Christian amendment
Encyclopedia
The phrase Christian amendment refers to any of several attempts to insert explicit Christian
ideas and language into the United States
Constitution
. The most powerful such attempt began during the American Civil War
and was spearheaded by the National Reform Association.
was being fought, a coalition of eleven Protestant
denominations from seven northern states gathered to discuss the state of the nation. Seeing the Civil War as God
's punishment for the omission of God from the Constitution, they discussed a proposed amendment to alter the wording of the Preamble
to acknowledge God. The idea that civil governments derive their legitimacy from God, and Jesus
in particular, was alleged to be based on Biblical passages such as Psalms 2 and Romans 13. The original draft of the amendment, by Pennsylvania
attorney John Alexander
, read:
The following year the Christian Amendment Movement was founded and quickly renamed as the "National Reform Association" with Alexander as its first president. They sent a "memorial" to Congress
formally proposing the following amendment:
A delegation from the National Reform Association sought to meet with Abraham Lincoln on February 11, 1864, to solicit his endorsement of the amendment. Lincoln's pastor, Rev. Phineas Gurley, arranged for Lincoln to meet the delegation. After hearing their petition, Lincoln responded as follows:
The proposal was supported by Senators
Charles Sumner
, B. Gratz Brown
and John Sherman
, but did not come to a vote in Congress. However, one member of the National Reform Association, James Pollock
, did play a role in getting the phrase "In God We Trust
" on the two-cent coin in 1864.
Another version of the amendment read:
Similar proposals were considered by Congress in 1874, 1896 and 1910, but none were passed.
in the 1940s and 1950s, new efforts were made to introduce Christianity
into the Constitution, although these efforts were now in the form of standard constitutional amendment
s. Vermont
Senator
Ralph Flanders
proposed the following in 1954.
None of the proposals came to a Congressional vote.
There have also been calls for similar amendments in the wake of the 1962 Supreme Court
case Engel v. Vitale
, which ruled government-sponsored and dictated prayer in schools unconstitutional, and during the impeachment of Bill Clinton
in 1998.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
ideas and language into the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
. The most powerful such attempt began during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and was spearheaded by the National Reform Association.
Initial proposals
In February 1863, while the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
was being fought, a coalition of eleven Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
denominations from seven northern states gathered to discuss the state of the nation. Seeing the Civil War as God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
's punishment for the omission of God from the Constitution, they discussed a proposed amendment to alter the wording of the Preamble
Preamble to the United States Constitution
The Preamble to the United States Constitution is a brief introductory statement of the Constitution's fundamental purposes and guiding principles...
to acknowledge God. The idea that civil governments derive their legitimacy from God, and Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
in particular, was alleged to be based on Biblical passages such as Psalms 2 and Romans 13. The original draft of the amendment, by Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
attorney John Alexander
John Alexander
-Arts and entertainment:* John Alexander , American stage and film actor* John Alexander II , Scottish film actor; see * John Alexander , British television director* John Alexander -Arts and entertainment:* John Alexander (actor) (1897–1982), American stage and film actor* John Alexander II...
, read:
- We, the people of the United States recognizing the being and attributes of Almighty God, the Divine Authority of the Holy Scriptures, the law of God as the paramount rule, and Jesus, the Messiah, the Savior and Lord of all, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for
the common defense, promotethe general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and to our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. (insertions anddeletionsnoted)
The following year the Christian Amendment Movement was founded and quickly renamed as the "National Reform Association" with Alexander as its first president. They sent a "memorial" to Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
formally proposing the following amendment:
- We, the people of the United States, humbly acknowledging Almighty God as the source of all authority and power in civil government, the Lord Jesus Christ as the Ruler among the nations, His revealed will as the supreme law of the land, in order to constitute a Christian government, and in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the inalienable rights and the blessings of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness to ourselves
andour posterity, and all the people, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
A delegation from the National Reform Association sought to meet with Abraham Lincoln on February 11, 1864, to solicit his endorsement of the amendment. Lincoln's pastor, Rev. Phineas Gurley, arranged for Lincoln to meet the delegation. After hearing their petition, Lincoln responded as follows:
- GENTLEMEN: The general aspect of your movement I cordially approve. In regard to particulars I must ask time to deliberate, as the work of amending the Constitution should not be done hastily. I will carefully examine your paper in order more fully to comprehend its contents than is possible from merely hearing it read, and will take such action upon it as my responsibility to our Maker and our country demands.
The proposal was supported by Senators
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner was an American politician and senator from Massachusetts. An academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the antislavery forces in Massachusetts and a leader of the Radical Republicans in the United States Senate during the American Civil War and Reconstruction,...
, B. Gratz Brown
B. Gratz Brown
Benjamin Gratz Brown was an American politician. He was a Senator, the 20th Governor of Missouri, and the Liberal Republican and Democratic Party Vice presidential candidate in the presidential election of 1872.-Early life:...
and John Sherman
John Sherman (politician)
John Sherman, nicknamed "The Ohio Icicle" , was a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Ohio during the Civil War and into the late nineteenth century. He served as both Secretary of the Treasury and Secretary of State and was the principal author of the Sherman Antitrust Act...
, but did not come to a vote in Congress. However, one member of the National Reform Association, James Pollock
James Pollock
James Pollock was the 13th Governor of the State of Pennsylvania from 1855 to 1858.- Political career :James Pollock graduated from the College of New Jersey at Princeton before setting up a law practice in his home community, in Milton, Pennsylvania...
, did play a role in getting the phrase "In God We Trust
In God We Trust
"In God We Trust" was adopted as the official motto of the United States in 1956. It is also the motto of the U.S. state of Florida. The Legality of this motto has been questioned because of the United States Constitution forbidding the government to make any law respecting the establishment of a...
" on the two-cent coin in 1864.
Another version of the amendment read:
- We the people of the United States, humbly acknowledging Almighty God as the source of all authority and power in civil government, the Lord Jesus Christ as the Governor among the nations, and His revealed will as our supreme authority, in order to constitute a Christian government, to form a more perfect union, ... do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. (ellipses as given in source)
Similar proposals were considered by Congress in 1874, 1896 and 1910, but none were passed.
More recent attempts
With the growing backlash in American society against communismCommunism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
in the 1940s and 1950s, new efforts were made to introduce Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
into the Constitution, although these efforts were now in the form of standard constitutional amendment
Constitutional amendment
A constitutional amendment is a formal change to the text of the written constitution of a nation or state.Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation...
s. Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Ralph Flanders
Ralph Flanders
Ralph Edward Flanders was an American mechanical engineer, industrialist and Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Vermont. He grew up on subsistence farms in Vermont and Rhode Island, became an apprentice first as a machinist, then as a draftsman, before training as a mechanical engineer...
proposed the following in 1954.
- Section 1: This nation devoutly recognizes the authority and law of Jesus Christ, Savior and Ruler of nations, through whom are bestowed the blessings of Almighty God.
- Section 2: This amendment shall not be interpreted so as to result in the establishment of any particular ecclesiastical organization, or in the abridgment of the rights of religious freedom, or freedom of speech and press, or of peaceful assemblage.
- Section 3: Congress shall have power, in such cases as it may deem proper, to provide a suitable oath or affirmation for citizens whose religious scruples prevent them from giving unqualified allegiance to the Constitution as herein amended.
None of the proposals came to a Congressional vote.
There have also been calls for similar amendments in the wake of the 1962 Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
case Engel v. Vitale
Engel v. Vitale
Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 , was a landmark United States Supreme Court case that determined that it is unconstitutional for state officials to compose an official school prayer and require its recitation in public schools....
, which ruled government-sponsored and dictated prayer in schools unconstitutional, and during the impeachment of Bill Clinton
Impeachment of Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton, President of the United States, was impeached by the House of Representatives on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice on December 19, 1998, but acquitted by the Senate on February 12, 1999. Two other impeachment articles, a second perjury charge and a charge of abuse of...
in 1998.
Sources
- The NRA (National Reform Association) and the Christian Amendment, by Jim Allison, at the website "The Constitutional Principle: Separation of Church and State"
- A Letter to James Dobson, by William Gould, The Christian Statesman, September–October 1996
- The Roots of Our Problem, by Raymond Joseph, The Christian Statesman, January–February 1998
- God on Our Coins, a written statement of Jon G. Murray to the Congressional Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs and Coinage, September 14, 1988
- Moral Reconstruction:Christian Lobbyists and the Federal Legislation of Morality, 1865–1920, online Introduction from the book by Gaines M. Foster
- Godless America, 3 June 2005 episode of the radio series This American LifeThis American LifeThis American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...
- ACLU Briefing Paper on Church and State Issues of 25 November 1999
See also
- Church of the Holy Trinity v. United StatesChurch of the Holy Trinity v. United StatesChurch of the Holy Trinity v. United States, 143 U.S. 457 , was a decision of the Supreme Court of the United States regarding an employment contract between The Church of the Holy Trinity, New York and an English priest.- 1885 Act :...
- Establishment Clause of the First AmendmentEstablishment Clause of the First AmendmentThe Establishment Clause is the first of several pronouncements in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, stating, Together with the Free Exercise Clause The Establishment Clause is the first of several pronouncements in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution,...
- Separation of church and state in the United StatesSeparation of church and state in the United StatesThe phrase "separation of church and state" , attributed to Thomas Jefferson and others, and since quoted by the Supreme Court of the United States, expresses an understanding of the intent and function of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States...
- Treaty with Tripoli (1796)Treaty with Tripoli (1796)The Treaty of Tripoli was the first treaty concluded between the United States of America and Tripolitania, signed at Tripoli on November 4, 1796 and at Algiers on January 3, 1797...