by Norman D. Fox -
Thomas Jefferson believed that Christianity was the only world religion upon which a government as rich in liberty as America’s could possibly be based. Why? Because only Christianity deals internally with man’s spiritual condition. Only Jesus, in Jefferson’s judgment, “pushed his scrutinies into the heart of man, erected his tribunal in the region of his thoughts, and purified the waters at the fountain head.”
There are reasons to doubt whether Jefferson was himself a Christian in the biblical sense (although he called himself a Christian again and again), but he certainly recognized the uniqueness of Christianity and its connection with government. Only a people who internalize their faith in God and exercise what Galatians 5:22-23 calls “self-control” can be trusted with freedom from the burdensome controls usually associated with civil government. (See Essay #2, Limited Government and “Legislating Morality”)
America, operating from its Christian foundation, has provided more freedom for other religions than any other nation on earth. This distinction is one important evidence of Christianity’s uniqueness. Every culture is based on some religious viewpoint, some underlying worldview. We can easily identify nations based on other world religions, such as Buddhism, Hinduism or Islam. Even militant atheism or secularism is a religious viewpoint on which governments have been founded. But compare the degree of tolerance America allows for those worldviews with the degree of tolerance other cultures allow for Christianity, and you see an important difference.
One reason for the difference is the totally voluntary nature of an individual’s adherence to Christianity. In Matthew 10:14, Jesus instructs his disciples to present the gospel the best they could in their evangelistic travels, but to leave where they were not welcomed, “shake the dust off their shoes,” and go elsewhere. This very important principle distinguishes Christianity from religions that impose themselves on others by force, or feel justified in harming those who will not accept their message. (See Essay #10, Islam in P.C. America)
Paul in II Cor. 5:11 describes his evangelistic style as “persuading.” The “Great Commission,” Jesus’ ultimate instruction on the spreading the Christian gospel (Matt. 28:18-20) uses the concepts of discipling and teaching, not requiring. The Bible’s final passage offers an invitation, not a command, to “take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17). Any time people wearing the name of Christ have used force to “make someone accept Christianity,” they have done so contrary to the teachings of Christ, and totally misunderstanding the voluntary nature of receiving Christ.
This is why the Founding Fathers could speak of America as a Christian nation (see Essay #18, Is America a Christian Nation?) without meaning that anyone was required to become a Christian. They meant that the nation was built on a Christian philosophy of government, which allowed people to choose their own religious faith. Overwhelmingly, their own personal choice was the Gospel of Christ.
This also explains why the Founders were so supportive of America’s clear identity as a missionary nation. (See Essay #47, America, a Missionary Nation.) They understood that spreading the Christian gospel in their own lands and beyond would have good spiritual results as well as positive consequences for true liberty and self-government. Alexander Hamilton recognized this connection, and proposed that “an association be formed to be denominated ‘The Christian Constitutional Society,’ its object to be first: The support of the Christian religion; second: The support of the United States.”
An 1811 lower court ruling drew the conclusion, “Whatever strikes at the root of Christianity tends manifestly to the dissolution of civil government.” Later, the U.S. Supreme Court cited that ruling positively. Christianity was clearly regarded as foundational to the kind of government Americans had invented, even though other religions could be practiced freely.
Jewish Americans asked George Washington during his presidency whether they would be granted freedom of religious practice by this new government. Washington’s reply was the first of its kind from any head of state in history. He said that he could not grant freedom of religion, because it was God’s to give and He had already given it. This was a real-life application of the Founders’ philosophy that God’s authority superseded their own, and illustrates dramatically the uniqueness of Christianity and a Christian-based civil government.
Not only our founding documents, but the very appearance of our national capital conveys how essential biblical faith has been to the formation of America. (See Essay #16, God’s Signature in Washington D.C.)
Christians and non-Christians alike have been blessed over many generations by the one-of-a-kind republic formed and nurtured by men like Noah Webster, who said “the genuine source of correct republican principles is the Bible, particularly the New Testament, or the Christian religion.”
For further study:
Tim LaHaye, Faith of Our Founding Fathers, (Chapters 6-7), 1990, Master Books, PO Box 727, Green Forest, AR, 72638, www.masterbooks.net
William
J. Federer, ed., America’s God and
Country Encyclopedia of Quotations, 1994, FAME Publishing Inc., 820 S
MacArthur Blvd, Suite 105-220, Coppell, TX 75019-4214, www.amerisearch.net
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