Did you know that 52 of the 55 signers of the Declaration of Independence
were orthodox, deeply committed Christians? The other three all believed
in the Bible as the divine truth, the God of scripture, and His personal
intervention. It is the same Congress that formed the American Bible
Society. Immediately after creating the Declaration of Independence, the
Continental Congress voted to purchase and import 20,000 copies of
scripture for the people of this nation.
Patrick Henry, who is called the firebrand of the American Revolution, is
still remembered for his words, "Give me liberty or give me death." But in
current textbooks the context of these words is deleted. Here is what he
said:
"An appeal to arms and the God of hosts is all that is left us. But we
shall not fight our battle alone. There is a just God that presides over
the destinies of nations. The battle sir, is not to the strong alone. Is
life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains
and slavery? Forbid it almighty God. I know not what course others may
take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death." These sentences
have been erased from our textbooks. Was Patrick Henry a Christian?
The following year, 1776, he wrote this "It cannot be emphasized too
strongly or too often that this great Nation was founded not by
religionists, but by Christians; not on religious, but on the Gospel of
Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been
afforded freedom of worship here."
Consider these words that Thomas Jefferson wrote on the front of his
well-worn Bible: "I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the
doctrines of Jesus. I have little doubt that our whole country will soon
be rallied to the unity of our Creator and, I hope, to the pure doctrine
of Jesus also."
Consider these words from George Washington, the Father of our Nation, in
his farewell speech on September 19, 1796: "It is impossible to govern
the world without God and the Bible. Of all the dispositions and habits
that lead to political prosperity, our religion and morality are the
indispensable supporters. Let us with caution indulge the supposition that
morality can be maintained without religion. Reason and experience both
forbid us to expect that our national morality can prevail in exclusion of
religious principle."
Was George Washington a Christian? Consider these words from his personal
prayer book: "Oh, eternal and everlasting God, direct my thoughts, words
and work. Wash away my sins in the immaculate blood of the lamb and purge
my heart by thy Holy Spirit. Daily, frame me more and more in the likeness
of thy son, Jesus Christ, that living in thy fear, and dying in thy favor,
I may in thy appointed time obtain the resurrection of the justified unto
eternal life. Bless, O Lord, the whole race of mankind and let the world
be filled with the knowledge of thee and thy son, Jesus Christ."
Consider these words by John Adams, our second president, who also served
as chairman of the American Bible Society. In an address to military
leaders he said, "We have no government armed with the power capable of
contending with human passions, unbridled by morality and true religion.
Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is
wholly inadequate to the government of any other."
How about our first Supreme Court Justice, John Jay? He stated that when
we select our national leaders, if we are to preserve our Nation, we must
select Christians. "Providence has given to our people the choice of their
rulers, and it is the duty as well as the privilege and interest of our
Christian Nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers."
John Quincy Adams, son of John Adams, was the sixth U.S. President. He was
also the chairman of the American Bible Society, which he considered his
highest and most important role. On July 4, 1821, President Adams said,
"The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in
one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the
principles of Christianity."
Calvin Coolidge, our 30th President of the United States reaffirmed this
truth when he wrote, "The foundations of our society and our government
rest so much on the teachings of the Bible that it would be difficult to
support them if faith in these teachings would cease to be practically
universal in our country."
In 1782, the United States Congress voted this resolution: "The Congress
of the United States recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all
schools."
William Holmes McGuffey is the author of the McGuffey Reader, which was
used for over 100 years in our public schools with over 125 million copies
sold until it was stopped in 1963. President Lincoln called him the
"Schoolmaster of the Nation."
Listen to these words of Mr. McGuffey: "The Christian religion is the
religion of our country. From it are derived our notions on the character
of God, on the great moral Governor of the universe. On its doctrines are
founded the peculiarities of our free institutions. From no source has the
author drawn more conspicuously than from the sacred Scriptures. From all
these extracts from the Bible I make no apology."
Of the first 108 universities founded in America, 106 were distinctly
Christian, including the first, Harvard University, chartered in 1636. In
the original Harvard Student Handbook, rule number 1 was that students
seeking entrance must know Latin and Greek so that they could study the
scriptures: "Let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed
to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and
Jesus Christ, which is eternal life, John 17:3; and therefore to lay Jesus
Christ as the only foundation and knowledge and learning. And see in the
Lord only giveth wisdom, let every one seriously set himself by prayer in
secret to seek it of him (Proverbs 2:3)."
For over 100 years, more than 50% of all Harvard graduates were pastors!
It is clear from history that the Bible and the Christian faith, were
foundational to our educational and judicial system. However, in 1947,
there was a radical change of direction for the Supreme Court. It required
ignoring every precedent of Supreme Court ruling for the past 160 years.
The Supreme Court ruled in a limited way to affirm a wall of separation
between church and State in the public classroom. In the coming years,
this led to removing prayer from public schools in 1962.
Here is the prayer that was banished:
"Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence on Thee. We beg Thy blessings
upon us and our parents and our teachers and our country. Amen."
In 1963, the Supreme Court ruled that Bible reading was outlawed as
unconstitutional in the public school system. The court offered this
justification: "If portions of the New Testament were read without
explanation, they could and have been psychologically harmful to children."
Bible reading was now unconstitutional, though the Bible was quoted 94
percent of the time by those who wrote our Constitution and shaped our
Nation and its system of education and justice and government.
In 1965, the Courts denied as unconstitutional the right of a student in
the public school cafeteria to bow his head and pray audibly for his food.
In 1980, Stone vs. Graham outlawed the Ten Commandments in our public
schools. The Supreme Court said this: "If the posted copies of the Ten
Commandments were to have any effect at all, it would be to induce school
children to read them. And if they read them, meditated upon them, and
perhaps venerated and obeyed them, this is not a permissible objective."
Is it not a permissible objective to allow our children to follow the
moral principles of the Ten Commandments? James Madison, the primary
author of the Constitution of the United States, said this: "We have
staked the whole future of our new nation, not upon the power of
government; far from it. We have staked the future of all our political
constitutions upon the capacity of each of ourselves to govern ourselves
according to the moral principles of the Ten Commandments."
Today, we are asking God to bless America. But, how can He bless a Nation
that has departed so far from Him? Prior to September 11, He was not
welcome in America. Most of what you read in this article has been erased
from our textbooks. Revisionists have rewritten history to remove the
truth about our country's Christian roots. You are encouraged to make
copies, and share with others, so that the truth of our nation's history
will be told. Send this website to a friend, and perhaps we can wake up America!
