Below are statements by the Signers of the Declaration on Christian faith and the Bible!
John Adams
The Holy Ghost carries on the whole Christian system in His truth. Not a baptism, not a marriage, not a sacrament can be administered but by the Holy Ghost….There is no authority civil or religious – there can be no legitimate government – but what is administered by the Holy Ghost.1
The Christian religion is, above all the religions that ever prevailed or existed in ancient or modern times, the religion of wisdom, virtue, equity and humanity.2
I have examined all [religions], and the result is that the Bible is the best book in the world.3
The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were….the general principles of Christianity….I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.4
Without religion, this world would be something not fit to be mentioned in polite company: I mean hell.5
Suppose a nation in some distant region should take the Bible for their only law book and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited….What a Eutopia – what a Paradise would this region be!6
If “Thou shalt not covet,” and “Thou shalt not steal,” were not commandments of Heaven, they must be made inviolable precepts in every society before it can be civilized or made free.7
The Bible….is the most republican book in the world.8
Samuel Adams
I rely upon the merits of Jesus Christ for a pardon of all my sins.9
The name of the Lord (says the Scripture) is a strong tower; thither the righteous flee and are safe [Proverbs 18:10]. Let us secure His favor and He will lead us through the journey of this life and at length receive us to a better.10
I conceive we cannot better express ourselves than by humbly supplicating the Supreme Ruler of the world…that the confusions that are and have been among the nations may be overruled for the promoting and speedily bringing on the holy and happy period when the kingdoms of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ may be everywhere established, and the people willingly bow to the scepter of Him who is the Prince of Peace.11
[The rights of the colonists] may be best understood by reading and carefully studying the institutes of the great Law Giver and Head of the Christian Church, which are to be found clearly written and promulgated in the New Testament.12
He also called on the State of Massachusetts to pray that…
- the peaceful and glorious reign of our Divine Redeemer may be known and enjoyed throughout the whole family of mankind.13
- we may with one heart and voice humbly implore His gracious and free pardon through Jesus Christ, supplicating His Divine aid…[and] above all to cause the religion of Jesus Christ, in its true spirit, to spread far and wide till the whole earth shall be filled with His glory.14
Josiah Bartlett
Firstly, I commit my soul into the hands of God, its great and benevolent author.15
He also called on the people of New Hampshire…
to confess before God their aggravated transgressions and to implore His pardon and forgiveness through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ…[t]hat the knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ may be made known to all nations, pure and undefiled religion universally prevail, and the earth be fill with the glory of the Lord.16
Charles Carroll
On the mercy of my Redeemer I rely for salvation, and on His merits; not on the works that I have done in obedience to His precepts.17
Without morals a republic cannot subsist any length of time; they therefore who are decrying the Christian religion, whose morality is so sublime & pure, [and] which denounces against the wicked eternal misery, and [which] insured to the good eternal happiness, are undermining the solid foundation of morals, the best security for the duration of free governments.18
[I am] grateful to Almighty God for the blessings which, through Jesus Christ Our Lord, He had conferred on my beloved country.19
I….give and bequeath my soul to God who gave it, my body to the earth, hoping that through and by the merits, sufferings, and mediation of my only Savior and Jesus Christ, I may be admitted into the Kingdom prepared by God for those who love, fear and truly serve Him.20
Benjamin Franklin
As to Jesus of Nazareth, my opinion of whom you particularly desire, I think the system of morals and His religion as He left them to us, the best the world ever saw or is likely to see.21
I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice [Matthew 10:29, Luke 12:6], is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid [Daniel 4:17, Psalm 75:7]? We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that “except the Lord build the House, they labor in vain that build it” [Psalm 127:1]. I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without His concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the Builders of Babel [Genesis 11:1-9].22
The body of Benjamin Franklin, printer, like the cover of an old book, its contents torn out, and stripped of its lettering and guilding, lies here, food for worms. Yet the work itself shall not be lost; for it will, as he believed, appear once more in a new and more beautiful edition, corrected and amended by the Author.23 (Franklin’s eulogy that he wrote for himself)
Benjamin Franklin founded the University of Pennsylvania, assuring citizens that very clear lessons would be taught students “showing the necessity of a public religion…and the excellency of the Christian religion above all others, ancient or modern.” 24
Elbridge Gerry
He called on the State of Massachusetts to pray that…
- with one heart and voice we may prostrate ourselves at the throne of heavenly grace and present to our Great Benefactor sincere and unfeigned thanks for His infinite goodness and mercy towards us from our birth to the present moment for having above all things illuminated us by the Gospel of Jesus Christ, presenting to our view the happy prospect of a blessed immortality.25
- And for our unparalleled ingratitude to that Adorable Being Who has seated us in a land irradiated by the cheering beams of the Gospel of Jesus Christ…let us fall prostrate before offended Deity, confess sincerely and penitently our manifold sins and our unworthiness of the least of His Divine favors, fervently implore His pardon through the merits of our mediator.26
- And deeply impressed with a scene of our unparalleled ingratitude, let us contemplate the blessings which have flowed from the unlimited grave and favor of offended Deity, that we are still permitted to enjoy the first of Heaven’s blessings: the Gospel of Jesus Christ.27
John Hancock
Sensible of the importance of Christian piety and virtue to the order and happiness of a state, I cannot but earnestly commend to you every measure for their support and encouragement.28
He also called on the State of Massachusetts to pray…
- that all nations may bow to the scepter of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and that the whole earth may be filled with his glory.29
- that the spiritual kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ may be continually increasing until the whole earth shall be filled with His glory.30
- to confess their sins and to implore forgiveness of God through the merits of the Savior of the World.31
- to cause the benign religion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to be known, understood, and practiced among all the inhabitants of the earth.32
- to confess their sins before God and implore His forgiveness through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.33
- to pray that universal happiness may be established in the world, that all may bow to the scepter of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the whole earth be filled with His glory.34
- that He would finally overrule all events to the advancement of the Redeemer’s kingdom and the establishment of universal peace and good will among men.35
- that the kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ may be established in peace and righteousness among all the nations of the earth.36
- that with true contrition of heart we may confess our sins, resolve to forsake them, and implore the Divine forgiveness, through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, our Savior….And finally to overrule all the commotions in the world to the spreading the true religion of our Lord Jesus Christ in its purity and power among all the people of the earth.37
John Hart
Thanks be given unto Almighty God therefore, and knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die and after that the judgment [Hebrews 9:27]…principally, I give and recommend my soul into the hands of Almighty God who gave it and my body to the earth to be buried in a decent and Christian like manner…to receive the same again at the general resurrection by the mighty power of God.
Stephen Hopkins
We finally beg leave to assert that the first planters of these colonies were pious Christians…[and] to this day, all have…maintained peace and practiced Christianity. 38
Samuel Huntington
It becomes a people publicly to acknowledge the over-ruling hand of Divine Providence and their dependence upon the Supreme Being as their Creator and Merciful Preserver…and with becoming humility and sincere repentance to supplicate the pardon that we may obtain forgiveness through the merits and mediation of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 39
Thomas Jefferson
The practice of morality being necessary for the well-being of society, He [God] has taken care to impress its precepts so indelibly on our hearts that they shall not be effaced by the subtleties of our brain. We all agree in the obligation of the moral principles of Jesus and nowhere will they be found delivered in greater purity than in His discourses.40
The doctrines of Jesus are simple, and tend all to the happiness of man.41
I am a Christian in the only sense in which He wished anyone to be: sincerely attached to His doctrines in preference to all others.42
I am a real Christian – that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus Christ.43
Richard Henry Lee
It is certainly true that a popular government cannot flourish without virtue in the people. 44
When Richard Henry Lee died in 1794, his papers and correspondence, including numerous handwritten letters from other leading Founding Fathers, were passed on to his grandson, who compiled those documents into a two-volume work published in 1825. After having studied these personal letters from America’s leading statesmen, the grandson described the great body of men who founded the nation in these words:
The wise and great men of those days were not ashamed publicly to confess the name of our blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! In behalf of the people, as their representatives and rulers, they acknowledged the sublime doctrine of his mediation!45
Thomas McKean
In the case Respublica v. John Roberts, 46 John Roberts was sentenced to death after a jury found him guilty of treason. Chief Justice McKean then told him:
You will probably have but a short time to live. Before you launch into eternity, it behooves you to improve the time that may be allowed you in this world: it behooves you most seriously to reflect upon your past conduct; to repent of your evil deeds; to be incessant in prayers to the great and merciful God to forgive your manifold transgressions and sins; to teach you to rely upon the merit and passion of a dear Redeemer, and thereby to avoid those regions of sorrow – those doleful shades where peace and rest can never dwell, where even hope cannot enter. It behooves you to seek the [fellowship], advice, and prayers of pious and good men; to be [persistent] at the Throne of Grace, and to learn the way that leadeth to happiness. May you, reflecting upon these things, and pursuing the will of the great Father of light and life, be received into [the] company and society of angels and archangels and the spirits of just men made perfect; and may you be qualified to enter into the joys of Heaven – joys unspeakable and full of glory! 47
John Morton
With an awful reverence to the Great Almighty God, Creator of all mankind, being sick and weak in body but of sound mind and memory, thanks be given to Almighty God for the same.
Robert Treat Paine
I desire to bless and praise the name of God most high for appointing me my birth in a land of Gospel Light where the glorious tidings of a Savior and of pardon and salvation through Him have been continually sounding in mine ears…. I believe the Bible to be the written word of God and to contain in it the whole rule of faith and manners.48
I am constrained to express my adoration of the Supreme Being, the Author of my existence, in full belief of His Providential goodness and His forgiving mercy revealed to the world through Jesus Christ, through whom I hope for never ending happiness in a future state.49
Benjamin Rush
My only hope of salvation is in the infinite transcendent love of God manifested to the world by the death of His Son upon the Cross [John 3:16-17]. Nothing but His blood will wash away my sins [Acts 22:16]. I rely exclusively upon it. Come, Lord Jesus! Come quickly! [Revelation 22:20].50
The Gospel of Jesus Christ prescribes the wisest rules for just conduct in every situation of life. Happy they who are enabled to obey them in all situations!…My only hope of salvation is in the infinite transcendent love of God manifested to the world by the death of His Son upon the Cross. Nothing but His blood will wash away my sins [Acts 22:16]. I rely exclusively upon it. Come, Lord Jesus! Come quickly! [Revelation 22:20]51
By renouncing the Bible, philosophers swing from their moorings upon all moral subjects….It is the only correct map of the human heart that ever has been published.52
Christianity is the only true and perfect religion; and…in proportion as mankind adopt its principles and obey its precepts, they will be wise and happy….The Bible contains more knowledge necessary to man in his present state than any other book in the world.53
The Bible, when not read in schools, is seldom read in any subsequent period of life…. It should be read in our schools in preference to all other books [because] it contains the greatest portion of that kind of knowledge which is calculated to produce private and public happiness.54
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 means of the Bible. For this Divine Book, above all others, favors that equality among mankind, that respect for just laws, and those sober and frugal virtues which constitute the soul of rebpulicanism.55
The great enemy of the salvation of man, in my opinion, never invented a more effective means of limiting Christianity from the world than by persuading mankind that it was improper to read the Bible at schools.56
The religion I mean to recommend in this place is that of the New Testament….All its doctrines and precepts are calculated to promote the happiness of society and the safety and well-being of civil government.57
The greatest discoveries in science have been made by Christian philosophers and…there is the most knowledge in those countries where there is the most Christianity. 58
Roger Sherman
I subscribe to the entire belief of the great and leading doctrines of the Christian religion, such as the being of God; the universal defection and depravity of human nature; the Divinity of the person and the completeness of the redemption purchased by the blessed Savior; the necessity of the operations of the Divine Spirit; of Divine faith accompanied with an habitual virtuous life….[I] exhort and charge that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, that the way of life held up in the Christian system is calculated for the most complete happiness that can be enjoyed in this mortal state.59
I believe that there is one only living and true God, existing in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, the same in substance, equal in power and glory. That the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are a revelation from God, and a complete rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him….That He made man at first perfectly holy; that the first man sinned, and as he was the public head of his posterity, they all became sinners in consequence of his first transgression, are wholly indisposed to that which is good and inclined to evil, and on account of sin are liable to all the miseries of this life, to death, and to the pains of hell forever. I believe that God…did send His own Son to become man, die in the room and stead of sinners, and thus to lay a foundation for the offer of pardon and salvation to all mankind, so as all may be saved who are willing to accept the Gospel offer….I believe a visible church to be a congregation of those who make a credible profession of their faith in Christ, and obedience to Him, joined by the bond of the covenant….I believe that the sacraments of the New Testament are baptism and the Lord’s Supper….I believe that the souls of believers are at their death made perfectly holy, and immediately taken to glory: that at the end of this world there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a final judgment of all mankind, when the righteous shall be publicly acquitted by Christ the Judge and admitted to everlasting life and glory, and the wicked be sentenced to everlasting punishment.60
God commands all men everywhere to repent. He also commands them to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and has assured us that all who do repent and believe shall be saved….[G]od…has absolutely promised to bestow them on all these who are willing to accept them on the terms of the Gospel – that is, in a way of free grace through the atonement. “Ask and ye shall receive [John 16:24]. Whosoever will, let him come and take of the waters of life freely [Revelation 22:17]. Him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out” [John 6:37].61
It is the duty of all to acknowledge that the Divine Law which requires us to love God with all our heart and our neighbor as ourselves, on pain of eternal damnation, is Holy, just, and good….The revealed law of God is the rule of our duty.62
True Christians are assured that no temptation (or trial) shall happen to them but what they shall be enabled to bear; and that the grace of Christ shall be sufficient for them.63
Of Sherman, it was reported: “The volume which he consulted more than any other was the Bible. It was his custom, at the commencement of every session of Congress, to purchase a copy of the Scriptures, to peruse it daily, and to present it to one of his children on his return.”64
Thomas Stone
Shun all giddy, loose, and wicked company; they will corrupt and lead you into vice and bring you to ruin. Seek the company of sober, virtuous and good people… which will lead [you] to solid happiness. 65
James Wilson
Human law must rest its authority ultimately upon the authority of that law which is Divine….Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and mutual assistants. Indeed, these two sciences run into each other….Our all-gracious Creator, Preserver, and Ruler has been pleased to discover and enforce His laws by a revelation given to us immediately and directly from Himself. This revelation is contained in the Holy Scriptures.66
John Witherspoon
I…entreat you in the most earnest manner to believe in Jesus Christ, for “there is no salvation in any other” [acts 4:12]….If you are not reconciled to God through Jesus Christ, if you are not clothed with the spotless robe of His righteousness, you must forever perish.67
No man, whatever be his character or whatever be his hope, shall enter into rest unless he be reconciled to God though Jesus Christ.68
There is no salvation in any other than in Jesus Christ of Nazareth [Acts 4:12].69
Christ Jesus – the promise of old made unto the fathers, the hope of Israel [Acts 28:20], the light of the world [John 8:12], and the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth [Romans 10:4] – is the only Savior of sinners, in opposition to all false religions and every uninstituted rite; as He Himself says (John 14:6): “I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me.”70
It is very evident that both the prophets in the Old Testament and the apostles in the New are at great pains to give us a view of the glory and dignity of the person of Christ. With what magnificent titles is He adorned! What glorious attributes are ascribed to him!… All these conspire to teach us that He is truly and properly God – God over all, blessed forever!71
He is the best friend to American liberty who is the most sincere and active in promoting true and undefiled religion, and who sets himself with the greatest firmness to bear down profanity and immorality of every kind. Whoever is an avowed enemy of God, I scruple not to call him an enemy to his country.72
Oliver Wolcott
Through various scenes of life, God has sustained me. May He ever be my unfailing friend; may His love cherish my soul; may my heart with gratitude acknowledge His goodness; and may my desires be to Him and to the remembrance of His name….May we then turn our eyes to the bright objects above, and may God give us strength to travel the upward road. May the Divine Redeemer conduct us to that seat of bliss which He himself has prepared for His friends; at the approach of which every sorrow shall vanish from the human heart and endless scenes of glory open upon the enraptured eye. There our love to God and each other will grow stronger, and our pleasures never be dampened by the fear of future separation. How indifferent will it then be to us whether we obtained felicity by travailing the thorny or the agreeable paths of life – whether we arrived at our rest by passing through the envied and unfragrant road of greatness or sustained hardship and unmerited reproach in our journey. God’s Providence and support through the perilous perplexing labyrinths of human life will then forever excite our astonishment and love. May a happiness be granted to those I most tenderly love, which shall continue and increase through an endless existence. Your cares and burdens must be many and great, but put your trust in that God Who has hitherto supported you and me; He will not fail to take care of those who put their trust in Him….It is most evident that this land is under the protection of the Almighty, and that we shall be saved not by our wisdom nor by our might, but by the Lord of Host Who is wonderful in counsel and Almighty in all His operations. 73
Endnotes
1 John Adams to Dr. Benjamin Rush, December 21, 1809, from an original in the WallBuilders Collection, here.
2 John Adams diary entry for July 26, 1796, Massachusetts Historical Society, https://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/archive/doc?id=D46&bc=%2Fdigitaladams%2Farchive%2Fbrowse%2Fdiaries_by_number.php.
3 “Image 4 of John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, December 25, 1813,” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/mtj1.047_0129_0134/?sp=4&st=image.
4 “Image 3 of John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, June 28, 1813,” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/mtj1.046_0922_0925/?sp=3&st=image.
5 John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, April 19, 1817, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-6744.
6 John Adams diary entry for February 22, 1756, Massachusetts Historical Society, https://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/archive/doc?id=D1&bc=%2Fdigitaladams%2Farchive%2Fbrowse%2Fdiaries_by_number.php.
7 John Adams, A Defense of the Constitution of Government of the United States of America (Philadelphia: William Young, 1797), III:217.
8 John Adams to Benjamin Rush, February 2, 1807, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-5166.
9 Samuel Adams Last Will, December 29, 1790, original in the Massachusetts Judicial Archives.
10 Samuel Adams to Elizabeth Adams, December 26, 1776, The New York Public Library Digital Collection, https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/cfa19e60-0e20-0134-4fef-00505686d14e?canvasIndex=0.
11 Samuel Adams, Proclamation for a Day of Fasting, March 20, 1797, from the WallBuilders Collection.
12 Samuel Adams, The Life and Public Services of Samuel Adams, ed. William V. Wells (Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1865), I:504.
13 Samuel Adams, A Proclamation For a Day of Public Fasting, Humiliation and Prayer, October 14, 1795, from the WallBuilders Collection, here.
14 Samuel Adams, “Proclamation. February 19, 1794,” The Writings of Samuel Adams, ed. Harry Alonzo Cushing (New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1908), IV:361-362.
15 Josiah Bartlett, Last Will, February 26, 1795, original in the New Hampshire Historical Society.
16 Josiah Bartlett, Proclamation for a Day of Fasting and Prayer, March 17, 1792, from the WallBuilders Collection.
17 Charles Carroll to Charles W. Wharton, September 27, 1825, from the WallBuilders Collection, here.
18 Charles Carroll to James McHenry, November 4, 1800, Bernard C. Steiner, The Life and Correspondence of James McHenry (Cleveland: The Burrows Brothers, 1907), 475.
19 Lewis A. Leonard, Life of Charles Carroll of Carrollton (New York: Moffit, Yard & Co, 1918), 256-257.
20 Will of Charles Carroll, December 1, 1718, Kate Mason Rowland, Life of Charles Carroll of Carrollton (New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1890), II:373-374 (later replaced by a subsequent will not containing this phrase, although he expressed this sentiment on several subsequent occasions, including repeatedly in the latter years of his life).
21 Benjamin Franklin to Ezra Stiles, March 9, 1790, Works of Benjamin Franklin, ed. John Bigelow (New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1904), 185.
22 Benjamin Franklin, June 28, 1787, James Madison, The Papers of James Madison, ed. Henry D. Gilpin (Washington DC: Langtree and O’Sullivan, 1840), II:984-985.
23 Benjamin Franklin, Works of the Late Doctor Benjamin Franklin (Dublin: P. Wogan, P. Byrne, J. More, and W. Janes, 1793), II:149.
24 Benjamin Franklin, Proposals Relating to the Education of Youth in Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, 1749), 22.
25 Elbridge Gerry, Proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving and Praise, October 24, 1810, in the WallBuilders Collection.
26 Elbridge Gerry, Proclamation for a Day of Fasting and Prayer, March 13, 1811, in the WallBuilders Collection.
27 Elbridge Gerry, Proclamation for a Day of Fasting and Prayer, March 6, 1812, in the WallBuilders Collection.
28 Abram English Brown, John Hancock, His Book (Boston: Lee and Shepard, 1898), 269.
29 John Hancock, Proclamation for a Day of Public Thanksgiving, October 28, 1784, in the WallBuilders Collection, here.
30 John Hancock, Proclamation for a Day of Public Thanksgiving, October 29, 1788, in the WallBuilders Collection.
31 John Hancock, Proclamation For a Day of Fasting and Prayer, March 16, 1789, in the WallBuilders Collection.
32 John Hancock, Proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving and Praise, September 16, 1790, in the WallBuilders Collection.
33 John Hancock, Proclamation for a Day of Fasting and Prayer, February 11, 1791, in the WallBuilders Collection.
34 John Hancock, A Proclamation For a Day of Public Thanksgiving, October 5, 1791, in the WallBuilders Collection, here.
35 John Hancock, Proclamation for a Day of Fasting, Prayer and Humiliation, February 24, 1792, in the WallBuilders Collection.
36 John Hancock, Proclamation for a Day of Public Thanksgiving, October 25, 1792, in the WallBuilders Collection, here.
37 John Hancock, Proclamation for Day of Public Fasting, Humiliation and Prayer, March 4, 1793, in the WallBuilders Collection, here.
38 Stephen Hopkins, The Rights of Colonies Examined (Providence: William Goddard, 1765), 23-24.
39 Samuel Huntington, A Proclamation for a Day of Fasting, Prayer and Humiliation, March 9, 1791, in the WallBuilders Collection.
40 “Image 1 of Thomas Jefferson to James Fishback, September 27, 1809, with Copy, Not Sent,” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/mtj1.044_0270_0273/?sp=1.
41 “Image 1 of Thomas Jefferson to Dr. Benjamin Waterhouse, June 26, 1822,” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/mtj1.053_0253_0254/?sp=1.
42 “Image 1 of Thomas Jefferson to Benjamin Rush, April 21, 1803, with Syllabus of an Estimate of the Merit of the Doctrines of Jesus, with Copies,” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/mtj1.028_0191_0199/?sp=1.
43 “Image 1 of Thomas Jefferson to Charles Thomson, January 9, 1816,” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/mtj1.048_0745_0746/?sp=1.
44 Richard Henry Lee to Mortin Pickett, March 5, 1786, The Letters of Richard Henry Lee, ed. James Curtis Ballagh (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1914), II:411.
45 Richard Henry Lee, Memoir of the Life of Richard Henry Lee, and His Correspondence, ed. Richard Henry Lee (Philadelphia: H.C. Carey and I. Lea, 1825), 1:201.
46 A. J. Dallas, Reports of Cases Ruled and Adjudged in the Courts of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia: P. Byrne, 1806), p. 39, Respublica v. John Roberts, Pa. Sup. Ct. 1778.
47 William B. Reed, Life and Correspondence of Joseph Reed (Philadelphia: Lindsay and Blakiston, 1847), II:36-37.
48 Robert Treat Paine, Confession of Faith, 1749, The Papers of Robert Treat Paine, eds. Stephen T. Riley & Edward W. Hanson (Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society, 1992), I:48-49.
49 From the Last Will & Testament of Robert Treat Paine, attested May 11, 1814.
50 Benjamin Rush, The Autobiography of Benjamin Rush, ed. George Corner (Princeton: Princeton University Press for the American Philosophical Society, 1948), 166.
51 Rush, Autobiography, ed. Corner (1948), 165-166.
52 Benjamin Rush to John Adams, January 23, 1807, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-5162.
53] Benjamin Rush, “A Defence of the Use of the Bible as a School Book,” Essays, Literary, Moral & Philosophical (Philadelphia: Thomas & Samuel F. Bradford, 1798), 93.
54 Rush, “A Defence of the Use of the Bible as a School Book,” Essays (1798), 94, 100.
55 Rush, “A Defence of the Use of the Bible as a School Book,” Essays (1798), 112.
56 Benjamin Rush to Jeremy Belknap, July 13, 1789, Letters of Benjamin Rush, ed. L. H. Butterfield (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1951), I:521.
57 Rush, “Of the Mode of Education Proper in a Republic,” Essays (1798), 8.
58 Benjamin Rush, “Thoughts upon Female Education,” Essays (1798), 84.
59 Will of Richard Stockton, dated May 20, 1780.
60 Lewis Henry Boutell, The Life of Roger Sherman (Chicago: A. C. McClurg and Company, 1896), 271-273.
61 Roger Sherman to Samuel Hopkins, June 28, 1790, Correspondence Between Roger Sherman and Samuel Hopkins (Worcester, MA: Charles Hamilton, 1889), 9.
62 Roger Sherman to Samuel Hopkins, June 28, 1790, Correspondence (1889), 10.
63 Roger Sherman to Samuel Hopkins, October 1790, Correspondence (1889), 26.
64] The Globe (Washington, DC: August 15, 1837), 1.
65 Thomas Stone to his son, October 1787, John Sanderson, Biography of the Signers to the Declaration of Independence (Philadelphia: R. W. Pomeroy, 1824), IX:333.
66 James Wilson, The Works of the Honourable James Wilson, ed. Bird Wilson (Philadelphia: Bronson and Chauncey, 1804), I:104-106, 137-138.
67 John Witherspoon, “The Absolute Necessity of Salvation Through Christ,” January 2, 1758, The Works of John Witherspoon (Edinburgh: J. Ogle, 1815), V:276, 278.
68 Witherspoon, “Absolute Necessity of Salvation,” January 2, 1758, Works (1815), V:245.
69 Witherspoon, “Absolute Necessity of Salvation,” January 2, 1758, Works (1815), V:248.
70 John Witherspoon, “Absolute Necessity of Salvation,” January 2, 1758, Works (1815), V:255.
71 Witherspoon, “Absolute Necessity of Salvation,” January 2, 1758, Works (1815), V:267.
72 John Witherspoon, The Works of the Reverend John Witherspoon (Philadelphia: William W. Woodward, 1802), III:42.
73 Oliver Wolcott to Laura Wolcott, April 10, 1776, Letters of Delegates to Congress, ed. Paul H. Smith (Washington DC: Library of Congress, 1978), 3:502-503.
