The Upanishads, the Egyptian Book of the Dead, et al had no direct or indirect impact on the founding principles of our nation, and did not affect the moral or governmental foundations of the United States. The Bible, on the other hand, was absolutely critical to the formation of the United States, as well as its unparalleled freedom and prosperity.
“In contemplating the political institutions of the United States, I lament that we waste so much time and money in punishing crimes, and take so little pains to prevent them. We profess to be republicans and yet we neglect the only means of establishing and perpetuating our republican forms of government. That is, the universal education of our youth in the principles of Christianity by the means of the Bible.” – Benjamin Rush, doctor and signer of the Declaration of Independence
President George Washington’s first presidential proclamation declared “Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor…”
President James Madison issued a similar proclamation: “I do therefore recommend the third Thursday in August next, as a convenient day to be set apart for the devout purposes of rendering to the Sovereign of the Universe and the Benefactor of mankind, the public homage due to his holy attributes…”
Noah Webster, a lawyer and Yale graduate who is famous for his dictionary, said, “The moral principles and precepts contained in the Scriptures ought to form the basis of all of our civil constitutions and laws.… All the miseries and evils which men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery and war, proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts contained in the Bible.”
The first governmental document of America, the Mayflower Compact, was written “In the name of God” and “by the Grace of God” “for the Glory of God, and advancements of the Christian faith.”
The New England Primer, the second-best selling book in the colonies (after the Bible) was the main textbook used to teach American’s founding generation to read and write, and used tools such as these:
A – In ADAM’S Fall We sinned all.
B – Heaven to find; The Bible Mind
C – Christ crucify’d For sinners dy’d.
D – The Deluge drown’d The Earth around.
Without the Bible and our Christian heritage, THERE NEVER WOULD HAVE BEEN A UNITED STATES. (Caps for emphasis)
You cannot understand the United States, as well as the source of our unrivaled liberties and success, without a solid understanding of the Bible, whether you agree with it or not.
*** Bob Ellis *** Is a conservative author and Life and Liberty News contributor
