As historian John Fea notes, “If the Treaty of Tripoli is correct, and the United States was not ‘founded on the Christian religion,’ then someone forgot to tell the American people…
The idea that the United States is a ‘Christian nation,’ has always been central to American identity.” But debate rages over whether the Founders were Deists and why the Constitution bears no mention of God.
Like today, the Founding elites were less spiritually pre-disposed than the overall populace. Then, as now, politicians appropriated Christian themes. Obama even invoked Jesus to support same-sex marriage. The Founders knew the talk too. But as Gregg Frazier illustrates, when Washington, Adams and Franklin appealed to Almighty God they didn’t necessarily mean Jehovah.
In The Religious Beliefs of America’s Founders, (which I’ve not yet read) Dr. Frazier suggests designations of Deist or Christian are too simple. He describes the primary beliefs of core Founders as “theistic rationalism.” Frazier notes, “They took elements of Christianity and elements of natural religion and then, using rationalism, they kept what they thought was reasonable, was rational, and rejected what they considered to be irrational.”
This hybrid, unlike Deism, per Frazier, developed a benevolent god who heard and answered prayers to impart justice. All thought Jesus a great moral philosopher, but many important Revolutionary leaders denied his Deity. But be clear, biblical Christianity isn’t mere morals. Dr. Mohler stresses, diluting the Gospel to “Christian values” won’t save perishing souls.
Was America Founded As A Christian Nation? - Forbes
in some ways, we are a christian nation
in other ways, we are not
less and less people attend church on a regular basis across our nation, but more and more people find spirituality a core part of their being
i myself do believe we are a christian nation in that we stand for principles, we believe in liberty, and we were formed as one nation under god
but that is just my two cents
