Did America Have a Christian Founding?: Separating Modern Myth from Historical Truth

by Mark David Hall

Overview

A distinguished professor debunks the assertion that America's Founders were deists who desired the strict separation of church and state and instead shows that their political ideas were profoundly influenced by their Christian convictions.

In 2010, David Mark Hall gave a lecture at the Heritage Foundation entitled "Did America Have a Christian Founding?" His balanced and thoughtful approach to this controversial question caused a sensation. C-SPAN televised his talk, and an essay based on it has been downloaded more than 300,000 times.

In this book, Hall expands upon this essay, making the airtight case that America's Founders were not deists. He explains why and how the Founders' views are absolutely relevant today, showing

• that they did not create a "godless" Constitution;
• that even Jefferson and Madison did not want a high wall separating church and state;
• that most Founders believed the government should encourage Christianity; and
• that they embraced a robust understanding of religious liberty for biblical and theological reasons.

This compelling and utterly persuasive book will convince skeptics and equip believers and conservatives to defend the idea that Christian thought was crucial to the nation's founding—and that this benefits all of us, whatever our faith (or lack of faith).

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781400211135
Publisher:	Nelson, Thomas, Inc.
Publication date:	10/27/2020
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	669,634
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Mark David Hall is the Herbert Hoover Distinguished Professor of Politics and Faculty Fellow in the William Penn Honors Program at George Fox University. He is also associated faculty at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University and senior fellow at Baylor University's Institute for Studies of Religion. He has written, edited, or co-edited a dozen books on religion and politics in America and is a nationally recognized expert on the religious freedom. He writes for the online publications Law & Liberty and Intercollegiate Studies Review and has appeared regularly on a number of radio shows, including Jerry Newcomb's Truth in Action, Tim Wildman's Today's Issues, and the Janet Mefferd Show.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Problem xv

Chapter 1 The Myth of the Founders' Deism 1

Chapter 2 The United States Does Not Have a Godless Constitution 21

Chapter 3 Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the First Amendment 57

Chapter 4 The Founders Believed Civic Authorities Should Protect, Promote, and Encourage Religion and Morality 87

Chapter 5 Christianity, Religious Liberty, and Religious Exemptions 121

Conclusion 149

Acknowledgments 155

Notes 161

About the Author 211

Editorial Reviews

08/12/2019

Hall (Great Christian Jurists in American History), senior fellow at Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion, argues in this persuasive study that the founders of the United States of America were not deists, but rather leaned on their Christian beliefs to create constitutional order. Though the Constitution never mentions God specifically, Hall suggests that the document bears distinctly Christian elements, such as the phrase “in the year of our lord” and the prohibition of work on Sunday. Hall then argues that the Bill of Rights is rooted in the Christian belief of original sin, which acknowledges that people will inevitably make mistakes, so inherent rights must be protected against trespassers. Through a meticulous reading of the founders’ own works, Hall explains how the separation of church and state did not originally mean a total separation, citing the early history of religious support by the state, such as the government funding of chaplains in Congress and in the military. Hall also tracks early conflicts that defined the current understanding of separation of church and state, such as the rejection of religious tests for federal officials. Hall’s trenchant analysis will pique the curiosity of any reader interested in the religious origins of American government. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly