The Great American Experiment

Lesson 10 - The American Experiment: Stepping Stones

I. Introduction – God's design for the state – How close was the American Experiment?
A. Three rules: Won't deify America; won't deify Founders; won't cast stones
B. Basis for the three branches - Isaiah 33 – Lawgiver, Judge, and King
C. Early educational system – Instilling principles of Biblical Christianity
1. Primer and NEA – Biblical doctrine and prayer were essential to education
2. Founding and original mottos of Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia
II. Foundations of Religion and Morality – Basis for Freedom and Liberty
A. Dr. Tackett's personal journey – America 101
1. Murals in Capital rotunda
2. Revelation 2:5 - Remember, Repent and Return
3. Washington's Farwell address
B. Foundations of this country - Religion and Morality
1. Consistent theme in virtually all of the Founder's writings
2. They saw a strong connection between virtue and liberty
C. Purpose of Civil Magistrate - Punish evil and condone good – Romans 13
III. Foundations of Law
A. Blackstone – Valid human laws must be based upon God's laws
B. Influence of Darwin radically changed law in America – Case study methodology
1. Legal Positivism – The state is the authority for determining right and wrong
IV. The Larger Story
A. Original charters and constitutions – Acknowledgment of God's authority and recognition that the state was subject to and accountable to God
B. Pilgrims intent – "preserving and propagating the truth and liberties of the gospel"
C. Historical revisionism – Founders depicted as Deists and secularists; stripping God and Christianity from all historical accounts; pursuing a secular basis for law
V. Conclusion – How has this happened?
A. Men have forgotten God
B. Cycle of Nations – Hosea 13:6 – Judgment and destruction upon proud nations
C. Jesus removing the lamp stand – Our hope: Light always overtakes darkness
For this tour we will remain in the southwest sector of the compass long enough to examine a special sub-category of our last topic of discussion: the design of the state. In particular, we want to take a brief look at the question, "What should God'sminister on earth (Romans 13:4) look like? What is a proper form for this agency that is divinely appointed and commissioned to administer justice, punish evil, and encourage goodness among its citizens or subjects?" We will approach this task by considering the American Experiment.

Themes
From the beginning, Dr. Tackett lays down three ground rules for this study: first, we will not seek to deify America; and second, we will not seek to deify the Founding Fathers (the third ground rule will be dealt with at the end of the lesson). Having established these guidelines, he hastens to point out that there are compelling reasons for giving special attention to the subject of this tour. The American Experiment has the potential to prove unusually conducive to a deeper understanding of God's design for the state precisely because it is unique in the history of the world. Here on these shores, and here alone, people with a strong Christian worldview have been afforded an unparalleled opportunity to create from scratch what they considered an ideal system of government – a system designed in careful conformity with the principles outlined in Lesson 9.
We begin by establishing the biblical character of that worldview. The NewEngland Primer, the second best-selling book (after the Bible) of the colonial era, provides an intriguing window into the attitudes of early Americans. In particular, it reveals an outlook and a way of life powerfully shaped by the teachings of Scripture. The pervasiveness of this outlook is further demonstrated in statements made by America's early political leaders, legal and social architects, and educational pioneers – people like Benjamin Rush, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, Charles Carroll, Noah Webster, and the founders of Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia Universities. In spite of the fact that not all of them were practicing Christians, these luminaries agreed with President John Adams that the success of America's republican form of government would prove directly dependent upon the virtue and morality of her people, and that virtue and morality are necessarily founded upon religion – by which all meant the Christian religion. All of these early thinkers were convinced that the state must be held accountable to the authority of a higher ethical and spiritual standard – the "Natural Law" or the "Law of Nature's God" – if the human rights abuses they had observed in Europe and throughout history were to be hopefully avoided on this continent.
Tragically, however, America is quickly turning away from these principles. It is hard to put a finger on the exact reasons, but one clear element came as Darwinian evolutionary theory made its influence felt in the field of law. In 1869, Harvard Law School Dean Christopher Langdell advanced the view that law is not based upon the transcendent standard of "Nature's God," but is rather a fluid and constantly mutating body of "doctrine," a set of purely human ideas that inevitably change "by slow degrees." In other words, law and ethics, like biological species, are continually "evolving." Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes expanded on this theme by declaring that the law is "simply an embodiment of the ends and purposes of a society at a given point in its history," thus effectively granting to the state the power to establish society's ethical norms. John Dewey implemented these ideas in the realm of public education. "There is no God," said Dewey (nicknamed "The Architect of Modern Education"), "and there is no soul. Hence, there are no needs for the props of traditional religion."
These statements, says Dr. Tackett, bring us to the present moment. Today, America has largely forgotten God and denied the validity of her biblically based Christian roots. As a result, we see the power of the state expanding in our time. This, too, is a manifestation of the perennial Cosmic Battle, which is always fought most fiercely in the social realm. Ultimately, we must face the fact that the American Experiment is likely to fail altogether if we do not take intentional and deliberate steps to salvage it. This is a task which falls primarily on the shoulders of Christian people. As believers, we need to remember God's call to prayer and repentance in 2 Chronicles 7:13-14. There is nothing to be gained, says Dr. Tackett, by casting blame on non-Christians (this is the third ground rule for our study).
Points to Watch for
This last point should be kept in mind throughout the entire discussion. From beginning to end, Dr. Tackett seeks to communicate the thought that the American Experiment makes sense only when understood as the brainchild of Christians who operated on the basis of a biblical worldview. Just as the experiment was instigated by believers, so it must be carried on by believers – believers who care deeply and passionately about their country – if it is to survive and continue to succeed.
Discussion Questions
• Here are some of the key items: Early American educational system; the New England Primer and "play not with bad boys"; Harvard rules and Columbia's seal; Dr. Tackett's journey in Washington D.C.; Washington's Farewell Address; the foundations of religion and morality; the myriad of quotes from Washington, Adams, Benjamin Rush, Daniel and Noah Webster, and others; the basis of the phrase "the law of nature"; Blackstone's Commentaries on the Law; Delaware's oath of office, good law is based upon God's law; the evolution of law in America; Elliot and Langdell at Harvard and the removal of Blackstone and the institution of the case method; Benjamin Franklin's address to the Constitutional Convention; Lincoln's call for fasting, humiliation and prayer; the call for our involvement.
• It was during a re-enactment of Washington's Farewell Address, says Dr. Tackett, that he was struck by the "sinking feeling" that he had been "lied to." What "lies" does he have in mind, and how do they fit the pattern of the other lies we've encountered during the course of our worldview tours? Have you been subjected to such lies yourself? (The heart of the lie is contained in Bishop Paul O'Brien's ( Universal Life Church) statement that "The United States was started by men we today would call pagans … [and] Deists." The motive behind the lie is the same one we have observed in our discussions of philosophy, science, and history: exclude God from the system – i.e., construct a cosmic cube with a closed lid – and man can regard himself as free to do whatever he wants. He is no longer accountable to a higher authority.)
• Name some of the early sources for the idea of "the laws of Nature and of Nature's God" referenced by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. Why was this concept so important to the founders of the American system of government? What risks do we run in replacing this idea with Langdell's notion of "evolving law?" (Contrary to much popular opinion, the "natural law" was not primarily a Deistic concept. It was extremely important to the theologians of the Protestant Reformation; consider, for example, The SecondHelvetic Confession, Chapter XII: "This law was at one time written in the hearts of men by the finger of God" [based upon Paul's teaching in Romans 2:14, 15]. It is a prominent theme in the writings of Sir Edward Coke [1552-1634] and John Locke [1632-1704], both of whom tied their ideas of "natural law" securely to thewill of God. Locke made special use of it in arguing against the "Divine Right of Kings." It was this aspect of the theory that made it particularly appealing to Jefferson and the other founders, who saw in it a re-affirmation of the truth that rulers must be held accountable to a higher authority. If we jettison the "natural law" and put ethics in the hands of the state, we run the risk of re-incurring the very dangers that Locke and Jefferson were resisting: tyranny and totalitarianism.)
• What did John Adams mean when he affirmed that "… Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other"? What does this imply about the foundations of the American Experiment and the basic structure of the system of government it established? (In essence, Adams was agreeing with Franklin, who claimed, "Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom." In other words, the American Experiment was based upon the assumption that people who accept the Christian worldview are capable of governing themselves internally where ethical and moral issues are concerned. Thus, conceptually speaking, the architects of America's early government structure envisioned the Republic supported by a foundation of common morality, and morality resting on the bedrock of religion and Christian faith.)
• Why, according to Dr. Tackett, is it in vogue to hate America today? To what extent is this hatred justifiable, and to what extent is it a manifestation of the Cosmic Battle? (As Christians, we must not be afraid to admit that the history of this nation has been anything but perfect. Not only should we be the first to acknowledge the sins of the past and the present – we should also lead the way to repentance, reformation, and the renewal of the Founders' vision. At the same time, we should not be ignorant of the larger spiritual dimension of the cultural struggle we are facing today. America may not be pure and blameless, but her form of government has been built upon a foundation that was laid firmly and securely upon a biblical worldview and the concept that man and the state must be held accountable to a higher law. It is this, says Dr. Tackett, that has inspired the lion's share of the hatred currently directed toward the American Experiment.
• What should we do when Adams's assumptions no longer appear to be valid – that is, when it becomes evident that Americans can no longer be characterized as a "moral and religious people" as he understood the phrase? How do we apply the Founders' ideas to a "multicultural" America where a flood of moral and spiritual perspectives – e.g., Buddhism, spiritism, Islam, Native American religions, and Wicca – have become part of the cultural fabric? (This, in a sense, is the crux of the entire discussion; for Dr. Tackett tells us again and again that we have in fact come to a place where the Christian God has been largely forgotten in American public life. Our response to this situation is crucial. We will accomplish nothing by striking out in anger against those who no longer share our Christian worldview. Instead, we must take upon ourselves the burden of praying, repenting, caring, and actively working to salvage the experiment. Most of all, we must resist the temptation to take our freedoms for granted.)
Revisionist History: Bradford and the Pilgrims

In his introduction to Governor William Bradford's Letter Book,1 John C. Kemp, Associate Director of Colonial Interpretation at Plymouth Plantation, rightly contends that this "little treasure trove of documents and letters to and from Plymouth Colony in the 1620s" – a collection of source material that Bradford himself never intended to publish – casts a valuable light on the story of New England's earliest settlement. Unfortunately, he obscures that light by twisting the significance of these documents to serve his own ends.
Kemp's thesis, stated broadly, is that Bradford himself was America's first writer of revisionist history. In the Letter Book, he tells us, we see the plain, unadorned facts of Plymouth's early history laid bare in such a way that we can no longer take seriously the "Calvinist vision" and "polemical Predestinarianism" that inform and animate Bradford's account of the same events in Of Plymouth Plantation. By studying these letters, he suggests, we may free ourselves at last from the "subtle power of the mythical Pilgrim" whose image has been foisted upon the American consciousness by Bradford and his uncritically patriotic interpreters. It's a remarkable argument – less for its cleverness than for the blatant violence it does to the obvious truth.
For example: Kemp says that pilgrims are conspicuously absent from the documents contained in Governor William Bradford's Letter Book. That's because the colonists who came over on the Mayflower never really considered themselves to be any such thing: "That part of the story, the idealizing of colonists into Pilgrims (Pilgrims with a capital 'P'), occurred in the late 18 th and 19 th centuries."2
Apparently forgetting that he is supposed to be talking about Bradford and his "17 th-century biases," Kemp informs us that America's "Pilgrim heritage" is largely the fabrication of men like John Quincy Adams and Daniel Webster. Webster, we learn, "did much to popularize the Pilgrim Fathers" as "uniformly hard-working, right-minded, freedom-loving proponents of the virtues upheld in Victorian Boston throughout the 19 th century and well into the 20 th." The problem is that "these are not the struggling, precariously disorganized, and contentious people we find in the Letter Book."3
One has to wonder whether Kemp has actually read Bradford's account of the founding of New England. The settlers described in Of Plymouth Plantation are certainly hard-working, right-minded, and pious. But they are not uniformly so. What's more, Bradford is brutally honest about portraying his fellow colonists precisely as a "struggling, disorganized, and contentious" lot. That's because he wants us to see "the infinite qualitative difference between the human and the divine." Of Plymouth Plantation, says Francis Murphy,
affirms the possibility of grace without losing sight of the fact that man is fallen, that he is both creature as well as creator, and that he depends utterly on God's help for salvation … It is part of Bradford's genius to show us dramatically the struggle of Puritan piety to survive in difficult circumstances, often caused by themselves, and to describe the complex motives that underlie all human action.4That's not to mention that the Mayflower emigrants did in fact think of themselves as "pilgrims" in the best biblical sense of the word. As early as their sojourn in Leyden, the Scrooby Separatists were interpreting their difficult circumstances in terms of the language of Hebrews 11:13-16: "They knew they were pilgrims, and looked not much on those things, but lift up their eyes to the heavens, their dearest country, and quieted their spirits."5
In similarly skewed fashion, Kemp argues that Governor William Bradford's Letter Book makes it clear that the Plymouth colonists had little concern for the welfare of their Native American neighbors. Indians, like Pilgrims, are never mentioned in these documents, says Kemp. Why not? It's a bad reason, a very meaningful omission. In fact, after all the lofty words about friendship and Christian love when the colony began, the colonists' lack of concern for their Pokanoket or Wampanoag neighbors just a few years later says a great deal about colonialism. Colonists don't like to think about the people they are colonizing.6
But how are we to reconcile this statement with Bradford's many expressions of indebtedness to Samoset, Hobomok, and Squanto? His heartfelt grief on the occasion of Squanto's death? Or his detailed descriptions of relations with Massasoit, the Wampanoag chief who kept his treaty with the Plymouth settlers for over forty years? Even when compelled to use force against openly hostile Native Americans, as in the case of Wituwamat and Pecksuot, Bradford always did so reluctantly, bearing in mind the words of his pastor, John Robinson, who had written from Leyden: "Oh! How happy a thing had it been, if you had converted some, before you had killed any!"7
The fact of the matter is that there is another reason – a very simple and straightforward reason – for the glaring "omissions" Kemp has noted. Most of the documents contained in Bradford's Letter Book are examples of business correspondence. They deal primarily with finances, accounts, inventories, and the profits the London Adventurers hoped to receive from Plymouth colony. It's not surprising that writings of this nature should have little to say about the spiritual idealism of "pilgrims" or the day-to-day challenges of maintaining relations with indigenous tribesmen. What can have driven a responsible scholar like Mr. Kemp to promote such blatant misrepresentations of the facts? Lacking an explanation from his own pen, we are left to speculate. But given the spirit of the times in which we live, it seems reasonable to suppose that his motives might be similar to those of the school textbook writers who have seen fit to edit phrases like "In the name of God, Amen" out of the Mayflower Compact. Like them, Kemp understands that the prize to the victors in the battle over history is power: power to control the present and shape the course of the future. This is the power of historical revisionism, fiddling with the past to control beliefs in the present.
1Governor William Bradford's Letter Book, Introduction by John C. Kemp ( Bedford, Massachusetts: Applewood Books, 2001), iii-x.
2 Ibid., iii. 3 Ibid., vii. 4 Francis Murphy, Introduction to William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation, 1620-1647 (New York: Modern Library College Editions, 1981), xvii, xix.
5 William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation, 50. "It was owing to this passage, first printed in 1669, that the Mayflower's company came eventually to be called the Pilgrim Fathers." (Samuel Eliot Morison, footnote 4.)
6 Kemp, iii.
7 Cited in Gary D. Schmidt, William Bradford: Plymouth's Faithful Pilgrim ( Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1999), 133.

From The Truth Project Lesson 10

The King of kings

Matthew 28:18-20

Then Jesus came to them and said,

"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the

Father

and of the Son

and of the Holy Spirit,

and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

A psalm of David

The Lord Jesus prays to God the Father

Psalm 23

The LORD is My Shepherd, I shall not want;

He makes Me lie down in green pastures,

He leads Me beside still waters;

He restores My soul.

He leads Me in the path of righteousness

for His name's sake.

Though I walk

through the valley of the Shadow of Death,

I will fear no evil,

for Thou art with Me;

Thy rod and Thy staff,

they comfort Me.

Thou preparest a table before Me

in the presence of My enemies.

Thou anointest My head with oil;

My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and Mercy shall follow Me

all the days of My life,

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD

forever.

Peace shall be between them both.'

Zechariah 6:12-13

Tell him this is what the LORD Almighty says:

'Here is the Man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD.

It is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on His throne.

And He will be a priest on His throne. And the Counsel of Peace shall be between them both.'

John 15:1-5

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.

He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.

You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.

Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

God will again choose Jerusalem

Haggi 2:6-8

"This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.

I will shake all nations, and the Desired of All Nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,'

says the LORD Almighty.

Zechariah 1:12-17

Then the angel of the LORD said,

"LORD Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which you have been angry with these seventy years?"

So the LORD spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.
Then the angel who was speaking to me said,

"Proclaim this word: This is what the LORD Almighty says:

'I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, but I am very angry with the nations that feel secure. I was only a little angry, but they added to the calamity.'

"Therefore, this is what the LORD says:

'I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there my house will be rebuilt. And the measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem,' declares the LORD Almighty.

"Proclaim further: This is what the LORD Almighty says:

'My towns will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.' "

Zechariah 2: 7-13

"Come, O Zion! Escape, you who live in the Daughter of Babylon!"

For this is what the LORD Almighty says:

"After he has honored me and has sent me against the nations that have plundered you—for whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye-

I will surely raise my hand against them so that their slaves will plunder them. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me.

"Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion.

For I am coming, and I will live among you,"
declares the LORD.

"Many nations will be joined with the LORD in that day and will become my people.
I will live among you and you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you.

The LORD will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land and will again choose Jerusalem.

Be still before the LORD, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling."