Founding Fathers: Atheists? Deists? Are You Sure?

By Ray Strobo

Whats this book about? It's about TRUTH. According to the Internet and the media, the Founding Fathers were deists and atheists. That is NOT TRUE. The Historical Record is clear: The Signers of the Declaration of Independence, an exemplar of the Founding Fathers, were, for the most part, men of religious faith. The reader is directed to hundreds of historical references, many accessible online, which tell us the TRUTH that none of the Signers of the Declaration were publicly professing atheists and only a handful of them were ever publicly categorized as deists in their day. (And most of those characterizations were NOT TRUE.)

The author spent years researching this subject and gathering data about the Signers from biographies, wills, magazine articles, newspaper articles, personal correspondence, speeches, legislation, first-hand testimonials, obituaries, eulogies, tombstone engravings, and character studies. The overall conclusion from these sources is inescapable: Religion played a significant role in the private and public lives of most of these patriots. (The religion of their day in the British North American colonies was Christianity.)

Meet these Signers for yourself, all 56 of them. See them as real people, "ordinary" men in many cases, called on to do extraordinary things in the face of overwhelming odds. Hear them give credit to the "interposition of God" as they overcame those odds. See TRUTH through their eyes and through the eyes of people who knew them or researched them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Aug 31, 2017
• ISBN: 9781512777758

Ray Strobo

Ray Strobo combined his love of American History with his prowess as a detailed researcher into a unique study of the religiosity of the Founding Fathers of the United States, specifically the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence. His years of research and study on this subject have produced some surprising insights into the religious beliefs of these patriots who "turned the world upside down".

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Copyright © 2017 Ray Strobo.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-7776-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-7777-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-7775-8 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017903561

Print information available on the last page.

WestBow Press rev. date:  08/29/2017

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from the AUTHORIZED KING JAMES VERSION OF THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS. Copyright 1995-2010 by the Zondervan Corporation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked (GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION) are from the GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION in Today’s English Version - Second Edition Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.

Scripture quotations marked (HOLMAN CHRISTIAN STANDARD) are taken from the HOLMAN CHRISTIAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations marked (NEW CENTURY VERSION) are taken from the NEW CENTURY VERSION®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION) are from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (NEW LIVING TRANSLATION) are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW LIVING TRANSLATION, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to my wife, Winnie, the love and anchor of my life.

CONTENTS

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Preface

Chapter 1     METHODOLOGY AND DEFINITIONS

Chapter 2     THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

Chapter 3     CONNECTICUT

Chapter 4     DELAWARE

Chapter 5     GEORGIA

Chapter 6     MARYLAND

Chapter 7     MASSACHUSETTS

Chapter 8     NEW HAMPSHIRE

Chapter 9     NEW JERSEY

Chapter 10   NEW YORK

Chapter 11   NORTH CAROLINA

Chapter 12   PENNSYLVANIA

Chapter 13   RHODE ISLAND

Chapter 14   SOUTH CAROLINA

Chapter 15   VIRGINIA

Chapter 16   SUMMARY AND REFLECTIONS

Appendix     DEISM

Bibliography

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

There are many people to thank for the existence of this book. Various friends encouraged me to embark on this project. Without their assurance that an unknown writer could take on a project of this magnitude, I would never have begun. Over the years, they kept encouraging me to continue researching and writing, to find out what I didn’t know, and to get it all down on paper. You all know who you are. Thank you for not letting me let the project die.

Having never written anything of this size before, I had to learn how to write a book. It is not enough to know facts, to understand motives and motivation, and to have a vocabulary. The writer must be able to make the reader want to read his work by presenting the material in an understandable, enjoyable manner. I pulled knowledge and direction on the mechanics of successful writing, on the do’s-and-don’t’s, from many how-to writers and authors.

Joe Johnson believed in this project from day one. He introduced me and the project to a number of knowledgeable and influential people who also gave valuable feedback and encouragement. Dr. Clarence Sexton, Dr. Bill Fowler, Dr. Ted Lewis, Dr. Gary Weedman, Hallerin Hill, and Alan Williams all took time to listen to a description of the project and endorse its purpose and methodology. Thank you, gentlemen, for your words of advice and support. And thank you, Joe, for believing in the project and devoting your time and effort to making it successful.

Completing this book required a tremendous amount of research to uncover and verify events and quotations. I talked with people across the country, searching for accurate and pertinent information. Many researchers, librarians, administrators, and authors all provided important pieces of the puzzle and encouraged me to keep going. Thank you all for your contributions of facts, for your suggestions, and for your affirming comments.

Having said all of the above, the truth is, there would be no book without the support and understanding and patience of my wife, Winnie. During those years of research and writing, Winnie never complained, never advised giving up and moving on. She never said that I was unrealistic and dreaming, that I was in over my head. She endured months and years of research and writing and re-writing and editing and searching for a publisher. She heard the life stories of these real-life patriots over and over, and never tuned me out. I did the research and put the words on paper, but without Winnie’s support and acquiescence, there would be no book. Thank you, Winnie, for your sacrifices and for your acceptance, patience, and love.

PREFACE

In the beginning, I had no intention of writing a book. I expected to invest a few hours researching the religious beliefs of the Founding Fathers to address the claim, prevalent on the Internet, that the Founding Fathers were all deists and atheists. Those few hours of Internet research turned into several years of focused reading, study, and analysis, and this book is the result of that effort. It explores in detail the religious beliefs of the 56 men who signed the United States Declaration of Independence.

A recent Google search for founding fathers and deists produced over 60,000 entries. Similarly, founding fathers and atheists produced over 300,000 entries. Were the Founding Fathers really deists and atheists as the Internet and the media frequently suggest?¹ Or were they practitioners of revealed religion as others claim?

To learn what the Founding Fathers believed and practiced centuries ago, we have to look at the written record, the history-book of their lives and times. None of the men are alive today for us to question, nor can we interview anyone who knew them. So how do you go about determining what people of the past were like, what they thought, what they valued, what motivated them?

For a start, we can study what they themselves said about what they thought and believed, what they did and why they did it. Who better to testify to the belief structure and philosophy of the Founding Fathers than the Founding Fathers themselves? If a Founder said that he was a Buddhist or an atheist or a deist or a Christian, we have to accept what they said as truth. We are fortunate that many of the Founders left us a bountiful historical record in that regard.

Furthermore, the Founders associated with many friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers. If we want to know something about their lifestyle and beliefs, we can read what contemporary biographers, eulogists, and acquaintances said about them.

When I started, I assumed that determining the religious beliefs of the Founders would be a straightforward process. After all, hundreds of books and articles have been written about them; surely some of these would contain information on the Founders’ religious convictions or lack thereof. I thought the Internet would be a good resource to help organize and simplify the process. With sufficient information in hand, it should be a simple matter to develop a conclusion about the accuracy of the claim that the Founding Fathers were deists and atheists.

It turned out to be not so easy. It took a lot of digging and cross-checking to uncover what 56 individuals believed religiously. The good news is that the data are there. The historical record is replete with information about the Founding Fathers, including their religious views.

Because there is so much information available, I have had to maintain a very narrow focus. This is not a book on Revolutionary War history, political science, or comparative religions. It is a book focused strictly on examining the truth of the popular claim that deists and atheists founded the United States of America. For complete treatises on those other broad subjects, readers will have to go elsewhere. My task here was simply to crystallize the evidence on each Founder into a summary statement of what he believed, and then to compare those beliefs to the ideologies of deism and atheism.

Because of its focus, this study deals mostly with atheism and deism as they relate to the religious beliefs of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence. (And, tangentially, with Christianity.) Of course, in the vast world of religion there are belief systems and doctrines other than deism, atheism, and Christianity: pantheism, occultism, rationalism, theistic rationalism, Platonism, etc. Since this is not a study of comparative religions and doctrines, and the focus of the study is whether or not the Signers were deists and atheists, we will not discuss in depth any of these other doctrines or belief systems.

Theistic rationalism is said to combine aspects of deism, natural religion, and Christianity and to fall somewhere between deism and Christianity. One of the differentiations between theistic rationalism and Christianity is that theistic rationalists, although they accept the Bible as useful, are free to decide for themselves which parts of the Bible are true—are rational, make sense— and which ones are not true. Each rationalist could have his own rationalized Bible, different from that of any other rationalist.

In all the historical records I examined, I did not uncover a Signer who called himself a theistic rationalist. Without a historical record to examine, it would be difficult for us today to determine which Scriptures or how many Scriptures a specific Signer considered as true and rational, and which ones he labeled as false or irrational.

Another differentiation between theistic rationalism and Christianity is said to be the use of alternative names for GOD instead of using the term God; e.g., Supreme Being or Disposer of All Events in the place of God. If a Christian refers to GOD as Supreme Being, would that make him a theistic rationalist? If a deist uses the name God for GOD, would that make him a Unitarian?

Could there be a theistic rationalist among the Signers? To answer that question accurately, the writings, speeches, biographies, wills, eulogies, tombstones, magazine articles, etc. concerning each Signer would have to be examined in light of the definition of a theistic rationalist and a decision made on a Signer-by-Signer basis. Such an exercise is outside the purview of this study.

There have been many good studies on the religious beliefs of the Founding Fathers using different approaches and arriving at different conclusions. As well-researched and as well-intentioned as these studies might be, none of the studies satisfy everyone. This one will probably not satisfy everyone either. I do hope that it will provide some insight and stimulate more research into the lives of this most fascinating group of Founding Fathers, the Signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Throughout this book, I will use the term Founding Fathers (or simply Founders) to refer to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence of the United States. These 56 men were uncommon individuals from disparate backgrounds: young and old, rich and poor, some famous and well-educated, others not so. Were all these early American patriots saints, personifications of virtue and righteousness and morality? No, they were fallible human beings just like us. They had character flaws, they made mistakes in judgment, and some of their actions were self-serving. But my, were they special in their day!

As William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, pronounced on the floor of Parliament in 1775:²

I must declare and avow that, in the master states of the world, I know not the people, nor the senate, who, under such a complication of difficult circumstances, can stand in preference to the delegates of America, assembled general congress at Philadelphia. For genuine sagacity, for singular moderation, for solid wisdom, manly spirit, manly sentiments, and simplicity of language, for everything respectable and honorable, they stand unrivaled.

Taken as a group, the Founders do stand unrivaled in the political history of western civilization.

What did the Signers of the Declaration of Independence believe religiously? Let’s find out.

CHAPTER 1

METHODOLOGY AND DEFINITIONS

It sounded simple enough at first. Look up the Founding Fathers and find out what they believed about deism and atheism. Read what people who knew them or studied them said about their deistic and atheistic beliefs. Tally up the score and develop a definitive response to the claim that the Founding Fathers were deists and atheists.

A cursory look at the data showed that the Founding Fathers were not homogeneous, cookie-cutter people. They did not think alike or speak in the same way, nor did they come from the same religious, socioeconomic, or ethnic background. Some were wealthy, some were poor. Some spoke eloquently in meetings; others were shy or reluctant to speak at all. They were a hodgepodge, a mixture, a group of people with different agendas and disparate motivations. They were not an amalgam because they maintained their separate identities, nor a melting pot because they were never condensed down to one common thought, belief, or philosophy.

Even as they transformed a wilderness into a society of laws and values, banded together in log forts for common protection, built towns together, sat around tables and debated the wisdom of going to war, or spoke in classrooms, pulpits or colonial assembly halls, they maintained their differences, just as we do. They were products of hereditary and environmental factors, just as we are.

Yet at certain times—crucial times—these men tabled their differences to act in concert, even if it meant compromising a belief or position in order to do so. The study of how these men reached a consensus that changed the world is a fascinating one.

To study the Founding Fathers, of course, I had to define whom I would consider a Founder. As mentioned in the preface, I have delimited this study to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence. Many others made significant contributions to the founding of the United States, of course, but the 56 Signers are representative of the broad category Founding Fathers.

The other essential definitions for this study were terms defining religious beliefs. To determine whether someone was a deist, an atheist, or a follower of revealed religion (i.e., one who believes that God has revealed to men and women what they should believe religiously and how they should live), we need to develop a shared understanding of these terms.

Whether deist, atheist, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu or Muslim, the Founders were influenced by the culture around them as they were growing up. They were influenced by their family settings, by what they read in newspapers or in books, by what they heard in their houses of worship from their worship leaders, and by what they heard in the classrooms.

We need to establish some definitions.

Founding Father

When talking about the Founding Fathers, some people list only five or six names. Five or six men could not have started the United States by themselves, no matter how gifted they were. As an overall statement, we could say that a Founding Father was someone who contributed significantly to the start-up of the United States of America. We can debate significantly but we understand the principle of the definition.

Each generation of Founding Fathers got some of its ideas on government, the place of law in society, representation, religion, and the organization of governing bodies from the original settlers of Massachusetts, New Haven, Plymouth Colony, and Virginia. As we move forward in time from the first boatloads of American settlers, other groups emerge who should be included in the description of Founding Fathers.

• the colonial and state governors of that period

• the leading Colonial Council members

• the Signers of the Declaration of Independence

• the Signers of the Articles of Confederation

• the Signers of the Constitution

• the military leaders of the Revolutionary War

• the first justices of the Supreme Court

• the presidents before and immediately after the ratification of the constitution

Quite a sizable group of people who significantly influenced the start-up of America. Of course, duplications occur within the several groupings since some people appear in more than one category. How many in total are we talking about? Counting just the Signers of the Declaration of Independence (56), the Signers of the Articles of Confederation (48), and the Signers of the Constitution of the United States (39), we have a total of 143 men so we know the overall total number of Founding Fathers to be included in our study must be greater than 143. The total number of Founding Fathers? 250, plus or minus?

The Internet is a great resource for this study as it has thousands of comments on the subjects of the study, searchable databases, cross-linkages with other applicable sources and, importantly, citable pages for the readers of this book to explore and expand their knowledge of the topic.

Deism

Prior to getting involved in this project, I was only vaguely familiar with the subject of deism. In this study I used several reference sources to develop a composite definition of the term. Some representative definitions:

The belief or system of religious opinions of those who acknowledge the existence of one God, but deny revelation: or deism is the belief in natural religion only, or those truths, in doctrine and practice, which man is to discover by the light of reason, independent and exclusive of any revelation from God. Hence deism implies infidelity or a disbelief in the divine origin of the scriptures.

A Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. I, Noah Webster. Black, Young, and Young, London. 1832. P DEI-DEL.

https://books.google.com/books?id=BF9fAAAAcAAJ&pg=PP571&lpg=

PP571&dq=bl&ots=X5beeqnEsc&sig=zn7tHCRE1h03bChBcic_T5zUBz4&hl=

en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjs0vrq2pTTAhUE9IMKHbz7A4EQ6AEIKTAD#v=

onepage&q=bl&f=false

A movement or system of thought advocating natural religion, emphasizing morality, and in the 18th century denying the interference of the Creator with the laws of the universe.

By permission. From Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition ©2015 by Merriam-Webster, Inc. (www.Merriam-Webster.com).

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deism

(Deism) looks upon God as wholly apart from the concerns of this world. It thus implies a disbelief in revelation, scepticism as regards the value of miraculous evidence, and an assumption that the light of nature and reason are the only guides in doctrine and practise.

The Junior Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. I, Edited by L. Brent Vaughn. E. G. Melvin and Company, Chicago. 1897. P DEGREE-DELAGOA BAY

https://books.google.com/books?id=KlYKAQAAMAAJ&pg=PT682=false

(Deists) rejected revelation because man’s natural reason seemed to them perfectly adequate to assure him of the existence of God and the right form of worship…. They rejected the Trinity, the deity of Christ, vicarious atonement, the supernatural or infallible inspiration of the Scriptures.

Johnson’s Universal Cyclopedia, Vol II, Charles Kendall Adams, Editor-in Chief. A. J. Johnson Company, New York. 1894. P 706.

https://books.google.com/books?id=mTdOAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA706=false

System of natural religion, first developed in England in the late 17th century. It affirmed belief in one God, but held that He detached himself from the universe after its creation and made no revelation. Reason was man’s only guide. The deists opposed revealed religion in general, and Christianity in particular.

World Encyclopedia, Originally published by the Oxford University Press, Oxford, NY. 2005, 2009. (By permission of Oxford University Press.)

The doctrine that God is distinct and separated from the world; belief in the existence of a personal God, accompanied with the denial of revelation and of the authority of the Christian church.

The Century Dictionary: An Encyclopedic Lexicon of the English Language, Vol. II, William Dwight Whitney. The Century Company, New York. 1897. P 1511.

https://books.google.com/books?id=uvNOAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA1511&dq=%22

The+doctrine+that+God+is+distinct+and+separated+from+the+world%

22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiq0MjOnaPNAhXk7YMKHf_OAJ4Q6A

EIKDAC#v=onepage&q=%22The%20doctrine%20that%20God%20is%

20distinct%20and%20separated%20from%20the%20world%22&f=false

Deist

One who believes in the existence of a God, but denies revealed religion; one who professes no form of religion, but follows the light of nature and reason as his only guides in doctrine and practice.

A Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. I, Noah Webster. Black, Young, and Young, London. 1831. P DEI-DEL.

https://books.google.com/books?id=BF9fAAAAcAAJ&pg=PP571&lpg=

PP571&dq=bl&ots=X5beeqnEsc&sig=zn7tHCRE1h03bChBcic_T5zUB

z4&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjs0vrq2pTTAhUE9IMKHbz7A4EQ6A

EIKTAD#v=onepage&q=bl&f=false

I examined a wide variety of sources in an attempt to understand what deism does and does not entail. From those many sources, I created a number of descriptive statements that capture many of the tenets and beliefs of deism. Not every deist accepts or professes every statement, but I found these summary descriptions to be helpful as I tried to measure each Signer’s religiosity.

1. Deists believe in God. Beliefs about this God are formulated through reasoning, experience, and nature, not revelation.

2. God does not interact with Man on an ongoing, daily basis.

3. God created everything and left his creation to live under His natural laws with no further need of His help or assistance. Man can learn all he needs to live in the world from nature and through reasoning.

4. Man has within himself a moral compass and does not need external laws or creeds to govern his behavior.

5. God is an abstract concept that cannot be defined or explained or humanized.

6. God does not love us or hate us, He just is.

7. Fallible human beings wrote the Holy Books of revealed religion which contain errors and inconsistencies and are not to be taken as the Word of God.

8. The messages from prophets and messiahs are the words of men and cannot be taken as words from God.

9. God does not reveal himself through visions, prophets, angels, miracles, sacred writings, or answers to prayers.

10. The world does not need supernatural interventions and God does not provide such.

11. Jesus Christ was not divine or a part of God, but was an enlightened teacher of morality.

12. The Bible’s Old Testament and New Testament are incompatible with each other and are full of errors and contradictions. From the Bible, only the teachings of Jesus (not the miracles) are worthy of reading and preserving.

13. God does not answer prayers that benefit individuals or protect individuals against misfortune or avert tragedy for individuals.

14. God does not have a chosen people and He does not favor one group of people in preference to another.

While these statements are not absolutes or all-inclusive, they do give us a useful framework as we search for practitioners of deism among the 56 Signers.

The proposition put forth by some people today would describe the Founding Fathers of the United States in these terms:

The Founding Fathers of the United States believed in God but rejected revelation, the Trinity, the deity of Christ, the divine inspiration of the Bible, the authority of the Christian church, and supernatural happenings such as miracles and visions. The Founding Fathers believed that God could be known only by reason and observation of the natural world and that God has had no further interaction with mankind or nature since the Creation.

In our study we will be examining each Signer of the Declaration of Independence closely for evidence that he fits the definition above.

Atheism

The disbelief of the existence of a God, or Supreme Intelligent Being.

An American Dictionary of the English Language, Vol. I, Noah Webster. Published by the Author. New Haven. 1841. P 116.

https://books.google.com/books?id=SqNHAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA116=false

A disbelief in the existence of deity. The doctrine that there is no deity.

By permission. From Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition ©2015 by Merriam-Webster, Inc. (www.Merriam-Webster.com).

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atheism

Atheist

An atheist, then, would be someone who denies the existence of God or any gods. Incorporating the definition above into the proposition we are trying to prove or disprove, we get the following:

The Founding Fathers denied the existence of God and did not believe in the reality of God or any gods.

Christianity/Christian

In the simplest terms, a Christian is a follower of Christ; that is, a follower of the Jesus Christ of the New Testament of the Bible.

Some definitions of Christianity:

A monotheistic system of beliefs and practices based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus as embodied in the New Testament and emphasizing the role of Jesus as savior.

Vocabulary.com

http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion whose adherents believe that Jesus of Nazareth is the son of God and their savior.

About.com: Christianity-Definition, N. S. Gill (former About.com Guide to Ancient/Classical History). About.com. Web. 2015.

http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/christianityglossary/g/Christianity.htm

The religion of Christians; or the system of doctrines and precepts taught by Christ, and recorded by the evangelists and apostles.

An American Dictionary of the English Language, Tenth Edition. Noah Webster. S. Converse, New York. 1832. P 144.

https://books.google.com/books?id=1UU-AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA144=false

"Christian: This name simply signifies a follower of Christ. In its proper application to any person, it supposes that person to be a believer of the doctrines Christ delivered, ready to obey the precepts he enjoined, to observe the ordinances he instituted, and willing, at the risk of life, and all its comforts, to follow him."

The Panoplist for the Year Ending June, 1808, Volume the Third. Lincoln & Edmands, Boston. 1808. P 461-462.

https://books.google.com/books?id=2EgEAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA461=false

The religion derived from Jesus Christ, based on the Bible as sacred scripture, and professed by Eastern, Roman Catholic, and Protestant bodies.

By permission. From Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition ©2015 by Merriam-Webster, Inc. (www.Merriam-Webster.com).

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Christianity

Combining the above definitions into a composite definition of Christianity we get the following:

A religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, Who is the Divine Son of God and the Savior of the world. (Jesus Christ is considered by many Christians to be the Second Person of the Trinity.)

A Christian, then, would be someone who believes in the New Testament teaching that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Savior of the world, and who accepts and follows Jesus’ teachings as contained in the New Testament as the basis of how to structure and conduct one’s life.

In one sense, a Founding Father characterized by himself or by someone else as a Christian could not, by definition, be a deist or an atheist since the atheist believes no God exists, and, thus, there can be no Son of God. And the deist believes that God created the world and then left it alone with no further interest in the salvation of his created beings, the act of salvation pre-supposing an ongoing contact with individual created beings. The deist certainly would not believe in a Son of God who claimed to perform miracles and to be the savior of the world, and the epitome of God’s revelation of Himself.

Unitarianism

It is outside the scope of this study to compare and contrast the theological merits and differences of Unitarianism and Trinitiarianism. There is a wide variety of accepted doctrines and practices within each ideology. The definition of Unitarianism used in this study:

Its members reject belief in the Trinity, the divinity of Christ, the Atonement, the infallibility of the Bible, Hell and other orthodox beliefs, and from the first their principles have been simply those adopted by individual members on the ground of natural reason; their opinions therefore vary, but they agree in the rejection of all theological doctrine.

Excerpt from A Catholic Dictionary, Donald Attwater, TAN Books, Charlotte, NC. 1997. (www.tanbooks.com) used with permission.

https://books.google.com/books?id=8GrGCwAAQBAJ&pg=PT960&dq=false

In this book I do not seek to compare the relative merits of deism, atheism, Unitarianism, or Christianity. I am not concerned here with the strengths or short-comings of these four belief systems nor will I denigrate or criticize the belief systems of any of the Founding Fathers relative to these four approaches. They believed what they believed and we cannot change that no matter how much we may disagree with them.

If the historical record is silent about the religious beliefs of a particular Founder, we will have to categorize that Founder’s views as UNKNOWN and move on to the next one. We cannot put words in his mouth or beliefs in his heart, and we should not speculate on the religious belief of any Founder in the absence of some specific reference in the historical record.

Some Housekeeping Items

Some uses of English grammar, punctuation, and spelling have changed since the 18th century. Moreover, many of the signers of the Declaration wrote with disregard for or ignorance of proper usage. Throughout this book, minor changes have been made to the original texts in the interest of readability and comprehension. In no case have changes been made that would compromise any content or the intent of the original writer.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture verses quoted in this work are from the KING JAMES TRANSLATION of the Bible. The following web site contains an Authorized King James Version of the Bible.

Authorized King James Version of the Old and New Testaments. Biblegateway.com. Copyright 1995-2010. The Zondervan Corporation. Web. Used by permission.

https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/Authorized-King-James-Version-

AKJV-Bible/#booklist

Words spoken or written by the Signers themselves are shown in italics. Words spoken or written about the Signers by others are enclosed in quotation marks.

The Signers frequently quoted or referred to Scripture and, where appropriate, I have included the applicable Scripture passage.

So as not to impose any preconceived order on the presentation of the Signers’ views, I cover the 13 colonies represented in alphabetical order and, within the chapter on each colony, present the Signers alphabetically, with the exception of Thomas Jefferson.

The three early defining documents of the United States—the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution—will be referred to as DOI, AOC, and CON respectively.

Typically, throughout my presentation of each Signer’s views, I will include the source of the information displayed and, when available, a link to a website containing the information. This will enable readers to examine the attributions in detail and find references to additional background information and readings, both on and off the Internet.

Please note, however, that I do not control any of the sources referenced. All the Internet URLs cited in this work existed at the time this was written, but data sources on the Internet are constantly changing. I apologize for any inconvenience that may result.

This book contains many attributions and references to the historical record. There are hundreds of separate attributions and hundreds of end-notes. If applicable, the Internet URL will be shown with the first citation of a source. In order to save time and space, if a source is subsequently used again, a new URL will not be included. The reader can refer to the URL which accompanied the initial source and scroll to subsequent references.

I tried to use sources as close to the actual events being referenced as possible feeling that those sources would be more accurate than sources hundreds of years after the events.

CHAPTER 2

THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

As previously stated, this is not a history book, although it abounds with historical facts. The study does not examine in detail the specific issues and events that led up to the War for Independence and the creation of the DOI. Those issues and events will be dealt with only peripherally in conjunction with the discussions of the religious beliefs of the individual Signers.

Before we survey those religious beliefs, it might be helpful to review the events surrounding the Declaration of Independence itself.

Time Line for the Declaration of Independence

June 7, 1776 Lee Resolution

On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee, a delegate from Virginia, read to the Continental Congress his resolution which boldly stated the Patriots’ position on the relationship between the colonists and the Mother Country. The resolution included this historic pronouncement: that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.

June 11, 1776 Committee of Five Appointed

Congress postponed debate on the Lee resolution. Instead, it appointed a Committee of Five to draft a statement presenting to the world the colonies’ case for independence, including a recap of the grievances against the Crown and Parliament. The Committee was composed of John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston, and Thomas Jefferson.

June 11 to July 1, 1776 Declaration of Independence Drafted

On June 11, Congress recessed for three weeks. During this period the Committee of Five worked on the wording of a Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson was the primary author and Adams, Franklin, and the other Committee members made changes to it. Congress reconvened on July 1, 1776.

July 2, 1776 Lee Resolution Adopted and the Declaration Considered

On July 2, 12 of the 13 colonies adopted the Lee resolution. The New York delegation abstained, having been ordered to do so by its Legislature. Immediately after the adoption of the Lee Resolution, Congress began to consider the draft of the DOI presented by the Committee of Five. Congress made some alterations and deletions to the draft on July 2 and 3 and on the morning of the 4th.

July 4, 1776 Declaration of Independence Adopted, Signed, and Printed

Late on the morning of July 4, Congress officially adopted the DOI and John Hancock, President of the Congress, and Charles Thomson, Secretary of the Congress, signed it. The Committee of Five took the manuscript copy of the document to printer John Dunlap, who worked through the night to set the type and print the copies Congress had ordered.

July 5, 1776 Copies of the Declaration Distributed

On the morning of July 5, members of Congress distributed the copies printed by John Dunlap as a broadside to various committees and assemblies and to all 13 states. One copy went to General George Washington, who had it read to his troops. One went to King George III in England.

July 9, 1776

The New York Convention officially approved the actions of Congress.

July 19, 1776 Congress Orders the Declaration Engrossed on Parchment

Congress ordered that the DOI be fairly engrossed on parchment, with the title and stile [sic] of ‘The unanimous declaration of the thirteen United States of America’ and that the same, when engrossed, be signed by every member of Congress. Timothy Matlack, then Clerk to the Second Continental Congress, did the engrossing.

August 2, 1776 Signing of the DOI Commenced

Most of the Signers of the DOI affixed their signatures on August 2, 1776. George Wythe signed on August 27. Richard Henry Lee, Elbridge Gerry, and Oliver Wolcott signed on September 4. Matthew Thornton signed on November 19. Dates given for Thomas McKean’s signing range from 1777 to 1781.

Let’s look at the 56 Signers, beginning with the four from Connecticut.

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The Declaration Committee

The Committee: Franklin, Jefferson, Adams, Livingston and Sherman³

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Page 1 of Thomas Jefferson’s Rough Draft Notes⁴

June, 1776

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The John Dunlap Broadside⁵

July 4, 1776

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William J. Stone Engraving of the Declaration of Independence of the United States⁶

CHAPTER 3

CONNECTICUT

Connecticut’s beginnings can be traced back to 1633 and the establishment of a Dutch trading settlement near what is now Hartford. English settlement began with the influx of settlers from the Massachusetts Bay Colony, led by clergyman Thomas Hooker. Hooker was formerly a pastor in Newton, MA and a preacher of some repute. He became known as the Father of Connecticut.

These early Connecticut settlers left Massachusetts because of their disenchantment with the religious and political climate of the Bay Colony, and, to some extent, by the opportunity to settle in the fertile Connecticut River Valley area. The Indians called the river Quinnehtukqut, the Long River, Anglicized as Connecticut. Connecticut also became the name of the new colony.

The transplants founded the Connecticut towns of Hartford, Windsor, and Wethersfield, and launched a colony where there should be an orderly and decent government established according to God.

These settlers, who came to the shores of America initially seeking to escape religious persecution and to find religious freedom, wrote a constitution in 1639 called the Fundamental Orders. This document was the first constitution of any kind in North America and it would become a model for Connecticut’s state constitution. The Fundamental Orders had some influence on the wording of the U. S. Constitution and was the governing document of Connecticut for 179 years until the state Constitution of 1818.

In 1662, Connecticut became a royal colony and merged with the New Haven Colony. The latter was founded by a group of Puritans who had arrived in Boston in 1637 but found that town too lax in its religious practices for their ideology. They sought a more favorable site for colonization and, led by John Davenport and Theophilus Eaton, settled on the banks of the Quinnipiac River. There they established a Christian society where the word of God should be the only rule for ordering the affairs of government in that commonwealth.

The New Haven colonists developed several resolutions as part of their governing structure, including:

1. That the Scriptures hold forth a perfect rule for the direction and government of all men in all duties which they are to perform to God and men, as well in families and commonwealth, as in matters of the church.

2. That as in matters which concerned the gathering and ordering of a church, so likewise in all public offices which concern civil order, as the choice of magistrates and officers, making and repealing laws, dividing allotments of inheritance, and all things of like nature, they would all be governed by those rules, which the Scriptures held forth to them.

3. That all those who had desired to be received as free planters, had settled in the plantation, with a purpose, resolution and desire, that they might be admitted into church fellowship according to Christ.

4. That all the free planters held themselves bound to establish such civil order as might best conduce to the securing of the purity and peace of the ordinance to themselves and their posterity according to God.

5. That church members only should be free burgesses; and that they only should choose magistrates among themselves, to have power of transacting all the public civil affairs of the plantation: of making and repealing laws, dividing inheritances, deciding of differences that may arise, and doing all things and businesses of like nature.

6. That twelve men should be chosen, that their fitness for the foundation work might be tried, and that it should be in the power of those twelve men to choose seven to begin the church.

When the DOI was signed, there were about 200,000 colonists in Connecticut. The signers of the DOI from Connecticut were Samuel Huntington, Roger Sherman, William Williams, and Oliver Wolcott.

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Samuel Huntington

1731-1796

Born one of 10 children of poor farming parents, Samuel Huntington rose to become governor of his state and the President of the United States in Congress Assembled under the Articles of Confederation. What a story!

Huntington was born in Windham, CT. Studying borrowed books, he became a self-taught lawyer. He was admitted to the Connecticut bar in 1754 and began a life of public service.

Over the course of his illustrious career, he was a King’s Attorney, tax collector, town-meeting moderator, justice of the peace, superior court justice, member of the Provincial Upper House of Assembly of Connecticut, lieutenant governor and chief judge of the superior court of Connecticut, member of the Council of Safety, governor of Connecticut, and Signer of the DOI.

Huntington’s contributions to the founding of the United States were so recognized and appreciated by his fellow delegates to the Continental Congress that they elected him president of that body on September 28, 1779. He was still serving as President of the Continental Congress when the 13th state ratified the AOC on March 1, 1781, creating the United States in Congress Assembled. As a result, some have suggested that Huntington was actually the first President of the United States.

In spite of his failing health, Congress persuaded him to continue serving in that position after the AOC ratification. Upon his resignation in 1781, he received the unanimous thanks of Congress in appreciation for his service. Reflecting the widespread respect and esteem in which he was held, both Yale and Dartmouth awarded him honorary degrees.

He became active with the Sons of Liberty in 1774 and continued his patriotic service until his death in 1796. He was serving as governor of his state at the time of his death.

Samuel Huntington’s Religiosity:

Authors and biographers are united in their appraisal of Samuel Huntington as a devout Christian. From the assertion that he lived the life of an irreproachable and sincere Christian to a comment about the purity of his Christian character, it is obvious that this was a deeply committed Christian man.

Huntington was particularly known for the relevancy and sincerity of his prayers. He was faithful in his church attendance at the Norwich Congregational Church and, on occasion, even led the worship service. Those who knew him noted his Christian commitment and life. Even the rigors of his last sickness did not lessen his faith in Christ or his assurance of eternal life.

One biographer said of Huntington:

Governor Huntington lived the life of the irreproachable and sincere Christian, and those who knew him most intimately, loved him the most affectionately…. Hence, as a devoted Christian and a true patriot, he never swerved from duty, or looked back after he had placed his hand to the work.

From another biographical summary:

"Religion had set her holy seal upon its united head [the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Huntington]. Born of pious parents and descended from ancestors marked for their faith, they both had early yielded to the redeeming grace. Both had enrolled themselves among God’s people—the husband before going to Norwich, and the wife soon after [she was the daughter of a minister of the Gospel]; and both were characterized by a piety, as unpretending as it was sincere, and as uniform as it was deep and fervent.

For nothing was Mr. Huntington more marked through his entire public life than for his conscientious discharge of religious duties. In his family, in the prayer meeting, in the public services of the sanctuary, he was always found at his post and always ready for whatever duty the hour called him to perform. Old men who have died in our times, have recalled the fervor of his prayers and the unction of his exhortations in the social meetings; and the testimony of all who knew him, is uniform as to the steadfastness of his Christian principle, and the purity of his Christian character.

Further in that summary:

Mr. Huntington was always a constant attendant on public worship, and for many years a professor of religion. In conference meetings he usually took a part, and on the Sabbath, if no minister chanced to be present, he occasionally led the services, and his prayers and exhortations were always solemn and acceptable. During his last sickness, he was supported and animated by an unwavering faith in Christ, and a joyful hope of eternal life.

Another writer expressed these thoughts on Huntington’s religiosity:

He was the friend of order and of religion, a member of the Christian church, and punctual in the devotions of the family…. For many years a professor of religion, Mr. Huntington appeared to enjoy great satisfaction both in the doctrines and ordinances of the Gospel; a constant attendant upon public worship, ‘He was occasionally the people’s mouth to God, when destitute of preaching.’ As a professor of Christianity, and supporter of its institutions, he was exemplary and devout: he manifested an unshaken faith in its doctrines….

Samuel Huntington corresponded frequently and his letters give great insight into his religious beliefs and some on-the-spot commentary on the turbulent times of the Revolution.

Like many Signers, Huntington believed that God had directed the patriots’ thoughts and actions in the past and would continue to do so in the future. Following are two examples of Huntington’s belief in God’s personal guidance of human beings, a belief that would not be consistent with deist ideology.

Letter from Samuel Huntington to Jonathan Trumbull, Sr., February 7, 1780

We can as yet obtain no intelligence of the British fleet which sailed from New York the 26 of December, supposed to be destined for South Carolina or Georgia, & begin to hope that Providence has directed them to depart the coast.

Circular Letter from Samuel Huntington, President of Congress, to Certain States, June 15, 1780

Enable us to cooperate vigorously with the Fleets and Armies of our Ally, and we may reasonably hope, through the Blessing of divine Providence, for a speedy and happy Termination of a Controversy, which is to give Freedom and Independence to Millions.

In some of his letters, Huntington offered prayers to God, both on his own behalf and on behalf of others. Two examples follow:

Letter from Samuel Huntington to Joseph Trumbull, February 20, 1776

This morning at about eight o’clock the worthy Mr. Lynch of South Carolina⁷ was taken with an apoplectic fit; remains very ill though his reason is restored & speech so as to answer questions. May God restore his health and usefulness. Through Divine Goodness I am restored to health so as to give constant attendance to Business….

Letter from Samuel Huntington to the Dutch monarch, William V, January 1, 1781

We pray God to keep your Highness in His holy protection.

We are indebted to Huntington for a glimpse into the events of daily life taking place about the time of the War for Independence. In the following letter, Huntington spoke of the religious activity in the city and he requested prayer for himself as he performed his legislative responsibilities.

Letter from Samuel Huntington to James Cogswell, March 30, 1776

On Sunday morning the 17th Inst. [instant–of the current month] my attention from my chamber window was suddenly called to behold a mighty cavalcade of plebeians marching through the street with drums beating and at every small distance they halted & gave three Huzzas.[cheers] I was apprehensive some outrage was about to be committed, but soon perceived my mistaken apprehensions & that it was a religious exercise of the Sons of Saint Patrick, it being the anniversary of that Saint the morning exercise was ushered in with the ceremony above described.

However, Sir, should I leave you to judge the religion of this city from the above story only; it would not be just, there are devout pious people in this city, a number of pious & excellent preachers, & he who does not lead a virtuous & religious life here must accuse himself. Every man has liberty to peruse the dictates of his own conscience. And let me request an interest in your prayers that I may be enabled faithfully to perform the trust reposed in me & in due time be returned to my family & native land in peace.

Letter from Samuel Huntington to Jabez Huntington, August 20, 1776

The Indians seem disposed to observe a neutrality which I cannot but hope will take place among them if our unnatural brethren should not get any advantage against us, which God prevent.

Letter from Samuel Huntington to Benjamin Huntington, June 3, 1778

Through the Smiles of Divine Providence public affairs seem to have taken a surprising turn in favor of these United States.

Letter from Samuel Huntington to the States, June 1, 1781

Of consequence it is become indispensably necessary, by our immediate—& under Providence—successful efforts, to place ourselves in such a situation, as to enable our negotiators to speak a firm & decided language, becoming the characters of the Ministers of Free, Sovereign, & Independent States.

A biographer remarked about Samuel Huntington’s death:

His departure from the world, as might be expected, from the even tenor of his life, and from the decided Christian character and conversation which he had manifested, was tranquil. He had for many years been a professor of religion, and a devoted attendant upon the ordinances of the gospel. His seat in the house of God was seldom vacant, and, when occasion required, he was ready to lead in an address to the Throne of Grace, and was able to impart instruction to the people, drawn from the pure oracles of God…. He rendered services to his country, which will long be remembered with gratitude; he attained to honors with which a high ambition might have been satisfied; and, at length, went down to the grave, cheered with the prospect of a happy immortality.

Another writer noted on Huntington’s passing:

He died the death of a righteous man, having long adorned the profession of religion by a life of consistent and exemplary piety. In the life of this good and useful patriot, we find much to admire and nothing to condemn.

Summary:

The historical record shows clearly that Samuel Huntington was neither a deist nor an atheist, but was a devout Christian. In his case, the proposition that the Founding Fathers were deists and atheists fails.

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Roger Sherman

1721-1793

Roger Sherman was an outstanding patriot and Founding Father. Born in Newton, MA, Sherman had little formal education, but he took advantage of his father’s library and the interest shown in his development by Reverend Samuel Dunbar, the minister of the Congregational church that Sherman attended. Following his father’s death in 1741, Sherman moved from Massachusetts to New Milford, CT where his brother, William, lived. There he embarked on a lifetime of public service.

He became a lawyer and a member of the bar. He served as a surveyor, selectman, town clerk, justice of the peace, member of the Council of the Governor of Connecticut, member of the General Assembly of Connecticut, superior court judge, county judge, member of the Committee of Correspondence, delegate to the Continental Congress, mayor of New Haven, and delegate to the Constitutional Convention. He signed the DOI, CON, and the AOC, was principal author and signer of the Address to the King, and signed the Articles of Association of the Congress of 1774. He was a member of the First Congress, United States Senator, member of the Board of War during the Revolutionary War, and Treasurer of Yale College.

He was the only person to sign all four of the major documents that engendered American independence: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Articles of Confederation, and the Articles of Association of the Congress of 1774.

Sherman served with Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and Robert Livingston on the committee tasked with writing the DOI. He also served on the committees that drafted the AOC and he worked diligently on the construction of the CON, speaking frequently during the debates. Sherman was rarely absent from his Congressional positions of responsibility and was active in whatever role Congress assigned to him, his service in Congress covering a total of 19 years.

A biographer’s closing remarks on the life of this remarkable patriot:

It is not strange that such a man received from the people so many honors. It would be strange if posterity did not keep his memory green. Rising from the humblest rank to the highest by his own unaided efforts; in every upward step keeping his head clear and his heart pure; wearing his honors meekly, and using them only for the public good; with a mind ever receptive of the truth; loving justice, and resolute in maintaining it; overthrowing error with a remorseless logic, yet ever tolerant of weakness and error in others; — [H]e rendered to his country the highest service in its most perilous hour, and left to his countrymen a shining example of that priceless truth that ‘The path of duty is the way to glory.’

Roger Sherman’s Religiosity:

Roger Sherman’s association with Christian churches began at an early age. In 1742, he officially joined the church of his mentor, Reverend Dunbar. He became a deacon in his Congregational Church, was active on church committees, worked on building programs, and was Clerk and Treasurer of the Ecclesiastical Society.

Why would an atheist, a person who does not believe in God, be a deacon, a servant of God’s body of believers, in God’s church? Why would a deist join an organization that devoted itself to preaching and ministering and witnessing in the name of a God Whom the deist believes has no interest or involvement in their efforts? Why would a deist or atheist support the building of an edifice to an ostensibly non-existent God, or to a God Who supposedly was not there and was not going to be there, and Who was not going to hear the prayers offered in that place of worship?

After the victory at Saratoga, Sherman wrote to Richard Henry Lee on November 3, 1777, giving God credit for the great victory of the United States forces.

This is the Lord’s doing, and marvelous in our eyes! (Psalm 118:23) And if suitably acknowledged and improved by us to His Glory, I hope will prove a happy prelude to the establishment of peace & liberty to these States.

This is not the comment or conviction of a deist who believes that God created the world and then had no further interplay with it, including no divine interventions on behalf of the created. Sherman gave credit to God for the victory at Saratoga, an occurrence Sherman considered to be an act of intervention by God on behalf of the American military in Sherman’s present time. This is not the comment of an atheist who does not believe in a god of any kind.

Sherman seconded Benjamin Franklin’s motion that Congress begin each session with prayer. The prayers delivered by the ministers and the chaplains were supposedly offered to a living, involved, concerned, responsive God. Else, why pray?

Sherman’s act of seconding Franklin’s motion to have prayers offered every day in Congress would seem to preclude Sherman being an atheist. One would not expect a deist to encourage or support daily prayers to God for aid and guidance, since the deist does not believe that God is available to answer prayers from individuals.

Sherman was asked to re-write the creed of his Congregational Church. He complied with the following:

I believe that there is one only living and true God, existing in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, the same in substance equal in power and glory.

That the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are a revelation from God and a complete rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him.

I believe that God having elected some of mankind to eternal life, did send his own Son to become man, die in the room and stead of sinners and thus to lay a foundation for the offer of pardon and salvation to all mankind, so as all may be saved who are willing to accept the Gospel offer: also by His special grace and spirit, to regenerate, sanctify and enable to persevere in holiness, all who shall be saved; and to procure in consequence of their repentance and faith in himself their justification by virtue of His atonement as the only meritorious cause.

I believe a visible church to be a congregation of those who make a credible profession of their faith in Christ, and obedience to Him, joined by the bond of the covenant.

I believe that the souls of believers are at their death made perfectly holy and immediately taken to Glory: that at the end of this world there will be a resurrection of the dead and a final judgment of all mankind when the righteous shall be publicly acquitted by Christ, the Judge, and admitted to everlasting life and glory, and the wicked be sentenced to everlasting punishment.

These are the words of a professing Christian, not those of a deist or an atheist.

A biographer commented that Sherman’s writings

"…show great familiarity with the