Americans, what do you think about this famous statement?

Question

"The government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion."

Treaty of Tripoli, signed by President John Adams (1796)

I'm not even American but I like that. World needs people like founding fathers of America who introduced Freedom to the nation.

Rev. Albert Einstein, tell me now honestly, didn't you just write those quotes by yourself?

Kid, you can't even spell "please".

Answer 1

Sagacious words.

Answer 2

More important than these being the words of John Adams, they are a part of the law of the land to the extent the treaty of Tripoli is still in force.

Unfortunately, individuals like Rev. Albert Einstein can line of quotes on the other side of the coin.

I think more to the point than a battle of quotations would be some serious reading and discussion about the totality of the principles that go into the founding of the United States.

Answer 3

What's even more telling is the way Adams made the treaty public. I don't have the link right now because it's on my home computer.

For more evidence, just look at our Constitution. There are only two mentions of religion. In article 6 it specifically states that no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification for office or public trust. And the first amendment starts "Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion...".

I think it's fairly clear that the founding father did not intend for the US to have a national religion. And while some of them may have believed in God, they were primarily deist who believed in God, but not religion. And there were several prominent figures who were either agnostic or full out atheists - such as Thomas Jefferson.

Answer 4

Some on here have certainly cherry picked statements. I offer these from the writings of Thomas Jefferson before and after the draft of the Constitution, Preamble and Bill of Rights.

Where the preamble declares, that coercion is a departure from the plan of the holy author of our religion, an amendment was proposed by inserting "Jesus Christ," so that it would read "A departure from the plan of Jesus Christ, the holy author of our religion;" the insertion was rejected by the great majority, in proof that they meant to comprehend, within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and Mohammedan, the Hindoo and Infidel of every denomination.

-Thomas Jefferson, Autobiography, in reference to the Virginia Act for Religious Freedom

Christianity neither is, nor ever was a part of the common law.

-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Dr. Thomas Cooper, February 10, 1814

And the day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the supreme being as his father in the womb of a virgin will be classed with the fable of the generation of Minerve in the brain of Jupiter. But may we hope that the dawn of reason and freedom of thought in these United States will do away with this artificial scaffolding, and restore to us the primitive and genuine doctrines of this most venerated reformer of human errors.

-Thomas Jefferson, Letter to John Adams, April 11, 1823

----- The First Amendment guarantees freedom of religion - any religion - and guarantees the right NOT to believe also.

Answer 5

Here's a couple of quotes from two other early American Presidents.

Thomas Jefferson
"The day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the supreme being as his father in the womb of a virgin, will be classed with the fable of the generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter." -- Thomas Jefferson (letter to J. Adams April 11,1823)

James Madison, fourth president and father of the Constitution, was not religious in any conventional sense. "Religious bondage shackles and debilitates the mind and unfits it for every noble enterprise."
"During almost fifteen centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What have been its fruits? More or less in all places, pride and indolence in the Clergy, ignorance and servility in the laity, in both, superstition, bigotry and persecution."

Answer 6

Why do you give this statement greater preference than that of the Supreme Court which has greater authority than any international treaty? ....

Runkel v. Winemiller (1799), “Religion is of general and public concern, and on its support depend, in great measure, the peace and good order of government, the safety and happiness of the people. By our form of government, the Christian religion is the established religion..."

Or the many quotes saying we are a Christian nation from men like John Adams whose name also appears on that treaty? Doesn't this reflect a clear bias on your part and a selective memory regarding our nation's history? The evidence is not unanimous, but it is overwhemlingly in favor of us being a Christian nation!

Answer 7

The government was founded on the opinions of the majority settled in the country at the time, not on a religion. Unfortunately, the majority of the people were christians, hence multiple references to "god". One must remember that the reason the first people came to this place was to escape an intolerable theistic dictatorship.

Answer 8

I think it was a statement in the Treaty of Tripoli, signed by John Adams in 1796.

Of course, even the Christians who claim that the United States was founded on Christianity will agree that the governmen itself was not.

Answer 9

It amazes me how the non secular declare that technology proves the bible real, whilst it somewhat is the right opposite. as an occasion...the super Bang concept brought about many sects to declare that that's what replaced into truly meant with the help of the genesis tale. The issues that evolution shows have been twisted with the help of the church. whilst their ideals began to be invalidated, they went to semantics and coined the words of "micro" and "macro" evolution. This fact could not be truer, given the church's background of condemning and keeping returned any style of scientific progression. The dedicated look content cloth to proceed on residing at evening a while as far as expertise is worried... BTW, Buddhism is philosophy, not faith...

Answer 10

~~~ AM ,,,, My wish that my Fellow Americans, especially our leadership, were as knowledgeable as yourself and assertive enough to read these documents and their (Founding Fathers) personal letters of correspondence to each other in which they bear their personal philosophies. This would certainly dispel The Myth that this was a "Christian Nation built on Christian Principles" . Truth is Liberty.
~ Namaste`

Answer 11

If you look at it realistically the United States was founded as a God fearing nation. In court do you swear on the Bible? When you are in trouble do you say help me Harry Weinstein?