Religious Beliefs Of Our Presidents

[John81]

The Religious Beliefs Of Our Presidents
by Franklin Steiner


An account of the religious beliefs, and lack of such beliefs, of our chief executives, and a chronicle of the more important religious events and controversies of their administrations.



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"When the crisis came, Jefferson, Paine, John Adams, Washington, Franklin, Madison, and many lesser lights were to be reckoned among either the Unitarians or the Deists. it was not Cotton Mather's God to whom the author of the Declaration of Independence appealed, it was to 'Nature's God.' From whatever source derived, the effect of both Unitarianism and Deism was to hasten the retirement of historic theology from its empire over the intellect of American leaders, and to clear the atmosphere for secular interests" -- The Rise of American Civilization," by Charles A. and Mary R. Beard. (Vol. I., p. 449.)


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Contents
Preface
Introduction
Chapter I - George Washington - The Vestryman Who Was Not A Communicant
Chapter II - Presidents Who Were Presbyterians
Andrew Jackson
James Knox Polk
James Buchanan
Grover Cleveland
Benjamin Harrison
Woodrow Wilson

Chapter III - Presidents Who Were Unitarians
John Adams
John Quincy Adams
Millard Fillmore
William Howard Taft

Chapter IV - Presidents Who Were Episcopalians
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Chapter V - Presidents Who Were Not Members Of Any Church
William Henery Harrison
Andrew Johnson
Ulysses Simpson Grant
Rutherford Birchard Hayes

Chapter VI - Presidents Whose Religious Views Are Doubtful
James Madison
James Monroe
Martin Van Buren
John Tyler
Zachary Taylor
Chester Alan Arthur

Chapter VII - Thomas Jefferson, Freethinker

Chapter VIII - Abraham Lincoln, Deist And Admirer Of Thomas Paine

Chapter IX - James Abram Garfield, The Preacher President

Chapter X - William McKinley, The Methodist President

Chapter XI - Theodore Roosevelt, Dutch Reformed But Not Very Religious

Chpater XII - The Beliefs Of Our "Prosperity" Presidents
Warren Gamaliel Harding - Baptist
Calvin Coolidge - Congregationalist
Herbert Clark Hoover - Quaker

Resume
Appendix I - Washington's Last Sickness And Death
Appendix II - Religious Opinions And Habits Of Washington
Appendix III - Dr. Holland And The "Bateman Interview"
Appendix IV - Testimony Of W. H. Herndon, Lincoln's Law Partner For 22 Years, Concerning His Religious Beliefs
Appendix V - Thanksgiving Proclimations
Bibliography

[John81]

# President Religion

1 George Washington Episcopalian
2 John Adams Congregationalist (raised); Unitarian
3 Thomas Jefferson raised Episcopalian; later no specific denomination
held Christian, Deist, Unitarian beliefs
4 James Madison Episcopalian (deist?)
5 James Monroe Episcopalian (deist?)
6 John Quincy Adams Unitarian
7 Andrew Jackson Presbyterian
8 Martin Van Buren Dutch Reformed
9 William Henry Harrison Episcopalian
10 John Tyler Episcopalian (deist)
11 James Knox Polk Presbyterian; Methodist
12 Zachary Taylor Episcopalian
13 Millard Fillmore Unitarian
14 Franklin Pierce Episcopalian
15 James Buchanan Presbyterian
16 Abraham Lincoln raised Baptist; later no specific denomination (deist)
17 Andrew Johnson Christian (no specific denomination)
18 Ulysses S Grant Presbyterian; Methodist
19 Rutherford B. Hayes Presbyterian; Methodist (?)
20 James A. Garfield Disciples of Christ
21 Chester A. Arthur Episcopalian
22 Grover Cleveland Presbyterian
23 Benjamin Harrison Presbyterian
24 Grover Cleveland Presbyterian
25 William McKinley Methodist
26 Theodore Roosevelt Dutch Reformed; Episcopalian
27 William Howard Taft Unitarian
28 Woodrow Wilson Presbyterian
29 Warren G. Harding Baptist
30 Calvin Coolidge Congregationalist
31 Herbert Hoover Quaker
32 Franklin Delano Roosevelt Episcopalian
33 Harry S. Truman Southern Baptist
34 Dwight D. Eisenhower River Brethren; Jehovah's Witnesses; Presbyterian
35 John F. Kennedy Catholic
36 Lyndon B. Johnson Disciples of Christ
37 Richard M. Nixon Quaker
38 Gerald Ford Episcopalian
39 Jimmy Carter Baptist (former Southern Baptist)
40 Ronald Reagan Disciples of Christ; Presbyterian
41 George H. W. Bush Episcopalian
42 William Jefferson Clinton Baptist
43 George W. Bush Methodist (former Episcopalian)


Major Sources: Kane, Joseph Nathan. Facts About the Presidents (Fourth Edition). New York: The H. W. Wilson Co. (1981), pg. 360; DeGregorio, William A. The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents (Second Edition). New York: Dembner Books (1989)

[John81]

James Madison

Religious Affiliation: Episcopalian

Summary of Religious Views:

Franklin Steiner, in his book The Religious Beliefs Of Our Presidents, categorized Madison among "Presidents Whose Religious Views Are Doubtful."

Views on Religion & Politics:

Not long after he was out of college, Madison saw first-hand the sort of religious persecution that having an established church can lead to. He visited a group of Baptists who had been imprisoned under Virginia law for expressing views at odds with the official tenets of the Church of England (which was at that time the established church in Virginia). That these dissenters could be prosecuted simply for holding unapproved opinions outraged Madison, and ever after he was a tireless and vocal advocate of both religious tolerance and the separation of church and state.

He proposed a more strongly worded clause on freedom of religion in Virginia's Declaration of Rights than the one in George Mason's initial draft. Mason had called for "the fullest toleration in the exercise of religion," but allowed for constraints to preserve "the peace, the happiness, or safety of society, or of individuals." Madison wanted the document to support complete freedom of religion. In the end, a compromise on the wording was reached.

When Patrick Henry tried to pass legislation establishing the Episcopal Church in post-Revolution Virginia by "incorporating" its clergymen and supporting it with state taxes, Madison fought and ultimately defeated the measure.

And finally, it should be remembered that Madison actively worked for the passage of the Bill of Rights with its strong support for separation of church and state.

[John81]

Thomas Jefferson

The Jefferson Bible:
Creating an edited Bible may sound like a radical concept. However, it is feasible, because it has already partly been done. In 1804 President Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826) created an abbreviated version of the Gospels. It is now called the "Jefferson Bible" and has remained in print since the first edition.

Marilyn Mellowes wrote:

"Thomas Jefferson was frustrated. It was not the burdens of office that bothered him. It was his Bible."

"Jefferson was convinced that the authentic words of Jesus written in the New Testament had been contaminated. Early Christians, overly eager to make their religion appealing to the pagans, had obscured the words of Jesus with the philosophy of the ancient Greeks and the teachings of Plato. These "Platonists" had thoroughly muddled Jesus' original message. Jefferson assured his friend and rival, John Adams, that the authentic words of Jesus were still there. The task, as he put it, was one of

'abstracting what is really his from the rubbish in which it is buried, easily distinguished by its luster from the dross of his biographers, and as separate from that as the diamond from the dung hill'." 6,7
Jefferson told John Adams that he was rescuing the philosophy of Jesus and the:

"pure principles which he taught ... [from the] artificial vestments in which they have been muffled by priests, who have travestied them into various forms as instruments of riches and power for themselves." 8

The material that Jefferson described as "rubbish" that he removed from the gospels included what he considered to be religious dogma, supernatural elements, and miracles. He deleted passages dealing with the annunciation, the virgin birth, appearance of the angels to the shepherds, the wise men, the Christmas star, Jesus' resurrection and ascension, etc. What is left makes interesting reading. 9

The precedent has been established. An edited Bible would not be a difficult task, particularly in the age of word processors.

[John81]

Abraham Lincoln's Humanistic Religious Beliefs

In debates on whether Ohio's state motto unconstitutionally advances religion, some motto supporters pointed out that Abraham Lincoln mentioned God in some of his speeches. Lincoln's religious views, however, were inconsistent with the motto.

Ohio's motto, "With God, all things are possible," is from Jesus' teachings on salvation as set forth at Matthew 19:26. The motto thus endorses Christian theology, including the belief that God assists human activities by intervening in the world and altering the course of nature. Lincoln did not subscribe to those ideas.

As a young man, Lincoln read the theological works of the deist Thomas Paine. And it was well known among his friends and neighbors that he agreed with Paine and was a deist and infidel. The youthful Lincoln even wrote a manuscript, which he intended to publish, arguing against the divinity of Christ and the divine inspiration of the Bible.

One of his friends became worried about the effect this writing would have on Lincoln's career, and therefore destroyed it by throwing it into a fire. Nonetheless, Lincoln never denied he had written the manuscript. Nor did he ever disavow the views contained in it, join a Christian church, or be baptized.

His friend's concerns turned out to be well founded. When Lincoln ran for state legislature in the 1830s, his opponent accused him of being an infidel and of having called Jesus an illegitimate child. And when Lincoln ran for Congress against a Methodist minister in 1846, he was again charged with being an infidel, if not an atheist.

Lincoln did not deny the charges of infidelity, which were indeed injurious to his early political career. But these experiences taught him to keep his religious views much more private.

As a result, Lincoln's later public statements about religion became guarded and discreet. He employed vague language such as "Divine Providence," "Justice of God," "Most High," and other expressions that were generally consistent with his own deistic inclinations and the various religious views of his constituents.

Still, when he ran for president in 1860, his candidacy was opposed by 20 of the 23 ministers in his hometown of Springfield, Illinois.

The outbreak of the Civil War made even more imperative the need for Lincoln to appease religious groups and downplay his disagreements with their creeds. The southern churches had sided with the Confederacy, and the northern churches were divided. Lincoln knew that if he lost the support of religious persons in the North, his administration and the Union would be ruined.

It was in this political context that Lincoln, in some of his speeches, was impelled to employ vague, deferential, and sometimes complimentary references to religion as part of his efforts to save the Union. He sincerely needed and appreciated the support of ministers and their congregations in the war effort.

Nevertheless, a careful reading of Lincoln's speeches gives no clear indication that his views about Christian theology had changed from his younger days. In fact, he never publicly renounced his earlier views - despite the political benefits he could have gained by doing so.

Instead, as the New York World stated in about 1875: "He declared frequently that he would do anything to save the Union, and among the many things he did was the partial concealment of his individual religious opinions."

Although Lincoln expressed religious platitudes during the Civil War, his specific ideas about the divinity differed markedly from those of the orthodox churches. His close friends knew the details of his private beliefs.

For instance, Jesse W. Fell had been secretary of the Illinois Republican State Central Committee, and was instrumental in bringing forth Lincoln as a candidate for president. Fell later wrote of Lincoln's religious views: "He fully believed in a superintending and overruling Providence that guides and controls the operations of the world, but maintained that law and order, not their violation or suspension, are the appointed means by which this Providence is exercised."

U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Davis, appointed to the court by Lincoln, was a longtime confidant since their days as Illinois circuit-riding lawyers. He served as Lincoln's campaign manager at the 1860 Republican convention, and administered the estate of the slain president. Davis said of Lincoln's religion: "He had no faith, in the Christian sense of the term - had faith in laws, principles, causes and effects."

Lincoln's law partner of 22 years, William Herndon, similarly related that Lincoln did not believe in miracles or the efficacy of prayer. According to Herndon, Lincoln maintained "that all things, both matter and mind, were governed by laws, universal, absolute and eternal. . . . Law was to Lincoln everything, and special interferences [were] shams and delusions."

Herndon also said there is no evidence that Lincoln's religious views changed after he became president. Herndon wrote in the 1890s: "Now let it be written in history and on Mr. Lincoln's tomb: 'He died an unbeliever.'"

Moreover, Mrs. Lincoln quoted her husband as saying, "What is to be will be, and no prayers of ours can arrest the decree." She explained he "was a religious man always, I think, but was not a technical Christian."

The famous orator Robert Ingersoll corroborated that fact. He served as Illinois Attorney General in the 1860s, was somewhat acquainted with Lincoln, and knew well many of Lincoln's friends and associates.

In regard to Mrs. Lincoln's statement that her husband was not a Christian, Ingersoll added: "Hundreds of his acquaintances have said the same thing. Not only so, but many of them have testified that he was a Freethinker; that he denied the inspiration of the Scriptures, and that he always insisted that Christ was not the Son of God. . . ."

Because Lincoln rejected the idea of miracles and other supernatural interference with the laws of nature, he emphasized reliance on human effort in solving problems. In an 1856 speech in Kansas, he stated: "Friends, I agree with you in Providence; but I believe in the Providence of the most men, the largest purse, and the longest cannon."

Lincoln also advocated the use of reason and experience instead of an unquestioning adherence to ancient doctrines. He explained in an 1860 speech in New York: "I do not mean to say we are bound to follow implicitly in whatever our fathers did. To do so, would be to discard all the lights of current experience - to reject all progress, all improvement."

In an 1892 editorial, the Chicago Herald summarized Lincoln's religious views: "He was without faith in the Bible or its teachings. On this point the testimony is so overwhelming that there is no basis for doubt. In his early life Lincoln exhibited a powerful tendency to aggressive infidelity. But when he grew to be a politician he became secretive and non-committal in his religious belief. . . . It must be accepted as final by every reasonable mind that in religion Mr. Lincoln was a skeptic."

[Much of the information in this article is from Franklin Steiner's book The Religious Beliefs of Our Presidents: From Washington to F.D.R. (Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, Reprinted 1995).]

[John81]

Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan identified himself as a Presbyterian during most of his adult life.
Reagan's father was a nominal Catholic. Reagan's mother was a devout member of the Disciples of Christ and Ronald Reagan was raised in the denomination. Reagan attended Eureka College, which is affiliated with that denomination. Reagan himself was a Presbyterian as an adult. Reagan said that in temperment and religious beliefs he took after his mother. (Source: http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/willricci/reagan/)

From: "Ronald Reagan Facts" page on the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Library website (http://www.reaganfoundation.org/program ... _facts.asp):

Although raised in his mother's Disciples of Christ denomination, beginning in 1963 Reagan generally attended Presbyterian church services at Bel-Air Presbyterian Church, Bel-Air, California. He became an official member of Bel-Air Presbyterian after leaving the Presidency. In addition, Reagan stated that he considered himself a "born-again Christian."

[John81]

Calvin Coolidge

JOINING THE CHURCH
On the first Sunday after reaching Washington, the Coolidges attended services at the First Congregational Church. Coolidge said "For the first time, I accepted the invitation to receive communion". The church considered this to be a sufficient profession of faith to vote him into its membership without the usual public profession, which Coolidge thought might be viewed as a pose. He said he derived great satisfaction from their belief in him and said "It would be difficult for me to conceive of anyone being able to administer the duties of a great office like the Presidency, without a belief in the guidance of a divine providence."

[John81]

It's interesting that out of 44 presidents we have only had four presidents who were Baptists.

The first, Warren G. Harding, served as the twenty-ninth president (1921-1923).

President Truman, the 33rd president, was the second Baptist president.

Other Baptist presidents include the thirty-ninth president, Jimmy Carter (1977-1981), and the forty-second president, Bill Clinton (1993-01).

Not a very good representation for Baptists. :sad

[777]

I, as well, am rather disappointed at the Baptist showing. At least Carter left the SBC, and I've never been quite sure of what kind of Baptist Bill Clinton is, all I know is that his wife is still a Methodist.

I wish Barack Hussein Obama would up and join a Baptist church, but he probably won't. TUCC (barf). :roll

[John81]

I've not yet read enough about Harding and Truman to much about what being a Baptist meant to them.

From what I've read of Carter he has claimed to be born again but most of his political positions are unbiblical and he's lashed out at conservative, fundamentalist churches (including the SBC) prefering a more liberal (worldly) sort of church.

Clinton seems to have been fed a false religion and his pastor when he was younger appears to have led him astray as have those pastors he's had near him since that time.

While reading about Clinton I learned that his wife, Hillary, was active in her church as a child and youth. Unfortunately, her church got a new youth pastor which was very liberal and preached a liberal message which Hillary latched onto. She left her Republican roots (her family was Republican) and embraced the liberal agenda, believing this was biblical because of the teachings of her liberal Methodist youth pastor.

[John81]

Ford's Faith

Time has an essay that contains some interesting details about President Ford's religious beliefs and his views on faith and politics. It says that, "[a]s a young Michigan Congressman, [Ford] met a gospel-film executive named Billy Zeoli who came by Ford's office and gave him a Bible." According to the article, Ford and Zeoli "became close?so close that Ford came to call Zeoli 'an alter ego, a second self.' "

Here's more from the article about the relationship between Ford and Zeoli once Ford went to the White House:

When Ford became Vice President in the fall of 1973, Zeoli began sending him a weekly devotional memo that would be waiting on Ford's desk on Monday mornings. It always had the same title ? "God's Got a Better Idea"?and began with scripture (always from the King James version, Ford's preferred translation) and ended with a prayer. Zeoli sent 146 devotionals in all, every week through Ford's presidency. "Not only were they profound in their meaning and judicious in their selection," Ford said, "I believe they were also divinely inspired." Beyond the memos, Zeoli and Ford would meet privately every four or five weeks for prayer and Bible study. Their conversations took place either in the Oval Office or the family quarters upstairs.

The Time story also paints a rather dim picture of the services that President Nixon had instituted in the White House:

One of [Ford's] first acts as President was some spiritual housecleaning. Among the more ingeniously cynical inventions of the Nixon Administration was the much publicized White House Church Service, which in addition to providing genuine fellowship for those so inclined, was a prime tool for image building, fund raising, arm twisting and dealmaking for the President's men. Two days after Ford was sworn in, his wife Betty Ford would write in her diary, a little pointedly, "There aren't going to be any more private services in the East Room for a select few." During his first Sunday as President Ford and Betty went to the same church that they had attended for more than 20 years: Immanuel-on-the-Hill in Alexandria.

Then there's this fascinating story about Ford's race against Jimmy Carter:

[Jimmy] Carter's religious appeal inspired [billy] Zeoli to propose a counterattack. "I said, ?Jerry, look, Carter's a fine guy, a fine Christian. But nobody knows you're a Christian. Let's put a book together about your faith, and about how God has used you.'"

But Ford flatly refused. "You told me a long time ago we're not going to take advantage of our faith to get elected," he reminded Zeoli. Ford declined to allow Zeoli to lend his name to Preachers' committees for Ford. "He thought he'd be using his chaplain to get votes," Zeoli recalled. Ford later revealed that he found Carter's discussion of his faith unsettling. "I have always felt a closeness to God and have looked to a higher being for guidance and support," Ford explained, "but I didn't think it was appropriate to advertise my religious beliefs."

Entire Time article:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article ... -1,00.html

[John81]

Lyndon Baines Johnson

Religious beliefs

President Johnson was a member of the "Christian Church," also called the "Disciples of Christ." Johnson had been exposed to the preaching and teaching of his mother's Baptist congregation; however, he independently decided that the beliefs of the Disciples were in accord with his own views, and, on that basis, he became, and remained, a member of the Disciples of Christ. The president considered the First Christian Church in Johnson City as his "home church." In Washington, D.C., he regarded the National City Christian Church as his "home church," and he frequently worshiped there.

President Johnson would frequently attend services at churches of different denominations. He would accompany Mrs. Johnson (an Episcopalian), often worshiping at St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. He would also attend the Mass at Catholic churches with his daughter Luci. While often going to his own church in Texas, the First Christian Church, he also attended Trinity Lutheran Church and Saint Francis Xavier Church, both in Stonewall, Texas.

Johnson frequently quoted the Bible to illustrate points that he wanted to make. His favorite quotation was from Isaiah 1:18, "Come now, and let us reason together."[8]

(Thanks to the LBJ Library and Museum)

[John81]

Obama's Religious Beliefs
An Interview with Barack Obama on His Religious Views


Dear friends,

In March of 2004, before Barack Obama became known to the world, Cathleen Falsani, the religion reporter for the respected Chicago Sun-Times newspaper, interviewed Obama about his religious beliefs and views. The interview is amazingly revealing of personal beliefs that few politicians are willing to share. I've edited the interview for brevity and clarity and highlighted key sections in bold. For the entire unedited interview, click here. For an engaging article based on this interview published in the Sun-Times in 2004, click here.

With best wishes,
Fred Burks for PEERS and the WantToKnow.info Team


Barack Obama: The 2004 "God Factor" Interview Transcript

Editor's Note:
On Saturday, March 27, 2004, when I was the religion reporter at the Chicago Sun-Times, I met State Sen. Barack Obama at Caf

[John81]

That interview with Obama telling his religious views in his own words is VERY telling and revealing. It makes it obvious, sadly, that he's not a Christian. Therefore, we know to pray he will repent and accept Christ Jesus as His Saviour and Lord.

[JerryNumbers]

In the founding of this country, how many of the founders do you believe where looking to the One true God of 'The Holy Bible' as they were drawing you our constitution?

We clearly know that all people who talk of God, are not talking to the God of the Bible, who had a Son born of a virgin.