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2019-04-09 2019-04-09

The Founding Faith Archive

Early documents on religious freedom and the spiritual beliefs of the Founding Fathers.

Authors

Thomas Jefferson
James Madison
George Washington
John Adams
Benjamin Franklin
Patrick Henry
Isaac Backus

Topics

Puritans
Masons
Presidential Religious Rhetoric
William Bradford
Silence Dogood
Charles Pinkney
Science And Religion
Free Market Of Religion
Christopher Columbus
Danbury Baptists
Continental Army
Adams-Jefferson Letters
New Plymouth
George Whitefield
Taxpayer Support Of Religion
France
Adam Smith
Jesus Christ
Heresy
Pluralism

See all authors and topics

Founding Faith

“If asked to recommend the best book on this controversial topic, I would choose Founding Faith.”

- Joseph Ellis, author of American CreationFounding Faith: Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America

Letter from Thomas Jefferson to William Canby

Jefferson praises Jesus but says those who believe in the "those moral precepts in which all religions concur" will go to heaven.

George Washingtons Circular Letter of Farewell to the Army

The reference in the final paragraph to the "Divine Author of our blessed Religion" is sometimes thought to be an indication...

Silence Dogood No 9

Franklin was just 16 when he wrote this attack on religious hypocrites, using his alias "Silence Dogood." He later recalled...

Diary of John Adams August 14 1796

Adams lays out the mechanics of why religion is particularly effective at promoting morality.

George Washington General Orders July 16 1775

Washington orders his troops to worship and abide by Congress's declaration of Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer

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