no legislative attempts to assert the dominance of a particular denomination or sect. As explained by Thomas Jefferson in his 1805 Inaugural Address placing church affairs under the domain of “state or church authorities, and “independent of the powers of the general government” was a matter of constitutionality.[6] The Founders consistently affirmed the importance of Christianity in instilling the people with a strong sense of morality, which they regarded as essential for the Republic’s survival.[7] However, they did not and would not sanction the general government establishing the supremacy of and empowering a particular sect of Christianity, or a national church.

Nonetheless, the general government did take steps to facilitate the dissemination of Christian doctrine and evidenced great regard for encouraging the faith of civilians, soldiers, and government workers. Notably, although some regarded it as an encroachment on state jurisdiction, Congress approved American Bible Society president Elias Boudinot’s request that President Washington give a Thanksgiving Proclamation, in which Washington expressed deep gratitude to the Almighty.[8] Furthermore, despite a lack of funds, during the War, Congress created a chaplain corps and Washington encouraged the troops to attend services regularly.[9] At the same time, Congress endorsed the publication of the Aitken’s Bible.[10] Following the war, as the government instituted the Northwest Ordinance to further westward expansion, Congress initiated a fast so that “the religion of our Divine Redeemer...cover the earth as the waters cover the seas,” later designating three percent of western territory for churches and schools, citing “[R]eligion, morality, and knowledge [as] being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind.”[11] Clearly, the Founders and members of the early government appreciated Christianity at the very least as a means to preserving morality, and subsequently, the republic. As such, they sought to foster the growth of Christianity, but to prevent the formation of an excessively powerful singular church, they gave the states greater authority over the matter.

Bibliography

Schultz, Roger. “A Christian Civil Order: Religion, Republicanism, and the American Founding.” Faith for All of Life. (September/October 2010): 8–12.

Hall, Mark David. Did America Have a Christian Founding? Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2019.