MISCELLANEOUS
QUOTES:
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"America is like a healthy body and its
resistance is three-fold: its patriotism, its morality and its spiritual life. If we can
undermine these three areas, America will collapse from within." -- Joseph Stalin,
former dictator of the Soviet Union
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"[N]either the wisest constitution nor the
wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are
universally corrupt. He therefore is the truest friend of the liberty of his country who
tries most to promote its virtue." -- Samuel Adams
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"Our Constitution was made only for a moral
and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." --
John Adams
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"No free government can stand without virtue
in the people, and a lofty spirit of patriotism ..." -- Andrew Jackson
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"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 of the gift of God?" -- Thomas Jefferson in
"Notes on Virginia".
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"Yes, we did produce a near perfect
Republic. But will they keep it, or will they, in the enjoyment of plenty, lose the memory
of freedom? Material abundance without character is the surest way to destruction."
-- Thomas Jefferson
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"A nation as a society forms a moral person,
and every member of it is personally responsible for his society." -- Thomas
Jefferson
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"No people can be bound to acknowledge and
adore the invisible hand, which conducts in the affairs of men more than the people of the
United States. Every step, by which they have been advanced to the character of an
independent nation, seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential
agency." -- George Washington
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"I believe that justice is instinct and
innate, that the moral sense is as much a part of our constitution as that of feeling,
seeing, or hearing; as a wise Creator must have seen to be necessary in an animal destined
to live in society." --Thomas Jefferson to John Adams, 1823.
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"Religion, morality, and knowledge ... [are]
necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind." -- Northwest Ordinance
(1787)
John Adams
Signer of the Declaration of Independence and Second President of the United States
[I]t is religion and morality alone which can establish the principles upon which
freedom can securely stand. The only foundation of a free constitution is pure virtue.
(Source: John Adams, The Works of John Adams, Second President of the
United States, Charles Francis Adams, editor (Boston: Little, Brown, 1854), Vol. IX,
p. 401, to Zabdiel Adams on June 21, 1776.)
[W]e have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions
unbridled by morality and religion. . . . Our constitution was made only for a moral and
religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.
(Source: John Adams, The Works of John Adams, Second President of the
United States, Charles Francis Adams, editor (Boston: Little, Brown, and Co. 1854),
Vol. IX, p. 229, October 11, 1798.)
The moment the idea is admitted into society, that property is not as sacred as the
laws of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it,
anarchy and tyranny commence. 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.
(Source: John Adams, The Works of John Adams, Second President of the
United States, Charles Francis Adams, editor (Boston: Charles C. Little and James
Brown, 1851), Vol. VI, p. 9.)
John Quincy Adams
Sixth President of the United States
The law given from Sinai was a civil and municipal as well as a moral and religious
code; it contained many statutes . . . of universal application-laws essential to the
existence of men in society, and most of which have been enacted by every nation which
ever professed any code of laws.
(Source: John Quincy Adams, Letters of John Quincy Adams, to His Son,
on the Bible and Its Teachings (Auburn: James M. Alden, 1850), p. 61.)
There are three points of doctrine the belief of which forms the foundation of all
morality. The first is the existence of God; the second is the immortality of the human
soul; and the third is a future state of rewards and punishments. Suppose it possible for
a man to disbelieve either of these three articles of faith and that man will have no
conscience, he will have no other law than that of the tiger or the shark. The laws of man
may bind him in chains or may put him to death, but they never can make him wise,
virtuous, or happy.
(Source: John Quincy Adams, Letters of John Quincy Adams to His Son
on the Bible and Its Teachings (Auburn: James M. Alden, 1850), pp. 22-23.)
Samuel Adams
Signer of the Declaration of Independence
[N]either the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and
happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt.
(Source: William V. Wells, The Life and Public Service of Samuel
Adams (Boston: Little, Brown, & Co., 1865), Vol. I, p. 22, quoting from a
political essay by Samuel Adams published in The Public Advertiser, 1749.)
Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Signer of the Declaration of Independence
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.
(Source: Bernard C. Steiner, The Life and Correspondence of James
McHenry (Cleveland: The Burrows Brothers, 1907), p. 475. In a letter from Charles
Carroll to James McHenry of November 4, 1800.)
Benjamin Franklin
Signer of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence
[O]nly a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious,
they have more need of masters.
Source: Benjamin Franklin, The Writings of Benjamin Franklin,
Jared Sparks, editor (Boston: Tappan, Whittemore and Mason, 1840), Vol. X, p. 297, April
17, 1787.
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 a sparrow cannot fall to
the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We
have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings, that "except the Lord build the
House, they labor in vain that build it." 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: We shall be divided by our partial local interests; our
projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall become a reproach and bye word down to
future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from tis unfortunate instance,
despair of establishing governments by human wisdom and leave it to chance, war and
conquest.
I therefore beg leave to move that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of
Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations be held in this Assembly every morning
before we proceed to business, and that one of more of the clergy of this city be
requested to officiate in that service.
(Source: James Madison, The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787,
Max Farrand, editor (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1911), Vol. I, pp. 450-452, June
28, 1787.)
Thomas Jefferson
Signer of the Declaration of Independence and Third President of the
United States
Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains
rather than do an immoral act. And never suppose that in any possible situation, or under
any circumstances, it is best for your to do a dishonorable thing, however slightly so it
may appear to you. Whenever you are to do a thing, though it can never be known but to
yourself, ask yourself how you would act were all the world looking at you, and act
accordingly. Encourage all you virtuous dispositions, and exercise them whenever an
opportunity arises, being assured that they will gain strength by exercise, as a limb of
the body does, and that exercise will make them habitual. From the practice of the purest
virtue, you may be assured you will derive the most sublime comforts in every moment of
life, and in the moment of death.
(Source: Thomas Jefferson, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson,
Albert Bergh, editor (Washington, D.C.: Thomas Jefferson Memorial Assoc., 1903), Vol. 5,
pp. 82-83, in a letter to his nephew Peter Carr on August 19, 1785.)
The doctrines of Jesus are simple, and tend all to the happiness of mankind.
(Source: Thomas Jefferson, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson,
Albert Bergh, editor (Washington, D. C.: Thomas Jefferson Memorial Assoc., 1904), Vol. XV,
p. 383.)
I concur with the author in considering the moral precepts of Jesus as more pure,
correct, and sublime than those of ancient philosophers.
(Source: Thomas Jefferson, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson,
Albert Bergh, editor (Washington, D. C.: Thomas Jefferson Memorial Assoc., 1904), Vol. X,
pp. 376-377. In a letter to Edward Dowse on April 19, 1803.)
Richard Henry Lee
Signer of the Declaration of Independence
It is certainly true that a popular government cannot flourish without virtue in the
people.
(Source: Richard Henry Lee, The Letters of Richard Henry Lee,
James Curtis Ballagh, editor (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1914), Vol. II, p. 411. In
a letter to Colonel Mortin Pickett on March 5, 1786.)
James McHenry
Signer of the Constitution
[P]ublic utility pleads most forcibly for the general distribution of the Holy
Scriptures. The doctrine they preach, the obligations they impose, the punishment they
threaten, the rewards they promise, the stamp and image of divinity they bear, which
produces a conviction of their truths, can alone secure to society, order and peace, and
to our courts of justice and constitutions of government, purity, stability and
usefulness. In vain, without the Bible, we increase penal laws and draw entrenchments
around our institutions. Bibles are strong entrenchments. Where they abound, men cannot
pursue wicked courses, and at the same time enjoy quiet conscience.
Source: Bernard C. Steiner, One Hundred and Ten Years of Bible
Society Work in Maryland, 1810-1920 (Maryland Bible Society, 1921), p. 14.
Jedediah Morse
Patriot and "Father of American Geography"
To the kindly influence of Christianity we owe that degree of civil freedom, and
political and social happiness which mankind now enjoys. . . . Whenever the pillars of
Christianity shall be overthrown, our present republican forms of government, and all
blessings which flow from them, must fall with them.
(Source: Jedediah Morse, Election Sermon given at Charleston, MA, on
April 25, 1799.)
William Penn
Founder of Pennsylvania
[I]t is impossible that any people of government should ever prosper, where men render
not unto God, that which is God's, as well as to Caesar, that which is Caesar's.
(Source: Fundamental Constitutions of Pennsylvania, 1682. Written
by William Penn, founder of the colony of Pennsylvania.)
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
No free government now exists in the world, unless where Christianity is acknowledged,
and is the religion of the country.
(Source: Pennsylvania Supreme Court, 1824. Updegraph v. Cmmonwealth;
11 Serg. & R. 393, 406 (Sup.Ct. Penn. 1824).)
Benjamin Rush
Signer of the Declaration of Independence
The only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion.
Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty, and
liberty is the object and life of all republican governments.
(Source: Benjamin Rush, Essays, Literary, Moral and Philosophical
(Philadelphia: Thomas and William Bradford, 1806), p. 8.)
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. 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 republicanism.
(Source: Benjamin Rush, Essays, Literary, Moral and Philosophical
(Philadelphia: Printed by Thomas and William Bradford, 1806), pp. 93-94.)
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. . . . All systems of religion, morals, and government not founded upon it [the
Bible] must perish, and how consoling the thought, it will not only survive the wreck of
these systems but the world itself. "The Gates of Hell shall not prevail against
it." [Matthew 1:18]
(Source: Benjamin Rush, Letters of Benjamin Rush, L. H.
Butterfield, editor (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1951), p. 936, to John
Adams, January 23, 1807.)
Remember that national crimes require national punishments, and without declaring what
punishment awaits this evil, you may venture to assure them that it cannot pass with
impunity, unless God shall cease to be just or merciful.
(Source: Benjamin Rush, An Address to the Inhabitants of the British
Settlements in America Upon Slave-Keeping (Boston: John Boyles, 1773), p. 30.)
George Washington
"Father of Our Country"
While just government protects all in their religious rights, true religion affords to
government its surest support.
(Source: George Washington, The Writings of George Washington,
John C. Fitzpatrick, editor (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1932),
Vol. XXX, p. 432 n., from his address to the Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church in North
America, October 9, 1789.)
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion 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 man 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. It is substantially true, that virtue or
morality is a necessary spring of popular government. The rule, indeed, extends with more
or less force to every species of free government. Who, that is a sincere friend to it,
can look with indifference upon attempts to shake the foundation of the fabric?
(Source: George Washington, Address of George Washington, President
of the United States . . . Preparatory to His Declination (Baltimore: George and Henry
S. Keatinge), pp. 22-23. In his Farewell Address to the United States in 1796.)
[T]he [federal] government . . . can never be in danger of degenerating into a
monarchy, and oligarchy, an aristocracy, or any other despotic or oppressive form so long
as there shall remain any virtue in the body of the people.
(Source: George Washington, The Writings of George Washington,
John C. Fitzpatrick, editor (Washington: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1939), Vol.
XXIX, p. 410. In a letter to Marquis De Lafayette, February 7, 1788.)
* For the full text of Geo. Washington's Farewell Address, click here.
Daniel Webster
Early American Jurist and Senator
[I]f we and our posterity reject religious instruction and authority, violate the rules
of eternal justice, trifle with the injunctions of morality, and recklessly destroy the
political constitution which holds us together, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe
may overwhelm us that shall bury all our glory in profound obscurity.
(Source: Daniel Webster, The Writings and Speeches of Daniel Webster
(Boston: Little, Brown, & Company, 1903), Vol. XIII, p. 492. From "The Dignity
and Importance of History," February 23, 1852.)
Noah Webster
Founding Educator
The most perfect maxims and examples for regulating your social conduct and domestic
economy, as well as the best rules of morality and religion, are to be found in the Bible.
. . . The moral principles and precepts found in the scriptures ought to form the basis of
all our civil constitutions and laws. These principles and precepts have truth, immutable
truth, for their foundation. . . . All the 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. . . . For instruction then in social,
religious and civil duties resort to the scriptures for the best precepts.
(Source: Noah Webster, History of the United States, "Advice
to the Young" (New Haven: Durrie & Peck, 1832), pp. 338-340, par. 51, 53, 56.)
James Wilson
Signer of the Constitution
Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and
mutual assistants. Indeed, these two sciences run into each other. The divine law, as
discovered by reason and the moral sense, forms an essential part of both.
(Source: James Wilson, The Works of the Honourable James Wilson
(Philadelphia: Bronson and Chauncey, 1804), Vol. I, p. 106.)
Robert Winthrop
Former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
Men, in a word, must necessarily be controlled either by a power within them or by a
power without them; either by the Word of God or by the strong arm of man; either by the
Bible or by the bayonet.
(Source: Robert Winthrop, Addresses and Speeches on Various Occasions
(Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1852), p. 172 from his "Either by the Bible or the
Bayonet.")