The Christian Faith of Our Forefathers

By Larry P. Cornwell

This is a speech that Larry P. Cornwell delivers to various chapters of the SAR, DAR and other historical organizations. It is printed here with permission from Larry P. Cornwell.

I've entitled this talk "The Christian Faith of Our Forefathers" for good reason. I'm not evangelizing, I'm about to give a much-needed history lesson. I'm tired of modern day secular revisionists insisting that our forefathers who fought and died to establish this great nation of ours were not Christians, but were "Deists," whatever that was. More on that later.

So what got me going on this topic? I would come across letters to the editor of the Montgomery Advertiser, like this one, which states in part, "One of the most enduring myths, perpetrated mainly by the Republican Party, in cahoots with the Christian Right, is that the United States was founded to be a Christian nation. It just ain't so, and saying it is will never make it so."

Now, I don't have much argument here; after all, the First Amendment of the Constitution states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." But, this writer didn't know our earlier history, or if he knew it, he kept quiet about it. Before the Constitution, each of the American colonies codified into law every one of the Ten Commandments. Every one of the colonies firmly established that its laws and customs were based on the Judeo-Christian faith of the Colonists.

Perhaps we weren't founded as a Christian nation when the 13 colonies came together as states, but we certainly started out as 13 Christian colonies, and have become a nation of Christians over the past 235 years.

What upsets me is what the author of this letter states next, "Most of the founding fathers were nominal Christians at best. Most were either high-church Anglicans or high-church Congregationalists. Their poorly attended church services were exclusively liturgical. Many, including Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin, were Deists and did not believe in miracles or an active God." This writer goes on, "To say that they would have been allies of today's Christian right is a gross distortion."

In July of 2008, when my wife Leanne and I arrived in Sacramento to attend the National Congress of the SAR, this article appeared in the Sacramento Bee. It states that "Jefferson compiled own Bible," and that, "He was a product of his age. Yet, he is the least likely person I'd want to pray with. He was more skeptical about religion than the other Founding Fathers." The article goes on, "Like many other upper-class educated citizens of the new republic, including George Washington, Jefferson was a deist."

Well, Mr. Letter Writer and Mr. Article Writer, you've badmouthed my hero, George Washington, the Father of Our Country, and I'm out to set the record straight. Locally, I can't go on letting naïve readers of the Montgomery Advertiser believe that George Washington was not a good Christian. We all know better. One of our purposes in the Sons of the American Revolution is to educate the public about the Revolutionary War. I'm doing that right now.

In preparing this talk, I borrowed liberally from the actual writings of historical figures as well as historians who accurately and dispassionately wrote about our founding fathers.

The American Revolution was not just another war, but a turning point in the history of mankind in which our citizens believed, and fought for, the idea that sovereignty belonged to the people, and not to a hereditary ruling class. Our liberty and independence were not forgone conclusions in 1776, but the result of a bitter, eight-year-long struggle ending in an incredible victory in the face of almost impossible odds. We need to remember and appreciate the principles, bravery, sacrifice and genius of our Founding Fathers, as one author wrote, "some of the most extraordinary people ever concentrated in any period of history."

Just as the New Testament authors revered their Old Testament ancestors, we have every right, and perhaps obligation, to revere our forefathers, especially for their Christianity. Our forefathers had strong religious convictions and wrote them into the very documents that founded the United States of America. Yes, our forefathers had the foresight not to establish Christianity as our national religion, but that doesn't mean they weren't religious themselves, as some modern day revisionists would like you to believe.

As you have heard, there is a segment of our population that is out to deny that many of our 18th century forefathers were Christian, and were Deists. Interestingly, this argument has been going on since the time of the Revolution. Deism - word for word out of Webster's Dictionary: "a movement that denies the interference of the Creator with the laws of the universe." Let me repeat that: "a movement that denies the interference of the Creator with the laws of the universe." In other words, Deists believe that God lit the firecracker that caused the big bang, and has not interfered in humanity since then.

Well, the evidence is that, for the most part, our forefathers had strong religious convictions and were rightly called Christians. And not only did they have a strong belief in a living God, they believed that God had a direct hand in establishing this nation.

I draw your attention to the Declaration of Independence. Of course, when each of our forefathers signed that Declaration, they were signing their own death warrant, because it was considered treason to declare independence from Great Britain. In the beginning of the Declaration of Independence we find mention of the creator in words that Deists would not have used:

"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." You've heard these words before, but I invite you to read them yourself.

While we're at it, the closing statement of the Declaration of Independence mentions the Divine Providence, another term I don't believe a Deist would have used. It reads, "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."

Patrick Henry objected to being called a Deist. You remember him. He gave the famous, "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" speech. Here is what he wrote about Deism: "The rising greatness of our country. . . is greatly tarnished by the general prevalence of Deism, which, with me, is but another name for vice and depravity. . . I hear it said by the Deists that I am one of their number; and indeed that some good people think I am no Christian. This thought gives me much more pain than the appellation of Tory [being called a traitor], because I think religion of infinitely higher importance than politics. . . Being a Christian. . . is a character which I prize far above all this world has or can boast."

Patrick Henry gave his famous "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" speech in St. John's Church in March of 1775, where he advocated going to war with Great Britain. He mentions God five times in that speech, which ends with two references to God: "There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The war is actually begun! Why stand we here idle? What is that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!!"

Let me briefly identify the Christian involvement and Christian faith of other key figures from the time of the Revolution:

Alexander Hamilton helped form the Christian Constitutional Society. With Reverend James Bayard, the Christian Constitutional Society spread Christianity and the ideal of a Constitution formed under Christianity.

Thomas Jefferson wrote, in 1781: "It is God who gave us life and liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever."

Thomas Jefferson also wrote: "The doctrines of Jesus are simple, and tend to all the happiness of man." And: "Of all the systems of morality, ancient or modern which have come under my observation, none appears to me so pure as that of Jesus." And: "I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus."

You can't get any more explicit than that. Yet, there are those who will pick out a phrase here or a line there to try to prove their point that Thomas Jefferson was a Deist.

John Adams wrote this to his wife Abigail, after the Second Continental Congress voted to declare our Independence from Great Britain. He thought the vote was the most important thing, rather than the actual writing of the Declaration two days later: "The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It aught to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forevermore.

"It may be the will of Heaven that America will suffer calamities still more wasting, and distress yet more dreadful. If this is to be the case, it will have this good effect at least. It will inspire us with many virtues which we have not, and correct many errors, follies and vices which threaten to disturb, dishonor and destroy us. But I must submit all my hopes and fears to an overruling Providence, in which, unfashionable as the faith may be, I firmly believe."

Here's another, one I can directly relate to: The Reverend John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, a famous preacher of the day:

In a sermon delivered to his Virginia congregation on Jan 21, 1776, he preached from Ecclesiastes 3. Arriving at verse 8, which declares that there is a time of war and a time of peace, Muhlenberg noted that this surely was not the time of peace; this was the time of war. Concluding with a prayer, and while standing in full view of the congregation, he removed his clerical robes to reveal that beneath them he was wearing the uniform of an officer in the Virginia Regiment. He marched to the back of the church; ordered the drum to beat for recruits and over three hundred men joined him, becoming the Eighth Virginia Brigade. Reverend Muhlenberg finished the Revolution as a Major General, having been at Valley Forge and having participated in the battles of Brandywine, Germantown, Monmouth, Stonypoint, and Yorktown. In fact, I'm proud that one of my own patriot ancestors, Drury Jackson, was under his command, fought in two of these battles, and was also with Washington at Valley Forge through that terrible winter of 1777.

Time does not allow me to discuss the Christianity of many of our heroes of the Revolution, but I would be remiss if I didn't discuss the Christianity of the Father of our Country, George Washington, leader of the Continental Army, and later to become the first President of the United States of America. Let me tell you about his faith.

From the time he was 20 years of age, well before the Revolution, and even before the French and Indian War, Washington carried with him a small personal prayer book in his own handwriting, written on 24 pages. He had them labeled for recitation twice a day, for each day of the week. Most of that little book survives to this day.

After the French and Indian War, in the 1750's and 1760's, in which Washington served as the commander of the Virginia Regiment, he went back to Mt. Vernon, where he passed hours every day studying the Bible.

George Washington was unanimously elected Commander in Chief of the Continental Army by the Second Continental Congress, the members knowing that he was their best choice to lead this country into war against Great Britain.

The year 1776 was particularly hard on our troops. Over 1,000 of them lost their lives from gunfire. Over 1,200 were wounded. Over 6,000 were taken prisoner, and over 10,000 soldiers lost their lives to disease. Remember how our Biblical forefathers were visited by spirits? The Bible is full of stories of how men wrestled with angels, met with ancient prophets, or were visited by disembodied voices. Well, early in the War, General Washington claimed that he was visited by a spirit. He told a group of his officers at Valley Forge that, "I do not know whether it is owing to the anxiety of the mind, but this afternoon, as I was sitting at this table engaged in preparing a dispatch, something disturbed me. Looking up, I saw standing opposite a singularly beautiful female.

"So astonished was I, for I had given strict orders not to be disturbed, that it was some moments before I found language to inquire the purpose of her presence. A second, third, even a fourth time did I repeat my question but received no answer from my mysterious visitor, except for a slight raising of her eyes. Gradually, the surrounding atmosphere filled with sensation and grew more luminous. Everything about me seemed to rarefy, the mysterious visitor herself becoming more airy and yet more distinct to my sight than before."

Washington then went on to tell his officers that this being revealed to him four visions, including this nation's success in the War that lay ahead.

From that time on, Washington often attributed his success in the War of Independence to Divine Providence. Recognize those two words, Divine Providence? The same two words Thomas Jefferson wrote into the Declaration of Independence. The same deity who Patrick Henry wrote that presides over the destinies of nations and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The same God that John Adams said we would worship for giving us liberty. And, the same divinity that the Reverend John Peter Gabriel Muhlenburg represented when he became a leader in our revolutionary struggle for independence.

One man wrote that Washington's physical appearance was complemented by an aura, not merely of strength, but of invincibility. Surely, Washington felt God's protective hand deeply enough to risk his life over and over again to achieve our nation's independence. His immunity to gunfire seemed almost supernatural. Early in his career, a guide fired at him from point-blank range – and missed. Once he rode between two columns of his own men who were firing at one another by mistake and struck up their guns with his sword – the musket balls whizzing harmlessly by his head. In battle after battle, musket balls tore his clothes, knocked off his hat, and shredded his cape; at least four horses were shot out from under him, two in one battle alone; but he was never touched. What mortal could refuse to entrust his life to a man whom God obviously favored? What country could refuse to do so?

Washington would find through the course of the war over the next six years that Divine Providence seemed to play a hand in confusing the enemy and by giving the Americans mysterious fogs on more than one occasion that helped our allied Naval forces avoid detection. After each success, Washington credited God.

As schools continue to remove early American history from the curriculum, and take the remainder of the pictures of George Washington down from the classroom, we as parents and grandparents must take the role of instilling our faith, our patriotism, and the truth, in our children. Take them to church. Take them to museums that teach our nation's past. Sponsor their memberships in heritage organizations, like our own, to further their curiosity in their own family history.

Don't get discouraged when some groups try to revise our history. Arm yourself with the truth. Educate yourself on early American history. Read the best seller 1776 by David McCullough, and Faith of Our Founding Father, The Spiritual Journey of George Washington, by Janice T. Connell. There are over 100 books alone currently in print about George Washington, including a three hundred page paperback entitled George Washington the Christian, by William T. Johnson.

Be proud of our Christian forefathers. Live your Christianity from day to day so people know that you are a Christian. I am a Christian and don't mind saying so. I am a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and don't mind saying so. It's part of our responsibility as members to educate the public on the history of the Revolution, and we must not let revisionists take our Christian heritage away. God Bless America.

Larry Cornwell is a retired US Air Force colonel, a member of the General Richard Montgomery Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution in Montgomery, Alabama, and is a past president of the Alabama Society. He wears the uniform of a captain in Colonel Henry Knox's Regiment of Artillery when he speaks to civic groups, genealogical associations, military associations, and school children on the subject of the Revolutionary War soldier, and speaks to churches and other SAR chapters on the subject of The Christian Faith of our Patriot Forefathers. He is married to Leanne and they have two children, Patricia and Brian, and one grandchild, William Miller.