SECTIONS: I. America as Refuge - II. 18th Century America III. American Revolution - IV. Congress of the Confederation - V. State Governments VI. Federal Government - VII. New Republic VI. Religion and the Federal Government
THE STATE BECOMES THE CHURCH:
|
It is no exaggeration to say that on Sundays in Washington during the administrations of
Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809) and of James Madison (1809-1817) the state became the
church. Within a year of his inauguration, Jefferson began attending church services in the
House of Representatives. Madison followed Jefferson's example, although unlike Jefferson,
who rode on horseback to church in the Capitol, Madison came in a coach and four. Worship
services in the House--a practice that continued until after the Civil War--were acceptable to
Jefferson because they were nondiscriminatory and voluntary. Preachers of every Protestant
denomination appeared. (Catholic priests began officiating in 1826.) As early as January
1806 a female evangelist, Dorothy Ripley, delivered a camp meeting-style exhortation in the
House to Jefferson, Vice President Aaron Burr, and a "crowded audience." Throughout his
administration Jefferson permitted church services in executive branch buildings. The Gospel
was also preached in the Supreme Court chambers. Jefferson's actions may seem surprising because his attitude toward the relation between religion and government is usually thought to have been embodied in his recommendation that there exist "a wall of separation between church and state." In that statement, Jefferson was apparently declaring his opposition, as Madison had done in introducing the Bill of Rights, to a "national" religion. In attending church services on public property, Jefferson and Madison consciously and deliberately were offering symbolic support to religion as a prop for republican government. |
Jefferson Attacked as an Infidel During the presidential campaign of 1800, the Federalists attacked Thomas Jefferson as an infidel, claiming that Jefferson's intoxication with the religious and political extremism of the French Revolution disqualified him from public office. In this cartoon, the eye of God has instigated the American eagle to snatch from Jefferson's hand the "Constitution & Independence" of the United States before he can cast it on an "Altar to Gallic Despotism," whose flames are being fed by the writings of Thomas Paine, Helvetius, Rousseau, and other freethinkers. The paper, "To Mazzei," dropping from Jefferson's right hand, was a 1796 letter that was interpreted by Jefferson's enemies as an indictment of the character of George Washington.
Etching by an unknown artist, c. 1800 The Library Company of Philadelphia (159)
Jefferson's Opinion of Jesus
[page one] - [page two] - [page three] Holograph letter and syllabus. (Copyprint of verso.) Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (160) |
Thomas Jefferson's reply of January 1, 1802, to an address of congratulations from the
Danbury (Connecticut) Baptist Association contains a phrase familiar in today's political and
judicial circles: "a wall of separation between church and state." Many in the United States,
including the courts, have used this phrase to interpret the Founders' intentions regarding the
relationship between government and religion, as set down by the First Amendment to the
Constitution: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion . . . ."
However, the meaning of this clause has been the subject of passionate dispute for the past
fifty years. Presented here are both the handwritten, edited draft of the letter and an adjusted facsimile showing the original unedited draft. The draft of the letter reveals that, far from dashing it off as a "short note of courtesy," as some have called it, Jefferson labored over its composition. Jefferson consulted Postmaster General Gideon Granger of Connecticut and Attorney General Levi Lincoln of Massachusetts while drafting the letter. That Jefferson consulted two New England politicians about his messages indicated that he regarded his reply to the Danbury Baptists as a political letter, not as a dispassionate theoretical pronouncement on the relations between government and religion. |
The Lord's Prayer in Jefferson's Hand Jefferson liked to experiment with and use cryptology. There are several different codes in his papers at the Library of Congress, including this one based on the Lord's Prayer, which Jefferson carefully wrote out as a block of consecutive letters.
Thomas Jefferson, Holograph manuscript Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (161)
The Jefferson Bible the Gospels in Greek, Latin, French & English [index page one] -- [index page two] -- [index page three] Thomas Jefferson, c. 1820 National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution (162a)
the Gospels in Greek, Latin, French & English. [title page] - [page one] - [page two] Thomas Jefferson. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1904 General Collections, Library of Congress (162c)
A Wall of Separation
a committee of the Danbury Baptist Association in the state of Connecticut, January 1, 1802. Holograph draft letter, 1802 Jefferson Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (163a)
The Danbury Baptist Letter, as Originally Drafted
a committee of the Danbury Baptist Association in the state of Connecticut, January 1, 1802. Letter, digitally revised to expose obliterated sections. Copyprint Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (163b)
Jefferson at Church in the Capitol
Manasseh Cutler Charles Deering McCormick Library of Special Collections, Northwestern University Library (164)
Manasseh Cutler to Joseph Torrey, January 3, 1803. [page one] -- [page two] -- [page three] -- [page four] In this letter Manasseh Cutler informs Joseph Torrey that Thomas Jefferson "and his family have constantly attended public worship in the Hall" of the House of Representatives. Manuscript letter Charles Deering McCormick Library of Special Collections, Northwestern University Library (165)
Reserved Seats at Capitol Services
Margaret Bayard Smith, 1837. Manuscript volume. (Copyprint of verso) Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (166-166a)
Incident at Congressional Church Services
Manuscript letter Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (167)
Madison Seen at House Church Service
Manuscript letter The American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts (168)
Hymns Played at Congressional Church Service
Watercolor, Lt. Col. Donna Neary, USMCR, late twentieth century. Copyprint. United States Marine Corp Band, Washington, D.C. (169)
The Old House of Representatives
Oil on canvas by Samuel F.B. Morse, 1822. Copyprint. In the collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. Museum Purchase, Gallery Fund (170)
A Millennialist Sermon Preached in Congress
Delivered the 25th December, 1804 before both houses of Congress, at the Capitol in the city of Washington. John Hargrove. Baltimore: Warner & Hanna, 1805 Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress (171)
First Catholic Sermon in the House
Oil on canvas Diocese of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina (173)
of the United States, January 8, 1826. John England. Baltimore: F. Lucas, 1826 Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress (172)
Woman Preacher in the House
Engraving by J.B. Longacre, from a painting by Waldo and Jewett, 1827 National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (174)
Communion Service in the Treasury Building
Manasseh Cutler. Manuscript Charles Deering McCormick Library of Special Collections, Northwestern University Library (175)
The Treasury Building
Watercolor sketch by Baroness Hyde de Neuville, 1820 I. N. Phelps Stokes Collection, The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations (176)
Adams's Description of a Church Service in the Supreme Court
John Quincy Adams. Copyprint Adams Family Papers, Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston (177)
The Old Supreme Court Chamber
Photograph by Franz Jantzen. Copyprint Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States (178)
Church Services in Congress after the Civil War
Charles B. Boynton. Washington, D.C.: November 1, 1867 Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress (180)
House of Representatives, After the Civil War
Chromo-lithograph by E. Sachse & Co, 1866 Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress (179)
|