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He That Has Ears To Hear, Let Him Hear  (Matthew 11:15-30)
Challenging both secular wisdom and religious doctrines. - Will our descendants know moral virtue?

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Did you know?
Founder's Original Intent
Last Updated Monday March 30, 2009 08:03 PM -0500

Evidence of the Christian Biblical foundation of America's founders,
their actions and intentions concerning
the First Congress, education, slavery, immigration, Republic vs. Democracy, and more.

See also: Warnings from the wise o Quotes from Leaders with virtue o Founder's Quotes & more, & Complete list of selected quotes randomly displayed on EarsToHear.net home page

Back to America's Christian Heritage Index

Summary: What our Founders had to say about the Bible? "The Bible is the best of all books, for it is the word of God.... Continue therefore to read it and to regulate your life by its precepts." John Jay (1784) "Religion is the only solid basis of good morals; therefore education should teach the precepts of religion and the duties of man towards God." Gouverneur Morris (1791) "[W]here is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation deserts the oaths...?" George Washington (1796) "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." John Adams (1798) "[T]he only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty, and liberty is the object and life of all republican governments." Benjamin Rush (1806)

September 2008 - Finally, some in Congress are beginning to understand the importance of our Christian Heritage....

You will want to see this...

RESOLUTION Affirming the rich spiritual and religious history of our Nation’s founding and subsequent history and expressing support for designation of the first week in May as ‘‘American Religious History Week” for the appreciation of and education on America’s history of religious faith.

Note to secular humanist Democrats: Before inaccurately and inadequately dismissing these pages falsely as promoting theocracy, see Theocracy? Numerous blog discussions and commentaries have weakly dismissed the HISTORY presented here as promoting a theocracy as an excuse to escape and avoid the challenge to secular wisdom. (BTW - What new and improved foundation do secular humanists use to justify violating "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God?")

From the Pulpit to the Battlefield (Video report at link.) - By Wendy Griffith CBN News July 4, 2007 -  There have been many books written on our nation's beginnings, but what is not commonly known is the crucial role that churches and Christians played in defending and founding what was to become the United States of America. CBN News filed this report from the site of the first battle of the American Revolutionary War.

Just imagine what the colonists of Lexington, Mass. were up against. In the early morning hours of April 19, 1775, 700 British Redcoats were marching their way. And only about 77 colonial militia -- known as the MinuteMen -- were waiting, muskets in hand, to defend their families and town. Capt. John Parker, whose statue proudly overlooks the park, told his troops on that fateful day: "Stand your ground! Don't fire unless fired upon -- but if they mean to have war, let it begin here." And indeed it did. The famous shot that was heard 'round the world rang out on the Lexington Battle Green. To this day, nobody knows which side fired first -- but the war was on!

Prof. David Goss of Gordon College said, "We were up against one of the most powerful nations in the world, certainly the superpower of Europe. We had no munitions plants, we had no uniforms, we had no supplies, we had no navy, we had no real army. And to think of taking this nation on, and ever thinking that we had a chance of winning was nothing short of a miracle - it was a miracle."

Nearly all of the MinuteMen were Christians -- parishioners of the town's only church, pastored by the Rev. Jonas Clark. He himself was known as a great patriot and often preached revolution from the pulpit. The minister was also often the one in charge of organizing the town's militia, as every town was required by law to have a militia that was trained and ready to fight if necessary. This monument marks the spot where the town of Lexington's church stood for about 150 years.

"The ministers were often the only educated people in town; they had a captive audience once a week, and it was the only time everyone got together," said Dick Kollen, a historian with the Lexington Historical Society. "And so, if the minister was of a mind to use the pulpit to try and influence people to the Patriot point of view, they would look to him, and he was a very important authority figure."

We're all familiar with the famous midnight ride of Paul Revere -- well, this is where he came, to the home of the Rev. Jonas Clark. He came to warn Clark and his two prominent guests -- John Hancock and Sam Adams -- that the British were indeed coming.  Kollen said, "That fact is, the British were coming, but they were walking -- 15 miles away. So Capt. Parker says, 'Go home, but be within the sound of the drum.'"

When the battle at Lexington was over, two British soldiers were injured and eight MinuteMen were dead. Their bodies are buried on the Battle Green underneath a war monument. The words on the monument could not be more patriotic. They say: "On April 19, 1775, the die was cast!! The blood of the martyrs, in the cause of God and their country, was the cement of the Union of these states, then colonies." It goes on to say that "they nobly dared to be free, and the peace, liberty and independence of the United States of America was their glorious reward!"

"Almost all of the MinuteMen were Christians, that's the first thing we need to understand," said Tom Barrett, editor and publisher of Conservativetruth.org. "They believed that all authority was subject to the authority of God, and they knew they were doing the will of God by fighting oppression. They realized that the British had abused their authority and really enslaved the Colonists. And they knew that if they didn't fight the oppressors, no one else would."

There were many other influential clergy involved in the Revolutionary War, including Lutheran Rev. John Peter Muhlenberg of Woodstock, Virginia. Before marching off to join George Washington's army, at Washington's request, Muhlenberg delivered a powerful sermon from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 that concluded with these words: "The Bible tells us there is a time for all things, and there is a time to preach and a time to pray -- but the time for me to preach has passed away, and there is a time to fight, and that time has come now. Now is the time to fight!"

Barrett said, "With that, he took off his robe to reveal the uniform of a Virginia Colonel - he then took his musket from behind the pulpit, put on his Colonel's hat and marched off to lead his men to war!" Throughout the war, sustaining morale was a real struggle at home. Very often, the ministers were the ones who were looked to for that purpose.

The Rev. Nathaniel Whitaker of Salem, Massachusetts was one such man. A so-called "New Light' Presbyterian pastor, he played a significant role in helping to encourage privateering, the means by which Americans were able to gain war material when they didn't have factories. Prof. Goss explained, "They would capture British merchant vessels on the high seas and bring those goods home. He -- Whitaker --was instrumental in getting that business up and running. He was also instrumental in putting together a gun powder manufacturer in Salem to help support the war effort."

The clergy were so influential in the war effort that the British, and those loyal to the crown, referred to them as the Black Regiment because they wore black robes. "The king was afraid of the ministers," Barrett said, "because they refused to acknowledge the divine authority of the King. Their battle-cry was no king but 'King Jesus.'"

Some go as far as to say if it were not for the pastors and churches of Colonial America, our land would be a British Colony today. Barrett said, "The British governor of Massachusetts made the statement before the Revolution started that if the ministers ever came out in force to support the Revolution, that the cause would be lost -- in other words, the British would lose. They knew the power of religious people in this country."

Today, many scholars admit that the role of clergy and Christians is down-played in our nation's text books. "We're supposed to ignore and pretend that the Christian foundation of this nation never existed," Barrett said. "And I believe it's our responsibility as Christians to make sure that our children are raised knowing that this is, was, and always will be a Christian nation. People of other religions are welcome to live here, but this is a nation founded on the word of God, and we should never forget that." 

Did you know....(What your teachers or professors may not have taught.)

How America's Constitution Convention Began: Constitutional Convention: June 28, 1787, Thursday, was embroiled in a bitter debate over how each state was to be represented in the new government. The hostile feelings created by the smaller states being pitted against the larger states was so bitter that some delegates actually left the Convention. Benjamin Franklin, being the President (Governor) of Pennsylvania, hosted the rest of the 55 delegates attending the Convention. Being the senior member of the convention, at 81 years of age, he commanded the respect of all present, and, as recorded on James Madison's detailed records, he arose to address the Congress in this moment of crisis:

"Mr. President, the small progress we have made after four or five weeks close attendance & continual reasoning's with each other  - our different sentiments on almost every question, several of the last producing as many noes as ayes, is methinks a melancholy proof of the imperfection of the Human Understanding. We indeed seem to feel our own want of political wisdom, since we have been running about in search of it. We have gone back to ancient history for models of government, and examined the different forms of those Republics, which, having been formed with the seeds of their own dissolution, now no longer exist. And we have viewed Modern States all around Europe, but find none of their Constitutions suitable to our circumstance.

In this situation of this Assembly, groping as it were in the dark to find political truth, and scarce able to distinguish it when presented to us, how has it happened, Sir, that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of lights to illuminate our understanding?

In the beginning of the Contest with Great Britain, when we were sensible of danger we had daily prayer in this room for the Divine protection - Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a superintending providence in our favor.

To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful Friend? or do we imagine we no longer need His Assistance?

I have lived. Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth - that God Governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it possible that an empire can rise without His aid?

We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that "except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it." (Psalm 127:1) I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our partial local interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a reproach and bye word down to future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing Governments by Human wisdom and leave it to chance, war and conquest.

I therefore beg leave to move - that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on out deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the clergy of this city be requested to officiate in that service."

Jonathan Dayton, delegate from New Jersey, reported the reaction of Congress to Dr. Franklin's rebuke: "The Doctor sat down; and never did I behold a countenance at once so dignified as was that of Washington at the close of the address; nor were the members of the convention generally less affected. The words of the venerable Franklin fell upon our ears with a weight and authority, even greater than we may suppose an oracle to have had in a Roman senate." And: "We assembled again; and...every unfriendly feeling had been expelled, and a spirit of conciliation had been cultivated." (America's God and Country: Encyclopedia of Quotations by William J. Federer pp. 150-152)

See also: The Constitutional Convention - Gordon Lloyd, a professor at Pepperdine University, has constructed the best, most comprehensive and user-friendly resource on the Constitutional Convention debates available on the web

In 1950, the Florida Supreme Court declared: "A people unschooled about the sovereignty of God, the Ten Commandments, and the ethics of Jesus, could never have evolved the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution. There is not one solitary fundamental principle of our democratic policy that did not stem directly from the basis moral concepts as embodied in the Decalogue…."¹ [Ten Commandments]

"After reviewing an estimated 15,000 items, including newspaper articles, pamphlets, books, monographs, etc., written between 1760-1805 by the 55 men who wrote the constitution, Professors Donald S. Lutz and Charles S. Hyneman, in their work 'The Relative Influence of European Writers on Late Eighteenth-Century American Political Thought' revealed that the Bible, especially the book of Deuteronomy, contributed 34% of all quotations used by our Founding Fathers."²

"Additional sources the founders quoted took 60% of their quotes from the Bible. Direct and indirect citations combined reveal that the majority of all quotations referenced by the Founding Fathers are derived from the Bible."³

Congress’ Concern for Bible Shortage - Was the Bible important to the Continental Congress during the earliest days of the Revolution? The Continental Congress was evacuating Philadelphia as the British had just won the Battle of Brandywine, forcing Washington's troops to retreat to Valley Forge. In addition, Congress was informed that the war had interrupted trade with the King's authorized printers in England, thereby causing a shortage of Bibles, commonly used in education. On September 11, 1777, the fledgling organization approved and recommended that 20,000 copies of the Bible be imported from outside the Colonies because there was a great shortage of Bibles due to the interruptions in trade with England. A special Congressional Committee examined the matter, and recommended that "the Bibles be imported from Holland, Scotland, or elsewhere, into the different parts of the States of the Union." The Bibles were ordered and paid for by the young government. Their purpose? "The use of the Bible is so universal and its importance so great...it was resolved accordingly to direct said Committee of Commerce to import 20,000 copies of the Bible," and "For distribution among the troops battling for independence." The first page of each Bible was inscribed, "Approved for the American people." A few years later, Congress approved a distinctly American Bible. Aitken's Bible, published under Congressional patronage, was the first English language Bible published on the North American continent.

The U.S. Congress of 1803, at the request of President Thomas Jefferson, allocated federal funds for the salary of a minister and for the construction of a church. On December 3, 1803, the U.S. Congress, following the request of President Jefferson, ratified a treaty with the Kaskaskia Indians.  This treaty was significant because Congress, recognizing that most members of the tribe had become Christians, deemed to give an annual subsidy of $100 for the support of a priest during a seven-year period.  That priest, as the Congress noted, was to perform “the duties of his office, and... instruct as many... children as possible.”

Schools were originally set up by Churches for the purpose of Bible teaching.

In 1690 Connecticut established a Literacy Law with a fine of $25 (extremely considerable for that time) because children must be able to read if they are to read the Scriptures.

Also in 1690, Benjamin Harris' New England Primer textbook with a memorization rhyming alphabet was introduced using Scripture to teach reading and pronunciation. This Primer was reprinted and used for 210 years, until 1900. And Benjamin Rush warned if America ever removed the Bible from the classroom, all of our time will be spent fighting crime.

In 1781 Congress ruled that a new English edition of the Bible be printed and used by schools.

In 1782, the U.S. Congress voted in favor of a resolution recommending and approving the Bible for use in the schools.

Noah Webster provided the text book, History of the United States, used for over 60 years in public schools contained this statement: "The moral principles and precepts contained in the Scripture ought to form the basis of all our civil constitutions and laws." And " All the miseries and evils which men suffer from - vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery, and war - proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts contained in the Bible."

Fisher Ames, the founding father who actually wrote the First Amendment, expressed his belief that the Bible was to play a prominent role in public education when he said: "It has been the custom of late years to put a number of little books into the hands of children, containing fables and moral lessons. Why then, if these books for children must be retained,… should not the bible regain the place it once held as a school book? Its morals are pure, its examples captivating and noble. The reverence for the sacred book that is thus impressed lasts long… (T)he bible will justly remain the standard of language as well as faith." And "We are spending less time in the classroom on the Bible, which should be the principle text in our schools. The Bible states these great moral lessons better than any other manmade book."

Did You Know President Thomas Jefferson apparently "violated" his own "separation of Church and State" which has been falsely attributed to him in a "letter?"

The Myth of "Separation of Church and State" The phrase "separation of church and state" is used so many times that many people believe it is actually in the Constitution. This phrase occurs nowhere in the Constitution. In order to understand the original purpose of the First Amendment, all one has to do is read from the pages of The New England Primer. This book was first printed in 1690 and was a mandatory textbook for every student entering school throughout the 1700s. Almost every student read from the pages of this book through the early 1900s. This book contains what is known as The Shorter Catechism. Of the 107 questions in the Catechism, 40 deal specifically with the Ten Commandments. Students learned not only the alphabet and grammar, but were also taught Christian principles. The New England Primer used biblical concepts to teach the alphabet. For the letter "A", the students learned, "In Adam's Fall, We sinned all." For the letter "C", the students recited: "Christ crucified, For sinners died." The early founders believed that schools should be the means through which religion was taught to the masses. To obtain a copy of this fascinating book which debunks the myth of "separation of church and state", call Liberty Council at 1-800-671-1776 or go to the online store.

October 12, 1816 John Jay, America’s 1st Supreme Court Justice set forth in clear and concise terms his belief that America’s leaders must be first and foremost, Christian: "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."

The American Bible Society was started by an act of Congress and John Adams, our second president, served as its first leader.

Twelve of the original 13 colonies incorporated the entire Ten Commandments into their civil and criminal codes.

Now that you know the intent of America's founders....

Did you know....Roger Baldwin, the ACLU founder in 1920, and his love of Marxism, socialism, and using propaganda in the media and the real goal of the ACLU is to diminish the constitutional rights of American citizens. The ACLU founder and executive director from 1920 to 1950, Roger Baldwin, described the Soviet Union as a "great laboratory of social experimentation of incalculable value to the development of the world." He wanted to bring socialism to America, but he knew that to be effective, he had to disguise and mask this goal in terms of individual rights. He wrote: "Do steer away from making it look like a socialist enterprise. We want to look like patriots in everything we do. We want to get a good lot of flags, talk a good deal about the Constitution and what our forefathers wanted to make of the country, and to show that we are really the folks that really stand for the spirit of our institutions." (Quoted in William A. Donahue, Twilight of Liberty: The Legacy of the ACLU - New Brunswick, NJ: Transition Publishers, 1944, pp.6-7) More on the ACLU at http://www.reclaimamerica.org/Pages/ACLU/ACLUhome.html

Did you know that 52 of the 55 signers of the Declaration of Independence were orthodox, deeply committed Christians? The other three believed in the Bible as the divine truth, in the God of Scripture, in His personal intervention. (See also http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/constitution_founding_fathers.html) Of the fifty-six signers: 17 lost their fortunes, 12 had their homes destroyed, 9 fought and died, 5 were arrested as traitors, and 2 lost sons in the War.

Immediately after creating the Declaration of Independence, the Continental Congress voted to purchase and import 20,000 copies of the Scripture for the people of this nation. 

Patrick Henry is still remembered for his words, "Give me liberty or give me death." But in current textbooks the context of these words are deleted. Here is what he actually 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 and peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? 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. The following year, 1776, Henry wrote this: "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded not by religionists, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded the freedom of worship here." 

Consider these words Thomas Jefferson wrote in 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."  Jefferson was also the chairman of the American Bible Society, which he considered his highest and most important role. 

On July 4, 1821, President John Adams said, "The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of government with the principles of Christianity." 

Calvin Coolidge, our 30th President, 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 in our country." 

In 1782 Congress voted this resolution: "The Congress of the United States recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all schools." 

William Holmes McGuffey,  author of the McGuffey Reader used in our public schools until 1963,  said: "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 other source has the author drawn more conspicuously than from the sacred Scriptures. From 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 No.1 was students seeking entrance must know Latin and Greek so they can 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 for our children to follow the moral principles of the Ten Commandments." 

Rev. John Harvard. The College at Cambridge was renamed for him. Son of a butcher, his family died when a plague swept England, leaving him an estate. He attended Emmanuel College, was ordained, married and sailed for Massachusetts where he pastored the First Church of Charlestown. He died of tuberculosis at age 31, on September 14, 1638. He was Rev. John Harvard. The College at Cambridge was renamed for him. Ten of twelve Harvard presidents prior to the Revolution were ministers, as were 50 percent of 17th-century graduates. Harvard's founders wrote: "After God had carried us safe to New England, and we...rear'd convenient places for God's worship...dreading to leave an illiterate Ministry to the Churches, when our present Ministers shall lie in the Dust...it pleased God to stir up the heart of one Mr. Harvard, a godly gentleman and a lover of learning...to give the one half of his estate...towards the erecting of a college and all his Library." As 106 of the first 108 schools in America were founded on Christianity, Harvard's Rules & Precepts, September 26, 1642, stated: "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. Jn 17:3." American Minute with Bill Federer September 14

We ask God to bless America, especially as we remember the horrific tragedy of 9-11. But how can He bless a nation that has departed so far from Him? 

Prior to Sept. 11, God wasn't truly welcome in America, was He?
Is He yet? Certainly that's arguable, with godless federal judges declaring the Ten Commandments inappropriate for public display after ruling our Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional because it mentions God.

It truly is a shame most of what you read in this message has been erased from public school textbooks by revisionists intend on removing the Truth about our nation's Christian roots. What is the Truth? Jesus said: "I am the way, the truth and the life."

Pass this along to others so the Truth of our nation's history will be told. Share this patriotic message with everyone you know so the Lord, who has faithfully and lovingly watched over our nation all these years, may touch hardened hearts and inspire closed minds to His Truth -- that America still is one nation under God!
 
Make your stand for the Truth by signing a petition challenging today's Congress to reign in rogue judges so our Constitution again is interpreted in keeping with our forefathers' intent. Here's where to stand up for America's Godly heritage: http://www.ChristianPetitions.com

The Founding Fathers and Slavery

Did you know? Benjamin Franklin was president of America's first anti-slavery society.

Founders Quote Database

"I believe a time will come when an opportunity will be offered to abolish this lamentable evil. Everything we do is to improve it, if it happens in our day; if not, let us transmit to our descendants, together with our slaves, a pity for their unhappy lot and an abhorrence of slavery." - Patrick Henry (letter to Robert Pleasants, 18 January 1773) Reference: The Spirit of 'Seventy-Six, Henry Commager and Richard Morris, 402.

"[Y]our late purchase of an estate in the colony of Cayenne, with a view to emancipating the slaves on it, is a generous and noble proof of your humanity. Would to God a like spirit would diffuse itself generally into the minds of the people of this country; but I despair of seeing it." -- George Washington (letter to Marquis de Lafayette, 10 May 1786) Reference: Washington's Maxims, 159.

March 11th: Ben Franklin was the first president of the first anti-slavery society in the United States. Richard Bassett, a Signer of the Constitution, converted to Methodism, freed all his slaves and paid them as hired labor. John Quincy Adams fought to end slavery by removing Congress' Gag Rule. But it was Senator Charles Sumner's vehement stand against slavery that resulted in enraged Congressman Preston S. Brooks of South Carolina violently beating him on the head with a cane while he was seated at his desk on the floor of the U.S. Senate. Charles Sumner died MARCH 11, 1874, having never fully recovered from those injuries. A founder of the Republican Party, Sumner served as a Senator from Massachusetts for 23 years. He stated: "Familiarity with that great story of redemption, when God raised up the slave-born Moses to deliver His chosen people from bondage, and with that sublimer story where our Saviour died a cruel death that all men, without distinction of race, might be saved, makes slavery impossible." Charles Sumner continued: "There is no reason for renouncing Christianity, or for surrendering to the false religions; nor do I doubt that Christianity will yet prevail over the earth as the waters cover the sea."

Sumner, Charles. E.C. Lester, Life & Public Services of Charles Sumner, pp. 321, 171. Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, OR: American Heritage Ministries, 1987; Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, Bulverde, TX), p. 436.

March 24th: William Jay, son of the First Supreme Court Chief Justice, helped found New York City's Anti-Slavery Society in 1833. His son, John Jay, was manager of New York Young Men's Anti-Slavery Society in 1834. Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story helped establish the illegality of the slave trade in the 1844 Amistad case. Salmon P. Chase, appointed Chief Justice by Lincoln, defended so many escaped slaves in his career he was nicknamed "Attorney-General of Fugitive Slaves." Cassius Marcellus Clay, diplomat to Russia for Lincoln and Grant, founded the anti-slavery journal True American in 1845 and helped found the Republican party in 1854. Rufus King, born MARCH 24, 1755, was one of the youngest signers of the U.S. Constitution, only 32 years old. A Harvard graduate, Rufus was an aide to General Sullivan during the Revolutionary War. He later served as U.S. Minister to England and was a Senator from New York. In a speech made before the Senate at the time Missouri was petitioning for statehood, Rufus King stated: "I hold that all laws or compacts imposing any such condition as slavery upon any human being are absolutely void because they are contrary to the law of nature, which is the law of God."

King, Rufus. M.E. Bradford, A Worthy Company (Marlborough, NH: Plymouth Rock Foundation, 1982), p. 15. Tim LaHaye, Faith of Our Founding Fathers (Brentwood, TN: Wolgemuth & Hyatt, Publishers, Inc., 1987), p. 161.

"[Y]our late purchase of an estate in the colony of Cayenne, with a view to emancipating the slaves on it, is a generous and noble proof of your humanity. Would to God a like spirit would diffuse itself generally into the minds of the people of this country; but I despair of seeing it." George Washington (letter to Marquis de Lafayette, 10 May 1786) Reference: Washington's Maxims, 159.

Black Rednecks, White Liberals by Thomas Sowell The question arises as to why America's Founder's established "all men are created equal," while at the same time allowing slavery to continue? From the words of the Founders, it appears they feared a race war as being more of an evil consequence then slavery, after witnessing the what happened in Santa Domingo (now Haiti). So they instead hoped slavery would be progressively eradicated more peacefully rather than by violence. Slavery is not based on racism, but on vulnerability. It was based on religion at times, but also regardless of race. Not only did whites enslave whites, and blacks enslaved blacks, and Asians enslaved Asians, Europeans also enslaved other Europeans, Africans enslaved other Africans, and Arabs enslaved other Arabs, who were vulnerable, regardless of race. Also, Christians had slaves, as well as Buddhists had slaves, and the Muslim's Koran accepts slavery as an institution.

------------------------------------

The Founding Fathers and Slavery by David Barton

Even though the issue of slavery is often raised as a discrediting charge against the Founding Fathers, the historical fact is that slavery was not the product of, nor was it an evil introduced by, the Founding Fathers; slavery had been introduced to America nearly two centuries before the Founders. ...The Revolution was the turning point in the national attitude-and it was the Founding Fathers who contributed greatly to that change. In fact, many of the Founders vigorously complained against the fact that Great Britain had forcefully imposed upon the Colonies the evil of slavery.

For example, Thomas Jefferson heavily criticized that British policy: He [King George III] has waged cruel war against human nature itself, violating its most sacred rights of life and liberty in the persons of a distant people who never offended him, captivating and carrying them into slavery in another hemisphere or to incur miserable death in their transportation thither. . . . Determined to keep open a market where men should be bought and sold, he has prostituted his negative for suppressing every legislative attempt to prohibit or to restrain this execrable commerce [that is, he has opposed efforts to prohibit the slave trade].

Benjamin Franklin, in a 1773 letter to Dean Woodward, confirmed that whenever the Americans had attempted to end slavery, the British government had indeed thwarted those attempts. Franklin explained that . . .. . . a disposition to abolish slavery prevails in North America, that many of Pennsylvanians have set their slaves at liberty, and that even the Virginia Assembly have petitioned the King for permission to make a law for preventing the importation of more into that colony. This request, however, will probably not be granted as their former laws of that kind have always been repealed.

Further confirmation that even the Virginia Founders were not responsible for slavery, but actually tried to dismantle the institution, was provided by John Quincy Adams (known as the "hell-hound of abolition" for his extensive efforts against that evil). Adams explained: The inconsistency of the institution of domestic slavery with the principles of the Declaration of Independence was seen and lamented by all the southern patriots of the Revolution; by no one with deeper and more unalterable conviction than by the author of the Declaration himself [Jefferson]. No charge of insincerity or hypocrisy can be fairly laid to their charge. Never from their lips was heard one syllable of attempt to justify the institution of slavery. They universally considered it as a reproach fastened upon them by the unnatural step-mother country [Great Britain] and they saw that before the principles of the Declaration of Independence, slavery, in common with every other mode of oppression, was destined sooner or later to be banished from the earth. Such was the undoubting conviction of Jefferson to his dying day. In the Memoir of His Life, written at the age of seventy-seven, he gave to his countrymen the solemn and emphatic warning that the day was not distant when they must hear and adopt the general emancipation of their slaves. Click here for complete column.

Six inconvenient truths about the U.S. and slavery Michael Medved (Townhall.com) Those who want to discredit the United States and to deny our role as history's most powerful and pre-eminent force for freedom, goodness and human dignity invariably focus on America's bloody past as a slave-holding nation.

The Bible, Slavery, and America's Founders By Stephen McDowell - America's Founding Fathers are seen by some people today as unjust and hypocrites, for while they talked of liberty and equality, they at the same time were enslaving hundreds of thousands of Africans. Some allege that the Founders bear most of the blame for the evils of slavery. Consequently, many today have little respect for the Founders and turn their ear from listening to anything they may have to say. And, in their view, to speak of America as founded as a Christian nation is unthinkable (for how could a Christian nation tolerate slavery?).

...America's Founders were predominantly Christians and had a Biblical worldview. If that was so, some say, how could they allow slavery, for isn't slavery sin? As the Bible reveals to man what is sin, we need to examine what it has to say about slavery.

...Slavery has existed throughout the world since after the fall of man. Egypt and other ancient empires enslaved multitudes. Greece and Rome had many slaves, taken from nations they conquered. Slavery was a part of almost every culture. While some Christian nations had taken steps to end slavery, it was still an established part of most of the world when America began to be settled.

...The overwhelming majority of early Americans and most of America's leaders did not own slaves. Some did own slaves, which were often inherited (like George Washington at age eleven), but many of these people set them free after independence. Most Founders believed that slavery was wrong and that it should be abolished. William Livingston, signer of the Constitution and Governor of New Jersey, wrote to an anti-slavery society in New York (John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and President of the Continental Congress, was President of this society):

...The founders did not just believe slavery was an evil that needed to be abolished, and they did not just speak against it, but they acted on their beliefs. During the Revolutionary War black slaves who fought won their freedom in every state except South Carolina and Georgia.

...Many of the founders started and served in anti-slavery societies. Franklin and Rush founded the first such society in America in 1774. John Jay was president of a similar society in New York. Other Founding Fathers serving in anti-slavery societies included: William Livingston (Constitution signer), James Madison, Richard Bassett, James Monroe, Bushrod Washington, Charles Carroll, William Few, John Marshall, Richard Stockton, Zephaniah Swift, and many more.

...The Founders opposed slavery based upon the principle of the equality of all men. Throughout history many slaves have revolted but it was believed (even by those enslaved) that some people had the right to enslave others. The American slave protests were the first in history based on principles of God-endowed liberty for all. It was not the secularists who spoke out against slavery but the ministers and Christian statesmen.

...Although no Southern state abolished slavery, there was much anti-slavery sentiment. Many anti-slavery societies were started, especially in the upper South. Many Southern states considered proposals abolishing slavery, for example, the Virginia legislature in 1778 and 1796. When none passed, many, like Washington, set their slaves free, making provision for their well being.

American Minute for March 11th: Ben Franklin was the first president of the first anti-slavery society in the United States.

Richard Bassett, a Signer of the Constitution, converted to Methodism, freed all his slaves and paid them as hired labor.

John Quincy Adams fought to end slavery by removing Congress' Gag Rule.

It was Senator Charles Sumner's vehement stand against slavery that resulted in Congressman Preston S. Brooks of South Carolina violently beating Sumner on the head with a cane while he was seated at his desk on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

Charles Sumner died MARCH 11, 1874, having never fully recovered from those injuries. A founder of the Republican Party, Charles Sumner served as a Senator from Massachusetts for 23 years.

He stated: "Familiarity with that great story of redemption, when God raised up the slave-born Moses to deliver His chosen people from bondage, and with that sublimer story where our Saviour died a cruel death that all men, without distinction of race, might be saved, makes slavery impossible."

Charles Sumner continued: "There is no reason for renouncing Christianity, or for surrendering to the false religions; nor do I doubt that Christianity will yet prevail over the earth as the waters cover the sea."

American Minute for March 24th: William Jay, son of the First Supreme Court Chief Justice, helped found New York City's Anti-Slavery Society in 1833.

His son, John Jay, was manager of New York Young Men's Anti-Slavery Society in 1834. Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story helped establish the illegality of the slave trade in the 1844 Amistad case.

Salmon P. Chase, appointed Chief Justice by Lincoln, defended so many escaped slaves in his career he was nicknamed "Attorney-General of Fugitive Slaves."

Cassius Marcellus Clay, diplomat to Russia for Lincoln and Grant, founded the anti-slavery journal True American in 1845 and helped found the Republican party in 1854.

Rufus King, born MARCH 24, 1755, was one of the youngest signers of the U.S. Constitution, only 32 years old. A Harvard graduate, Rufus King was an aide to General Sullivan during the Revolutionary War. Rufus King later served as U.S. Minister to England and was a Senator from New York. In a speech made before the Senate at the time Missouri was petitioning for statehood, Rufus King stated: "I hold that all laws or compacts imposing any such condition as slavery upon any human being are absolutely void because they are contrary to the law of nature, which is the law of God."

Immigration

Patrick Henry -  "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.  For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here."

George Washington - "The bosom of America is open to receive not only the Opulent and respectable Stranger, but the oppressed and persecuted of all Nations and Religions; whom we shall welcome to a participation of all our rights and privileges, if by decency and propriety of conduct they appear to merit the enjoyment."

"Citizens by birth or choice of a common country, that country has a right to concentrate your affections. The name of American, which belongs to you, in your national capacity, must always exalt the just pride of Patriotism, more than any appellation derived from local discriminations."

Theodore Roosevelt - "The one absolute way of bringing this nation to ruin, or preventing all possibility of its continuing to be a nation at all, would be to permit it to become a tangle of squabbling nationalities. we have but one flag. We must also learn one language and that language is English."

Calvin Coolidge - "Restricted immigration is not an offensive but purely a defensive action. It is not adopted in criticism of others in the slightest degree, but solely for the purpose of protecting ourselves. We cast no aspersions on any race or creed, but we must remember that every object of our institutions of society and government will fail unless America be kept American. American institutions rest solely on good citizenship. They were created by people who had a background of self-government. New arrivals should be limited to our capacity to absorb them into the ranks of good citizenship. America must be kept American. For this purpose, it is necessary to continue a policy of restricted immigration. It would lie well to make such immigration of a selective nature with some inspection at the source, and based either on a prior census or upon the record of naturalization. Either method would insure the admission of those with the largest capacity and best intention of becoming citizens. I am convinced that our present economic and social conditions warrant a limitation of those to be admitted. We should find additional safety in a law requiring the immediate registration of all aliens. Those who do not want to be partakers of the American spirit ought not to settle in America."

Click here for more on immigration and resources.

Republic vs. Democracy

Federalist No. 14 - Author James Madison - ...The error which limits republican government to a narrow district has been unfolded and refuted in preceding papers. I remark here only that it seems to owe its rise and prevalence chiefly to the confounding of a republic with a democracy, applying to the former reasonings drawn from the nature of the latter. The true distinction between these forms was also adverted to on a former occasion. It is, that in a democracy, the people meet and exercise the government in person; in a republic, they assemble and administer it by their representatives and agents. A democracy, consequently, will be confined to a small spot. A republic may be extended over a large region. 

...Under the confusion of names, it has been an easy task to transfer to a republic observations applicable to a democracy only; and among others, the observation that it can never be established but among a small number of people, living within a small compass of territory.

...The error which limits republican government to a narrow district has been unfolded and refuted in preceding papers. I remark here only that it seems to owe its rise and prevalence chiefly to the confounding of a republic with a democracy, applying to the former reasonings drawn from the nature of the latter. The true distinction between these forms was also adverted to on a former occasion. It is, that in a democracy, the people meet and exercise the government in person; in a republic, they assemble and administer it by their representatives and agents. A democracy, consequently, will be confined to a small spot. A republic may be extended over a large region.

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Excerpt from: U.S. Supreme Court PACIFIC STATES TELEPHONE & TELEGRAPH CO. v. STATE OF OREGON, 223 U.S. 118 (1912) 223 U.S. 118 - PACIFIC STATES TELEPHONE & TELEGRAPH COMPANY, Plff. in Err., v. STATE OF OREGON. No. 36. - Argued November 3, 1911. Decided February 19, 1912.

1. Difference between a republic and democracy.

2. In ascertaining the meaning of the phrase 'republican form of government,' the debates of the constitutional conventions and the federalist papers are of great importance, if not conclusive.

3. The framers of the Constitution recognized the distinction between the republican and democratic form of government, and carefully avoided the latter.

4. The extent of territory of the states alone sufficed, in the judgment of the framers of the Constitution, to condemn the establishment of a democratic form of government.

5. The form of state government perpetuated by the Constitution was the republican form, with the three departments of government, in force in all the states at the time of the adoption of the Constitution.

6. The history of other nations does not furnish the definition of the phrase 'republican form of government,' as those words were used by the framers of the Constitution. They distinguish the American from all other republics by the introduction of the principle of representation.

7. Initiative legislation is invalid because government by the people directly is inconsistent with our form of government.

8. The well-known practices of (a) adopting state Constitutions by popular vote, and of (b) local legislation in 'town meetings,' furnish no precedent for the lodgment of legislative power in the ballot box. [223 U.S. 118, 139]   V.

'The Federal Constitution presupposes in each state the maintenance of a republican form of government and the existence of state legislatures, to wit: Representative assemblies having the power to make the laws; and that in each state the powers of government will be divided into three departments: a legislature, an executive, and a judiciary. One of these, the legislature, is destroyed by the initiative.

Did you know? See also: America's Foundation, Founder's Quotes & more, Leading By Example, In Our Nation's Capitol, Warnings, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ronald Reagan, and American History Resources.

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