U. S. Christian Heritage

U. S. Christian Heritage

Christian Roots of the U.S.

Christian FoundationWorldview

Christian Foundation

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One God in History – Biblical Timeline One God revealed in Old Testament

Creation Adam & Eve Noah Abraham, Isaac and Jacob Moses King David

Promise of Savior revealed in New Testament Jesus Apostles Church


One God in History – Biblical Timeline Church’s first centuries.

Apostles and prophets Growth from Jewish roots to primarily Gentile

movement Minority group within the Roman Empire Persecuted movement

Committed in the face of persecution (letter from Pliny to Trajan)

Emulated Jesus Preaching the Kingdom Serving people Continuing under persecution


Christendom to Great Awakening Timeline

Post-Apostolic (100-312) Polycarp – Bishop of Smyrna (155 martyred) Schools and early church missionaries and teachers

Alexandria – Egypt Pantaenus of Alexandria (?-194), Clement (150-215),

Origen (185-251) Carthage – North Africa

Tertullian (165-240), Cyprian (200-258) Antioch – Syria

Ignatius of Antioch (50-110) martyred under Trajan, Tatian (110-172), Justin Martyr (103-165)

Rome – Italy Papius (70-155), Irenaeus (120-202), Eusibius (266-340)



Ecclesiatical Period (312-500) Constantinianism – legal establishment of the

church by the Emperor Constantine Edict of Milan A.D. 312 - official religion of Rome Church and State interdependent

Rise of Monasticism Ulifilas (311-380) St. Ninian (360-432) St. Patrick (389-461) Augustine (354-430)

Sack of Rome in 410



European Period (500-950) Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) Development of the Catholic Church Christendom – refers to a political and ecclesiastical

arrangement that indicates a relationship between the church and state.

Nestorians to China Rise of Islam



Northern Movement Period (950-1350) Decline of Christianity in North Africa and Middle

East Crusades Raymond of Lull Late monastic orders Independent church movements



Church Corruption & Renewal Period (1350-1500) Renewal movements – Lollards, Hussites Monastic order – Jesuits (1540)

Reformation Period (1500-1750) Martin Luther (1517) Church of England separates from Catholic Church

(1534) American colonies founded

Virginia (1607) to Georgia (1732) Beginning of the Great Awakening (1720-1760)



Europe to New World Early Reformers in England

John Wycliffe (1328-1384) “Morning Star” of the reformation Authority of scripture above church Put scripture into English – after death Wycliffe

Bible



Europe to New World Early Reformers in England

William Tyndale of Oxford(1494-1536) “Father of the English Bible” Question beliefs of the Church of England Translated the Bible into English from original Greek & Hebrew, probably protected by Luther

Strangled and burnt at the stake King Henry VIII published English “Great

Bible in 1539



William Tyndale (1494-1536)Lollards movement (mumblers?)

Emphasized the scripture as final authority Scripture available to all believers Denied church temporal (secular) authority Lay preaching Denied transubstantiation Used the Bible in English (put Vulgate into English) Pacifistic



William Tyndale (1494-1536) Denied purgatory Denied priestly celibacy Denied hierarchy of the church Condemned pilgrimages, auricular confessions,

veneration of images (Mt. 16:19; 18:11) Rejected prayers for the dead Rejected art in church

Statute passed in 1401 saying that those who do not recant are to be burned at the stake. Underground movement after 1414 when leader

was hanged 1530 merges with Reformation


Continuing Reformation Reformation and Protestant churches – often

State sponsored (Luther 1517, Calvin d. 1564) Magisterial Reformation – continued with

interdependence on secular rule Reform in theology and ecclesiology

Radical Reformers (1521 – Anabaptists) Radical Reformation – disconnect from state and

restore church

Martin Luther John Calvin


Continuing Reformation Church of England separated from Catholic

(1534) During Reformation No separation of church & State - State religion

First Great Awakening - North America had numerous Christian traditions (1720-1760) Revolutionary war – rebel against tyranny

Second Great Awakening (1800 - 1870) Revivals and reform movements Restoration movement influenced by this


Continuing Reformation Europe to New World

Reformation Movement (Religion) Luther’s ninety-five Theses Oct. 31,

1517 Search for religious freedom with

Protestant diversity Queen Mary I (1516-1558)

(1553-58) Catholic and persecuted

“heretics'” John Rogers first martyr “That

which I preached I would seal with my blood” even walked by his family to be killed

Killed over 300 “heretics”


Continuing Reformation Queen Elizabeth (1533-1603) (reigned

1558-1603) Pro-Protestant - persecuted Puritans and

Pilgrims Church of England kept a lot of the Catholic

liturgy.


Continuing Reformation King James I (1603-1625)

Pro-Protestant - persecution continues of Catholics, Puritans and Pilgrims

King James Bible 1611


Western World Heritage

Puritans – developed in 1500s “Sola Scritura” – scripture only Non-conformists Purifying the church of wrong

practices Return to the Bible as authority Press for more Christian laws Apply Bible to daily living

Thomas Gouge, William Bridge, Thomas Manton, John Flavel, Richard Sibbes, Stephen Charnock, William Bates, John Owen, John Howe, Richard Baxter


Western World Heritage People searching for religious and political

freedom Puritans fled to Holland Very scholarly group with many intellectuals Politically active

Puritan (purify church) Main group landed in New England in 1630 Did not object to a State church Agreed with Pilgrims that the Anglican church

was corrupt Believe they need to stay in order to reform it.


Pilgrims – Separatists Took Pilgrims name in

1596 indicating on passing through this world

Jamestown (1607) Mayflower at Plymouth

Rock (1620)

Christendom and the U.S.

Pilgrims were separatists – church of England too corrupt so needed to separate and start own church

Pilgrims & Puritans shared many of the reform Protestant beliefs of Calvin (d. 1564) so were primarily Calvinists


Pilgrims By 1700 the Pilgrims had

merged with Puritans Boettner estimates that two-

thirds of 3,000,000 colonists were trained in Calvinism.

By 1760 Puritans & Anglicans 40%

By 1790 about 2.5% Great Awakening (1720-

1760) Wesleys George Whitefield

Christendom and the U.S.U. S. Christian Heritage

Great Awakening (1720-1760) George Whitefield

Attended Oxford with Wesley brothers

Preached to groups of thousands Revivalism and emotion More on morals and experience of

Christ than “doctrine”


A founders of Methodism with John & Charles Wesley Students at Harvard and Yale were highly involved

in this movement but faculty would oppose it Whitefield called for conversion of “negroes” Own university started – Princeton (1741)


Great Awakening (1730-1760) Many religious groups but

with shared view No longer saw the chain of

authority as God, rulers or clergy, then people


People began to see the chain of authority as God, people, and rulers

More emphasis on the priesthood of all believers rather than clergy


Christendom and the U.S. Influence of religious concepts

Calvinistic theological perspective Total depravity (TULIP)

Humanity fell from an ideal state and a person cannot save himself.

A person is not incapable of good but tends towards selfish motives

Founders did not envision an utopian view of government

Both leaders and the people need controls Calvin founded first Protestant University in

Geneva


Christendom and the U.S. TULIP

Total Depravity (also known as Total Inability and Original Sin)

Unconditional Election Limited Atonement (also known as Particular

Atonement) Irresistible Grace Perseverance of the Saints (also known as

Once Saved Always Saved)



Priesthood of all believers Emphasis on people having direct access to God

as opposed to intermediaries such as priest Education Emphasis

Emphasis on reading and knowing the Bible made education an highly important part of Christian life

Colonial America had a high literacy rate compared to other parts of the world.


Early Universities & ChristianityHarvard (1636)“For Christ and the Church”

Yale (1701)“Light and Truth”Hebrew = Urim & Thummin

Early Universities & Christianity

Princeton (1741)“Under God’s Power She Flourishes”

Dartmouth College (1769)“A voice crying out in the wilderness”

Christendom and the U.S. First Protestant Colleges

Puritans founded Harvard College in 1636 (six years after arriving in New World); seal Christo et Ecclesiae “for Christ and the Church”

Yale founded (1701) by Connecticut Puritans who were afraid Harvard was moving away from Calvinism

Princeton (Presbyterians, 1741) Brown (Baptists, 1764) Dartmouth (Congregationalists, 1769) “Virtually with out exception, American colleges

begun in the colonial era were created by Protestants with the explicit purpose of training Christian leaders in the church and society” (Ostrander 39, Soul of a Christian University)


Christendom and the U.S. First Church of England Colleges

College of William and Mary (1693) Academy of Philadelphia – Univ. of Pennsylvania

(1740) King’s College - Columbia (1754)

15 of the first 16 colleges founded were founded by Christian groups


Christendom and the U.S. Christianity in colonial North America

(17th century) New England colonies - Puritan established

the congregational Church Southern colonies - Anglican church influence Middle colonies - Reformed from Holland;

Lutherans from Germany; Presbyterians from Scotland, Mennonites and Quakers

Roman Catholic immigrants


Christendom and the U.S. Christianity in colonial North America

(17th century) Gave rise to a church culture of various types Churches were central institutions in American

public life Influenced policy, morals, and institutions while

building many private institutions Christianity was in the DNA of American

culture before the Revolutionary War



Biblical law Saw in the Bible unchanging principles that are

relevant to modern society Covenant Theology

Covenant of law and Covenant of grace Concept applied to civil government Rev. Samuel Rutherford (1600-1661) – The Law

and the Prince Ruler derive their authority from God through the

people John Locke based his political theories on

Rutherford Protect basic rights – life, liberty and property



Limited government People give government limited authority It is conditional and the people have the right to

terminate the covenant and rebel if necessary In the war of Independence the slogan was:

“Rebellion against tyrants is obedience to God.” Local church government

Presbyterian church government was practiced (not Catholic or Anglican) with local synods

Congregational church government was even more decentralized.


Christendom and the U.S. Founding Fathers

Knew the diversity of Christianity Diverse in their own thinking Ranged from Deists to very Bible based

believers Knew the abuse of a state religion Recognized Christianity as integral to moral

instruction


Christendom and the U.S. Founding Fathers influence by the

Enlightenment Enlightenment (17th century) and Age of

Reason Question traditional Christian beliefs Autonomy of the individual Unaided human reason able to discover,

morality, happiness and truth If God, he was not involved in the world Focus on human reason and nature


Founding Fathers and Religious Roots

Deism From the Latin word deus, God 17th and 18th centuries the term was identified

with a kind of theism based on reason and natural religion

Holds that God created the universe Holds that universe operates by immutable

natural laws with little or no divine intervention

Continental Deists, Rousseau, Voltaire, Kant U.S. Founding Fathers, Franklin, Paine,

Jefferson (Unitarian?)



Deism beliefs with variations: Belief in a supreme being Obligation to worship the supreme being Provides a level of ethical conduct Belief in divine rewards and punishment in

this life and after Denied miracles Denied Trinity, incarnation, and atonement Special revelation is downplayed Still common in some Christian circles



Orthodox Christian beliefs: Belief in Trinity, incarnation, and atonement Bible provides special revelation Strong Calvinistic strain Would not deny miraculous Would see God as superintending and

intervening in the world.


Christendom and the U.S. Founding Fathers

Varied in their beliefs from a more orthodox Christian faith to Deism

There is scholarly disagreement over how much religion influenced the founding documents and building of the republican structure

It is clear that God was Creator and understood to provide a moral compass whether through nature of scripture or both

It is clear that the American culture was founded on Christian principles


Founding Fathers and Religious RootsUniversity of Houston Research

34% of all quotes in founding documents were from the Bible

Christian principles were highly influential in developing the U.S. governmental system with its moral teaching regarded as necessary for maintaining our system of governance.


Founding DocumentsDeclaration of Independence

The Unanimous Declaration ofthe Thirteen United States of America

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. 1776


Thomas Jefferson(One of the least religious)

“And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to

be violated but with His wrath?”

Notes on the State of Virginia, p. 163.


Founding DocumentsReligion and Morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of Men and Citizens. The mere Politician, equally with the pious man, ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all their connexions with private and public felicity. Let it simply be asked, Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths, which are the instruments of investigation in Courts of Justice? And let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect, that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.

George Washington'sFarewell Address, To the People of the United States, September 17, 1796


Founding DocumentsReligion and Morality enjoin this conduct; and can it be, that good policy does not equally enjoin it? It will be worthy of a free, enlightened, and, at no distant period, a great Nation, to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a people always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence. Who can doubt, that, in the course of time and things, the fruits of such a plan would richly repay any temporary advantages, which might be lost by a steady adherence to it ? Can it be, that Providence has not connected the permanent felicity of a Nation with its Virtue? The experiment, at least, is recommended by every sentiment which ennobles human nature. Alas! is it rendered impossible by its vices ?

George Washington'sFarewell Address, To the People of the United States, September 17, 1796



What did the founding fathers intend by the 1st Amendment?

Did the founding fathers mean that no religious practices could be a part of state or federal sponsored entities?


Christendom and the U.S. Founding Fathers and 1st Amendment

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Establishment clause – cannot establish a state

religion Free exercise clause – must allow free exercise of

religion



Does not say separation of church and state The phrase originated in some of Thomas

Jefferson’s writings but not in the constitution No state religion was to be organized by the

government The government allowed religion in public

places People were free to practice religion in public

placesVideo Clip

Church and Government http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlfEdJNn15E


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlfEdJNn15E


Thomas Jefferson, as president, wrote a letter to the Danbury Baptist Association of Connecticut on 1802-JAN-1. It contains the first known reference to the "wall of separation". The essay states in part:

"...I contemplate with solemn reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between Church and State..."



Jefferson's “wall of separation,” as a matter of federalism, was explaining that the 1st amendment provided protection for the freedom to practice religion without interference from the government.

In response to the Baptists concern – In 1802 Jefferson said that practice of religion is an inalienable rights so the government cannot infringe on that right. Wall of separation between church and state was

to keep government from infringing on religious activities.



The wall's primary function was to delineate the constitutional jurisdictions of the national and state governments, respectively, on religious concerns, such as setting aside days in the public calendar for prayer, fasting, and thanksgiving. Evidence for this jurisdictional or structural understanding of the wall can be found in both the texts and the context of the correspondence between Jefferson and the Danbury Baptist Association.Daniel L. Dreisbach, D.Phil. (Oxford University) and J.D. (University of Virginia), is a Professor of Justice, Law, and Society at American University in Washington, D.C. He is the author of Thomas Jefferson and the Wall of Separation Between Church and State (New York University Press, 2002).


U. S. Christian Heritage

Documents

Transcript of U. S. Christian Heritage