On Two Wings: Humble Faith and Common Sense at the American Founding

by Michael Novak

Overview

The leaders of the American Revolution, unlike the leaders of the French revolution, did not set out to erase religion. Indeed, the very first act of the Continental Congress was to pray to Divine Providence in the face of the British bombardment of Boston. In establishing a new model of self-government, the Founders believed that they were not only acting according to reason and common sense, but also obeying a religious duty. Benjamin Franklin proposed as their motto: “Rebellion against tyrants is obedience to God.”

In telling the story of the forgotten—if not deliberately ignored—role of faith in America’s beginnings, Michael Novak probes the innermost religious conviction of Washington, Jefferson, Madison and other of our Founders. He shows that while the American eagle could not have taken flight without the empirical turn of mind embodied in John Locke’s teaching on the ends of government and the consent of the governed, the men who made America also believed that liberty depends as much on faith as on reason.

In the course of his illustrious career, Michael Novak has written several prize-winning books on theology and philosophy. In On Two Wings he has created a profound mediation on American history, and on human nature and destiny as well.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781893554689
Publisher:	Encounter Books
Publication date:	08/01/2003
Edition description:	Expanded
Pages:	218
Product dimensions:	6.44(w) x 8.94(h) x (d)

About the Author

In 1994 Michael Novak was awarded the $1 million Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion. He presently holds the Jewett Chair in Religion and Public Policy at the American Enterprise Institute.

Table of Contents

	Preface: The Forgotten One Hundred	1
Chapter 1	Jewish Metaphysics at the Founding	3
	Hebrew Metaphysics	8
	Seven Events that Revealed the Power of the Second Wing	13
	Summation	24
Chapter 2	Two Beat as One: Plain Reason, Humble Faith	25
	What is Faith?	27
	The Added Lift of Faith	39
	Political Corollaries	43
	The Most Precarious Regime	46
Chapter 3	Immoral Man, Moral Society, Religious Liberty	49
	A Whip in the Mouth	52
	The Massachusetts Way--Virtue in Community	61
	Establishment, No--Pillars, Yes	65
	The Corruptibility of Liberty	70
	If You Can Keep It	72
Chapter 4	A Religious Theory of Rights	75
	The Concept of Dignity	77
	Zuckert's Exposition of Jefferson	79
	The Logic of Liberty	85
	A Religious Interpretation of the Founding	90
Chapter 5	Ten Questions About the Founding	97
1.	You Wouldn't Pray to "Nature's God," Would You?	99
2.	Wasn't the Religion of the Founders Merely Utilitarian?	101
3.	"Common Sense" and "Faith" Have Many Meanings, No?	106
4.	When and Why Did Legal Elites Become Hostile to Religion?	110
5.	Does the Logic of the Founding Lead Inexorably to Relativism?	113
6.	Is "Faith" the Same as "Natural Theology"?	116
7.	Does America Subordinate Religion?	117
8.	Why Do Scholars Today Clip "The Second Wing"?	120
9.	If Aquinas Was the First Whig, Why Did a Regime of Religious Liberty Appear So Late?	120
10.	What Is Your Favorite Story from the Founding?	123
	Epilogue: How Did the Virginians Ground Religious Rights?	125
Appendix	The Forgotten Founders	143
	A Secular Hurrah!	147
	Sherman, Williams, Williamson, R. T. Paine, Paca, Morris	147
	Alexander Hamilton	149
	Princeton's John Witherspoon	151
	Livingston, King, and Henry	152
	Rush, Dickinson, and Wilson	153
	The Three Catholic Cousins	158
	George Mason	160
	Thomas Paine	162
	John Adams	165
	Benjamin Franklin	173
	The Price They Paid	175
	Acknowledgments	177
	Notes	181
	Bibliography	243
	Index	260

Editorial Reviews

From Amazon: "In one key respect, the way the story of the United States has been told for the past one hundred years is wrong," writes Michael Novak. "To read most philosophers and historians of the American polity today is to learn that America is an historical embodiment of secular philosophy, the Enlightenment." Nothing could be further from the truth, says Novak, who sets out to demonstrate just how important religious faith was to the founders. He makes a spirited case, noting, for example, that the very first act of the First Continental Congress, in 1774, was to make a public prayer. Of the 3,154 "citations in the writings of the founders," 34 percent are to the Bible. He provides dozens of similar examples. On Two Wings does not proceed as a traditional narrative; Novak favors extensive block quotations from his sources and conveys a whole chapter in question-and-answer format. In addition, a major part of the book is an appendix that provides brief sketches of the lesser-known founders. What the book lacks in narrative elegance it makes up for in forceful argument— it pulls off the trick of being both brief and thorough. Readers who admire Founding Brothers by Joseph Ellis will appreciate this book, especially if they are religiously inclined. —John Miller —This text refers to the Hardcover edition.


From Libary Journal: Novak (religion and public policy, American Enterprise Inst.; Belief and Disbelief) argues that religion played a central role in the lives of, and the documents by, the founders of the American republic. He further attempts to show how Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and others had in common a "humble faith." He is most convincing when presenting evidence that biblical language and allusions permeated the writings of these leaders but is less successful in showing that the religion they thought useful for others also held personal importance for them. The book is weakened by a definition of religious faith so broad that "humble faith" becomes merely religious sensibility. Novak is clearly passionate about his topic, but he relies heavily on secondary works, so that at times this is more of a summary than an addition to the topic. Useful for collections seeking differing viewpoints on American history. Jan Blodgett, Davidson Coll., NC Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. —This text refers to the Hardcover edition.





The U.S. isn't officially Christian, but Novak demonstrates that the men who created it rooted the country conceptually in the Bible. The characterizations of God in the Declaration of Independence derive from the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament), probab

From the Publisher

Novak (religion and public policy, American Enterprise Inst.; Belief and Disbelief) argues that religion played a central role in the lives of, and the documents by, the founders of the American republic. He further attempts to show how Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and others had in common a "humble faith." He is most convincing when presenting evidence that biblical language and allusions permeated the writings of these leaders but is less successful in showing that the religion they thought useful for others also held personal importance for them. The book is weakened by a definition of religious faith so broad that "humble faith" becomes merely religious sensibility. Novak is clearly passionate about his topic, but he relies heavily on secondary works, so that at times this is more of a summary than an addition to the topic. Useful for collections seeking differing viewpoints on American history. Jan Blodgett, Davidson Coll., NC Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal