God and the Founders Madison, Washington, and Jefferson

Transcription

1 God and the Founders Madison, Washington, and Jefferson Did the Founding Fathers intend to build a wall of separation between church and state? Are public displays of the Ten Commandments or the phrase under God in the Pledge of Allegiance consistent with the Founders understandings of religious freedom? In God and the Founders, Dr. Vincent Phillip Mun oz answers these questions by providing new, comprehensive interpretations of James Madison, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson. By analyzing Madison s, Washington s, and Jefferson s public documents, private writings, and political actions, Mun oz explains the Founders competing church-state political philosophies. Mun oz explores how Madison, Washington, and Jefferson agreed and disagreed by showing how their different principles of religious freedom would decide the Supreme Court s most important First Amendment religion cases. God and the Founders answers the question, What would the Founders do? for the most pressing church-state issues of our time, including prayer in public schools, government support of religion, and legal burdens on individuals religious consciences. Dr. is the Tocqueville Associate Professor of Religion and Public Life in the Department of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. He has held appointments at Princeton University, Tufts University, Seattle University School of Law, and North Carolina State University.

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3 God and the Founders Madison, Washington, and Jefferson VINCENT PHILLIP MUÑOZ University of Notre Dame

4 32 Avenue of the Americas, New York ny , usa Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge. It furthers the University s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence. Information on this title: / This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2009 Reprinted 2009 A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data Muñoz, Vincent Phillip. God and the founders : Madison, Washington, and Jefferson /. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn (hardback) isbn (pbk.) 1. Church and state United States History 18th century. 2. Christianity and politics United States History 18th century. 3. Founding Fathers of the United States Religious life. 4. Constitutional history United States. 5. United States Religion To I. Title. br516.m dc isbn Hardback isbn Paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

5 For my parents Vicente Serapio Mun oz, Jr., and Mary Emma Mun oz

6 I must admit moreover that it may not be easy, in every possible case, to trace the line of separation between the rights of religion and the Civil authority with such distinctness as to avoid collisions & doubts on unessential points. James Madison to Rev. Jasper Adams, 1833

7 Contents Acknowledgments page ix Introduction: The Founders, Religious Freedom, and the First Amendment s Religion Clauses 1 part i: the founders church-state political philosophies 1 James Madison s Principle of State Noncognizance of Religion 11 2 George Washington on Church and State: Religion and the Civic Good 49 3 Thomas Jefferson s Natural Rights Philosophy and Anticlerical Politics of Religious Liberty 70 part ii: the founders and the first amendment religion clauses 4 Madison s, Washington s, and Jefferson s Church-State Doctrines Madison, Washington, Jefferson, and the Establishment Clause Madison, Washington, Jefferson, and the Free Exercise Clause The Founders v. the Supreme Court 196 Conclusion: The Founders and Church-State Jurisprudence 206 vii

8 viii Contents Appendix A: Memorial and Remonstrance against Religious Assessments by James Madison, Appendix B: A Bill Establishing a Provision for Teachers of the Christian Religion by Patrick Henry, Appendix C: A Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom in Virginia by Thomas Jefferson, Index 235

9 Acknowledgments I have been blessed by the assistance of many friends while completing this book. The initial drafts of Chapters 1 and 2 were written while I was a student at The Claremont Graduate School. An aspiring scholar could not have asked for a better or more supportive assembly of mentors than I had at Claremont. Charles R. Kesler, my dissertation chairman, is a model of a gentleman scholar. Mark Blitz contributed his reflective insight and thoughtful criticisms while contributing countless hours toward the improvement of my work. Ralph Rossum and Michael Uhlmann imparted their extensive knowledge of the American Constitution, not to mention gentle guidance and professional excellence. I am fortunate to be one of the last undergraduates to have studied with Harry V. Jaffa, who also was generous enough to read a part of an early version of the present manuscript. Several friends and colleagues commented on drafts of various chapters as I completed them. Special thanks are owed to Jeremy Bailey, Meredith Brenholdt, Benjamin Carp, Paul Carrese, Daniel Dreisbach, Yannis Evrigenis, Mark Hall, Sandy Kessler, Thomas Kidd, Bryan McGraw, Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, Robert Scigliano, Kathryn Sensen, Vickie Sullivan, and Brad Wilson. Paul Rahe and Michael Zuckert generously commented on the entire manuscript. Thank you to all for your time and thoughtfulness. I completed this book while I was on leave from Tufts University, serving as the William E. Simon Visiting Fellow of Religion and Public Life at Princeton University. I owe a special debt of gratitude to those who made that leave possible, including Rob Devigne, Andrew McClellan, and Robert Sternberg at Tufts University and Robby George and Brad Wilson at Princeton s James Madison Program. I would also like to thank those who ix

10 x Acknowledgments provided forums for me to develop and test my ideas, especially Michael Andrews, Bruce Chapman, Jack Miller, Michael Novak, Keith Pavlischek, Michael Ratliff, George Weigel, John G. West, and Stephen M. Wrinn. Several of my former students (often my fiercest critics) helped in the editing process. I want to thank in particular Lauren Haertlein, Elizabeth Herman, Matthew Kenny, Nicholas May, Kathryn Mims, Kate Rick, Matthew Shapanka, and Graedon Zorzi. Lewis Bateman at Cambridge University Press made this book possible through his insight and expertise. Thank you to all. Two chapters of the book are based on previously published material. I would like to acknowledge my gratitude for the permission granted to draw material from these earlier publications: James Madison s Principle of Religious Liberty, American Political Science Review 97, no. 1 (2003): 17 32; Religion in the Life, Thought, and Presidency of James Madison, in Religion and the American Presidency, eds. Mark J. Rozell and Gleaves Whitney (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007); George Washington and Religious Liberty, The Review of Politics 65, no. 1 (2003): The careful reader will notice a few notable revisions from my earlier work.