There is much debate in the modern age over the United States’ spiritual origins. Specifically, whether we were created as a Christian nation or a secular one. One of the most common arguments in favor of the Christian origin is that the founding fathers were Christian, so of course they would create a Christian nation. Similarly, a secular individual might try to prove the US has secular origins by arguing that there is inconclusive evidence to prove the founding fathers were Christian. Both of these arguments, however, are fundamentally misguided. As is articulated by Steven Waldman in his book, Founding Faith: more important than being a Christian nation or a secular nation, the Founding Fathers realized the most important distinction to be made regarding religion in the US is the separation of church and state. Regardless of the various founding fathers’ differing individual religious beliefs and affiliations, they agreed that separation of church and state is necessary for both the prosperity of a democracy and its various religions. Some founding fathers of note who were staunch supporters of establishing a separation of church and state include Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison. All of the following information and quotes were gathered from Steven Waldman’s book, Founding Faith.
Benjamin Franklin was born to a Puritan family, though he spent much of his life analyzing and critiquing the bible and his family’s religious beliefs and practices. For example, he rejected the idea that there is one all-powerful God that also cares about mortals and their goings-on. He rewrote the Lord’s Prayer, streamlining it. He created his own list of human virtues and would assess how he had displayed those attributes every day. Franklin ardently criticized The Paxton Boys’ massacre of a group of native Americans in 1764, calling their actions a “Horrible perversion of the scripture and of religion.” While Franklin criticized, edited, and analyzed religion, he also believed it is a necessary part of human culture. He wrote to a friend, “If men are so wicked as we now see them with Religion what would they be without it?”
Another factor impacting Franklin’s understanding of religion, especially in a governmental context, was the fracturing of Pennsylvania’s original government. Pennsylvania was established by a pluralist religious regime, the Quakers. While very tolerant of other religions and open to their people living and practicing in Pennsylvania, the problem that eventually led to the Quakers losing legislative control over the state was that of violence. The pacifistic Quakers refused to take action when French and Spanish privateers raided towns along the Delaware river in 1747, causing unrest and rage from non-Quakers living in Pennsylvania. They claimed the Quakers were forcing their religious views on them by preventing Pennsylvania from defending itself. Seeing this unraveling, along with Franklin’s careful consideration of religion’s positives and negatives taught him that one religion holding legislative power in a government is dangerous and unwise.
Thomas Jefferson, like Benjamin Franklin, spent much time analyzing and criticizing religion. Specifically, Jefferson took issue with the bible. He believed the true teachings of Jesus of Nazareth were corrupted and lost very early in the book’s creation, and that the real value in the bible is the teachings of Jesus, himself. For example, in Jefferson’s edited version of the bible, often referred to as the Jefferson Bible, there was no virgin birth, Jesus was not resurrected, and many of Jesus’ other supernatural miracles were not included. Jefferson stripped these away to instead focus on the life and morals of the non-divine man: Jesus of Nazareth. This version of the bible, of course, was seen as extremely blasphemous in his day and Jefferson was branded a heretic as a result. This is one of the major factors that led Jefferson to push to create a country where varying religious beliefs are accepted, one where a heretic such as himself would not be persecuted. In order to create this country, he reasoned that there must be a separation of church and state.
Regarding Jefferson’s views of religion as it relates to government, specifically, he took a much harsher stance than Franklin. Jefferson believed that “In every country and in every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty.” In other words, he believed that organized religions are incompatible with freedom. This belief was the other major factor that resulted in Jefferson’s ardent support for a separation of church and state.
James Madison’s particular religious beliefs are less clear. He, unlike Franklin and Jefferson, never openly expressed them. Now, only clues from his letters and other writings remain. They seem to indicate that he was more receptive to organized religion than Franklin or Jefferson, for example, but he never edited passages from the bible or the Lord’s Prayer. Why, then, would such a seemingly non-spiritual person so ardently support a separation of church and state? One major factor is Madison’s powerful distaste for religious persecution. He despised persecution because, if it is true that a mortal cannot understand God’s will, how can one person claim another is a heretic?
Madison’s beliefs, whatever they were, along with his disapproval of persecution led him to make one of the most important suggestions in our nation’s history. In 1776, at a convention to decide Virginia’s new Declaration of Rights and constitution, the original draft written by George Mason read, “All men should enjoy the fullest toleration in the exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience, unpunished and unrestrained by the magistrate…” Madison, however, was unsatisfied with “toleration”, instead pushing that the wording be changed to “that all men are equally entitled to the free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience…” This shift from toleration to free exercise marked possibly the largest shift in the quality of religious freedom in America in its history. Religious freedom was modified from something dependent on those in power to a fundamental, inalienable human right. This change is reflected in the separation of church and state. For if one religion has control over the state, they can decide how “tolerant” they want to be of other religious beliefs. If the two are separate, however, then true free religious practice and belief can prevail.
Despite their very different personal beliefs and experiences, each of these three founding fathers fought for a separation of church and state. Likewise, no matter your personal beliefs, if you value the right to practice whatever you do or do not believe no matter who currently runs the government, you should support the separation of church and state as well.
