Christian Nation Myth
The myth of the United States of America having been founded as a Christian nation has long been circulated throughout our country’s history. Christian historians were the first to put forth this narrative and in today’s world, website writers and editors have taken up the cause. On the website, WhatChristiansWanttoKnow.com, Robert Driskell peddles the myth in an article entitled, “Was the United States of America Founded As A Christian Nation? A Look at the Facts.” Driskell quotes a number of Founding Fathers out of context and uses them as evidence for a Christian nation as well as uses the first amendment to claim that the Constitution did not intend for a strict separation between Church and State. Many websites are not impartial
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James Madison is quoted as saying, “We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, but upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.” The acronym, WIJHNBB, is cited as a source; WIJHNBB stands for What if Jesus Had Never Been Born. This book – written by D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcomb – is the main source Driskell uses for all of his Founding Father quotes. This would not be a problem except that, when looking at the endnotes within WIJHNBB, this particular James Madison quote comes from yet another secondary source (Rus Waltons’ One Nation Under God) instead of a primary source such as Madison’s own writings. Madison wrote a great deal about his opinions on religion and its relationship with the State, so it would not have been difficult for Driskell to have cited a primary source directly from Madison. He does not cite Madison, however, because in none of his writings, does he actually ever say this quote – it is completely misattributed to him in order to further the myth of a Christian America. On top of the line having been made up, it is also a complete contradiction to everything Madison fought for. He grew up in the Anglican Church and even chose not to attend the College of William and Mary in his hometown due to the rise in Deism there. Instead, he chose the Evangelical Princeton. Madison was a religious man, but he also knew the dangers of an established church. Back home in Orange County, Virginia, Baptist preachers were jailed and beaten for being dissenters because they did not abide by the established Anglican Church. Madison was disturbed by this mistreatment and, from then on fought for freedom of conscience. At Virginia’s Constitutional Convention, he “proposed ‘that all men are created equally entitled to
James Madison is quoted as saying, “We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, but upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.” The acronym, WIJHNBB, is cited as a source; WIJHNBB stands for What if Jesus Had Never Been Born. This book – written by D. James Kennedy and Jerry Newcomb – is the main source Driskell uses for all of his Founding Father quotes. This would not be a problem except that, when looking at the endnotes within WIJHNBB, this particular James Madison quote comes from yet another secondary source (Rus Waltons’ One Nation Under God) instead of a primary source such as Madison’s own writings. Madison wrote a great deal about his opinions on religion and its relationship with the State, so it would not have been difficult for Driskell to have cited a primary source directly from Madison. He does not cite Madison, however, because in none of his writings, does he actually ever say this quote – it is completely misattributed to him in order to further the myth of a Christian America. On top of the line having been made up, it is also a complete contradiction to everything Madison fought for. He grew up in the Anglican Church and even chose not to attend the College of William and Mary in his hometown due to the rise in Deism there. Instead, he chose the Evangelical Princeton. Madison was a religious man, but he also knew the dangers of an established church. Back home in Orange County, Virginia, Baptist preachers were jailed and beaten for being dissenters because they did not abide by the established Anglican Church. Madison was disturbed by this mistreatment and, from then on fought for freedom of conscience. At Virginia’s Constitutional Convention, he “proposed ‘that all men are created equally entitled to