The 4th of July is a time of festivities, a few days off from work, fireworks and food! We often hear the thoughts on how America has changed and we are no longer a "Christian nation." Well, hold on a minute there, let's take a little closer look at this.....
My mother used to tell me when I was a small child: " There is no excuse for being intellectually lazy. If you are, then you will become dishonest, to yourself and to others."
Our Founding Fathers, the people whose hearts have led to the celebration of this event, have been identified by some as a dedicated group of Christians who were committed to establishing a "Christian nation" with Christian principles and avid church goers that would set the United States of America far apart from any other country ever created. So, was this what happened?... What exactly was going on during that time?
First, our Founding Fathers had heard from the generation before them the horrors of the "30 Years War" starting in 1618 and lasting until 1648, and how this war had been proclaimed in the name of Christianity. People of the Catholic faith vs. the Protestant faith, killing one another in the name of God. Why? Well, why do most wars start? "Same o same o... for greed and for control. The Roman Catholic Holy Emperor Ferdinand II of Bohemia decided the newly formed Protestant Reformation was going too far and needed addressed. So, in the name Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, along with all the angels, Ferdinand II declared war on those of Protestant belief in order to bring unity to Europe once more....one land ruled by one church leader, that being the Pope.
Yet, for the common people of Europe including Sweden, France, Spain, Austria, and particularly Germany, it became 30 years of living hell. The 30 year war, which had begun in 1618 and reached its conclusion in 1648, had literally decimated over 20% of Germany's population alone. There were mercenaries hired to carry out the efforts of both sides. The hideous techniques used to harm others was sickening: women raped regularly by soldiers of either side, disgusting fluids poured down peoples throats to gather information, ropes tied around the head and a lever used to tighten the rope until the cranium of the victim finally collapsed, along with other atrocities that are beyond mention because of the sheer heartless matters they were performed...all these reports had been in the in the minds of...our Founding Fathers. The thought of the perils of declaring a new nation Christian was very real to them.
Secondly, our Founding Fathers were children of "The Enlightenment Age" or the "Age of Reason." From the 1620's to 1780 western Europe embraced the concepts of reasoning, analysis, and the importance of individualism to encourage the further development of mankind, as opposed to simply being obedient to the various laws of authority...and this led to the challenges of adhering to the very the laws of God written in the Sacred Scripture.
Suddenly from the fresh ranks of mainline denominations such as Anglican, Presbyterian, and Congregationalists came entirely new thoughts and new ways of viewing religion, including Christianity. Now men including our Founding Fathers were referring to themselves as Deists or Unitarians, which altered the very core of Christian belief.
Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin along with other popular Founding Fathers of the day began to reject some of the Christian's faith beliefs that had been accepted for centuries, things like the Trinity, Original Sin, and Atonement. In fact, the whole idea that the Son of God had to come and save mankind was now viewed as very untrue, rather mankind is able to save himself if he would learn the most valuable lesson for all mankind... all men are created equal and should be treated as equal, the age of humanism was now in full force. The beliefs among a number of the Founding Fathers were we must learn to be tolerant of each other's lives including beliefs. Thomas Jefferson, a strong proponent for Unitarian beliefs wrote in 1786 "No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or beliefs, but that all men shall not be forced to profess, rather by argument able to maintain their opinion in the matter of religion, and that the same shall in no way diminish, enlarge, or effect their capacities." Others around the world were beginning to accept this train of thought or had done so in times past including Leonardo Da Vinci, Napoleon Bonaparte, and later the great American author Mark Twain.
The religions of Deism and Unitarianism influenced our Founding Fathers including Thomas Paine, who was the primary influence through writing the pamphlet "Common Sense" being published in 1776 to encourage the American colonists the need to separate from England. Up to that very time, many colonists were against seceding from England. Paine did not advocate the Christian faith whatsoever.
John Adams embraced the beliefs of Unitarianism as did James Madison, the 4th President of the United States.
In his final days, Thomas Jefferson wrote " I trust there is not a young man living in the United States who will not be Unitarian."
"Separation of Church and State" was fought hard by Thomas Jefferson and associates. This started when the new state of Virginia wanted to declare the Anglican (or now Episcopalian church) as the official state religion of Virginia. If this were accomplished, there would be a church tax applied to everyone in Virginia and the tax money would used to fund churches according to the the percentage of people within the state and their denomination affiliation. In Virginia, it was a dominant Anglican people so the brunt of the tax money would go to benefit that particular denomination while the Congregationalists, the Presbyterians, the Baptists and others were left to receive meager amounts. Along with this, the Anglican church could have influence on state levels in reference to the general state of politics and its future.
In relation to the signers of early American documents such as the Declaration of Independence of 1776, the Articles of Confederation ratified in 1781, and the Constitution of the United States in 1789, there were a total of 204 signatures. This included 88 (55%) Anglican, 30 (18%) Presbyterian, and 27 Congregationalists (17%). Yet, 3 of the most popular leaders amidst our Founding Fathers: Thomas Jefferson became a Deist, John Adams became a Unitarian, and Ben Franklin became a Deist. Oh there were 2 of our Founding Fathers who were of the Roman Catholic faith, while another embraced the doctrine of Calvinism.
Other thoughts for this period in history were the "secret organizations" like the free masons. George Washington, Nathaniel Hale and numerous other early founders were members of organizations such as these.
As far as being a nation of Christians, that I am not so sure. I think our Founding Fathers were wanting every person to have an equal chance regardless of their beliefs. This whole concept was to begin in the grass roots levels of our own families. In the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson wrote the united States instead of the United States, giving an emphasis to the convictions he shared.
So what was so big about the Declaration of Independence if it wasn't about becoming a Christian nation? It is explained in the 2nd paragraph what type of nation our Founding Fathers wanted us to become, it reads: " We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."
This then I propose is what makes America great!
My mother used to tell me when I was a small child: " There is no excuse for being intellectually lazy. If you are, then you will become dishonest, to yourself and to others."
Our Founding Fathers, the people whose hearts have led to the celebration of this event, have been identified by some as a dedicated group of Christians who were committed to establishing a "Christian nation" with Christian principles and avid church goers that would set the United States of America far apart from any other country ever created. So, was this what happened?... What exactly was going on during that time?
First, our Founding Fathers had heard from the generation before them the horrors of the "30 Years War" starting in 1618 and lasting until 1648, and how this war had been proclaimed in the name of Christianity. People of the Catholic faith vs. the Protestant faith, killing one another in the name of God. Why? Well, why do most wars start? "Same o same o... for greed and for control. The Roman Catholic Holy Emperor Ferdinand II of Bohemia decided the newly formed Protestant Reformation was going too far and needed addressed. So, in the name Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, along with all the angels, Ferdinand II declared war on those of Protestant belief in order to bring unity to Europe once more....one land ruled by one church leader, that being the Pope.
Yet, for the common people of Europe including Sweden, France, Spain, Austria, and particularly Germany, it became 30 years of living hell. The 30 year war, which had begun in 1618 and reached its conclusion in 1648, had literally decimated over 20% of Germany's population alone. There were mercenaries hired to carry out the efforts of both sides. The hideous techniques used to harm others was sickening: women raped regularly by soldiers of either side, disgusting fluids poured down peoples throats to gather information, ropes tied around the head and a lever used to tighten the rope until the cranium of the victim finally collapsed, along with other atrocities that are beyond mention because of the sheer heartless matters they were performed...all these reports had been in the in the minds of...our Founding Fathers. The thought of the perils of declaring a new nation Christian was very real to them.
Secondly, our Founding Fathers were children of "The Enlightenment Age" or the "Age of Reason." From the 1620's to 1780 western Europe embraced the concepts of reasoning, analysis, and the importance of individualism to encourage the further development of mankind, as opposed to simply being obedient to the various laws of authority...and this led to the challenges of adhering to the very the laws of God written in the Sacred Scripture.
Suddenly from the fresh ranks of mainline denominations such as Anglican, Presbyterian, and Congregationalists came entirely new thoughts and new ways of viewing religion, including Christianity. Now men including our Founding Fathers were referring to themselves as Deists or Unitarians, which altered the very core of Christian belief.
Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin along with other popular Founding Fathers of the day began to reject some of the Christian's faith beliefs that had been accepted for centuries, things like the Trinity, Original Sin, and Atonement. In fact, the whole idea that the Son of God had to come and save mankind was now viewed as very untrue, rather mankind is able to save himself if he would learn the most valuable lesson for all mankind... all men are created equal and should be treated as equal, the age of humanism was now in full force. The beliefs among a number of the Founding Fathers were we must learn to be tolerant of each other's lives including beliefs. Thomas Jefferson, a strong proponent for Unitarian beliefs wrote in 1786 "No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or beliefs, but that all men shall not be forced to profess, rather by argument able to maintain their opinion in the matter of religion, and that the same shall in no way diminish, enlarge, or effect their capacities." Others around the world were beginning to accept this train of thought or had done so in times past including Leonardo Da Vinci, Napoleon Bonaparte, and later the great American author Mark Twain.
The religions of Deism and Unitarianism influenced our Founding Fathers including Thomas Paine, who was the primary influence through writing the pamphlet "Common Sense" being published in 1776 to encourage the American colonists the need to separate from England. Up to that very time, many colonists were against seceding from England. Paine did not advocate the Christian faith whatsoever.
John Adams embraced the beliefs of Unitarianism as did James Madison, the 4th President of the United States.
In his final days, Thomas Jefferson wrote " I trust there is not a young man living in the United States who will not be Unitarian."
"Separation of Church and State" was fought hard by Thomas Jefferson and associates. This started when the new state of Virginia wanted to declare the Anglican (or now Episcopalian church) as the official state religion of Virginia. If this were accomplished, there would be a church tax applied to everyone in Virginia and the tax money would used to fund churches according to the the percentage of people within the state and their denomination affiliation. In Virginia, it was a dominant Anglican people so the brunt of the tax money would go to benefit that particular denomination while the Congregationalists, the Presbyterians, the Baptists and others were left to receive meager amounts. Along with this, the Anglican church could have influence on state levels in reference to the general state of politics and its future.
In relation to the signers of early American documents such as the Declaration of Independence of 1776, the Articles of Confederation ratified in 1781, and the Constitution of the United States in 1789, there were a total of 204 signatures. This included 88 (55%) Anglican, 30 (18%) Presbyterian, and 27 Congregationalists (17%). Yet, 3 of the most popular leaders amidst our Founding Fathers: Thomas Jefferson became a Deist, John Adams became a Unitarian, and Ben Franklin became a Deist. Oh there were 2 of our Founding Fathers who were of the Roman Catholic faith, while another embraced the doctrine of Calvinism.
Other thoughts for this period in history were the "secret organizations" like the free masons. George Washington, Nathaniel Hale and numerous other early founders were members of organizations such as these.
As far as being a nation of Christians, that I am not so sure. I think our Founding Fathers were wanting every person to have an equal chance regardless of their beliefs. This whole concept was to begin in the grass roots levels of our own families. In the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson wrote the united States instead of the United States, giving an emphasis to the convictions he shared.
So what was so big about the Declaration of Independence if it wasn't about becoming a Christian nation? It is explained in the 2nd paragraph what type of nation our Founding Fathers wanted us to become, it reads: " We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."
This then I propose is what makes America great!
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