(September 27, 2012 at 7:44 pm)IATIA Wrote: Xtians would have one believe that our forefathers were christian and we all know that to be false and some atheists have argued that our forefathers were atheists.None of the founders were atheists. But they were everything from freemasons to unitarians to deists and the garden variety Christians.
Most of our forefathers were deists without any attachment to any religion. It was religion they were opposed to and not the belief or disbelief in a deity.
Thomas Paine seems to be atheist in most of his writings, but there are a few that suggest some agnostosism at least, if not a tendency toward a belief in a deity. Most of the rest seem pretty much 'Yeah, there's a god". They did not let their god lead them. They had 'faith' in themselves to build a new government.
Being fresh from the inquisition where 'FAITH' destroyed the lives of thousands if not millions, even their own. our forefathers wanted a 'solid foundation' built on logic and earthly values for their new government. (and "their" was not a typo or 'slip')
But Jefferson and Paine and Washington most certainly it could be argued that they wouldn't give a shit what god you believed in, but all of the founders most certainly advocated a ban on assendency and pecking orders when it came to public office in regards to religon "No religious test".
