Benjamin Franklin’s parents not only attended church with their family, but also advocated Puritan values. These were derived from the Bible and practiced in front of him during childhood. I think this foundation planted the seeds of a Christian worldview into his growing young mind, and he then put the same values into practice throughout his own life.
As an adult, Franklin rejected many Christian doctrines with which he was raised, including doubting the divinity of Christ. He became a Deist, believing that truth can be found entirely through nature and reason. He did, however, retain his faith in God, and this is evidenced many times in both his speech and writing. In later years, he stated in his autobiography, “I never was without some religious principles. I never doubted, for instance, the existence of the Deity; that He made the world, and governed it by His providence; that the most acceptable service of God was the doing good to man; that our souls are immortal; and that all crime will be punished, and virtue rewarded, either here or hereafter.”
Many, if not most, of the founding fathers believed to some extent as Franklin did. Judeo-Christian values are evidenced not only in their personal correspondence and other writing, but also in their eventual drafting of important national documents. I don’t think it came as a surprise to any when Franklin advocated the institution of daily prayer for the members of the Constitutional Convention.
During his appeal, he reminded them of previous prayers and the answers that were “graciously” given. He then said, “…the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth — that God Governs in the affairs of men.” He alluded to Psalm 127:1, Matthew 10:29 and James 1:17, and concluded that the Lord’s blessings should be sought each morning before deliberations began.
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Constitutional Convention Address on Prayer
delivered by Benjamin Franklin on June 28, 1787, Philadelphia, PA
Mr. President:
The small progress we have made after four or five weeks close attendance & continual reasonings with each other — our different sentiments on almost every question, several of the last producing as many noes as ays, is methinks a melancholy proof of the imperfection of the Human Understanding. We indeed seem to feel our own wont of political wisdom, since we have been running about in search of it. We have gone back to ancient history for models of government, and examined the different forms of those Republics which having been formed with the seeds of their own dissolution now no longer exist. And we have viewed Modern States all round Europe, but find none of their Constitutions suitable to our circumstances.
In this situation of this Assembly groping as it were in the dark to find political truth, and scarce able to distinguish it when to us, how has it happened, Sir, that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of lights to illuminate our understandings? In the beginning of the contest with G. Britain, when we were sensible of danger we had daily prayer in this room for the Divine Protection. — Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a Superintending providence in our favor. To that kind providence we owe this happy opportunity of consulting in peace on the means of establishing our future national felicity. And have we now forgotten that powerful friend? or do we imagine that we no longer need His assistance.
I have lived, Sir, a long time and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth — that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, Sir, in the sacred writings that “except the Lord build they labor in vain that build it.” I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our little partial local interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall be become a reproach and a bye word down to future age. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing Governments by Human Wisdom, and leave it to chance, war, and conquest.
I therefore beg leave to move — that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, be held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business, and that one or more of the Clergy of this City be requested to officiate in that service.
Copyright 2010 by Tammi Mossman.
