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Benjamin Franklin (1712-1778)
In his Autobiography, Franklin taught that the purpose of morality is human happiness, not virtue or God’s favor. He worked on developing 13 virtues in himself and others, including frugality, industry, temperance, order, cleanliness, and moderation. He was a renaissance man in his approach life, a printer, satirist, inventor, statesman, soldier and diplomat. Like most founders, he was not a religious man but appreciated the morality that religion could contribute to one’s life. He was also critical of religions that persecute others, since most also have a history of being persecuted.

George Washington (1732-99)
In his Farewell Address upon retiring as President (1796), Washington spoke about the need of those with divergent views to work together toward a common vision and plan of action for our country. “Let me…warn you…against the baneful effects of the spirit of party [meaning partisanship] generally. This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its roots in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled or repressed; but, in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy…It is substantially true that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government.”

John Adams (1735-1826)
Educated at Harvard, our second president (1797-1801) was an advocate of the teachings of the Enlightenment, which included philosophers going back to the Greeks (see INFLUENCES ON OUR FOUNDERS). He stated that Newton, Lock and others showed that scientific inquiry and an open mind are the hallmarks of a free society. “Thus the ‘science of government’ is best pursued by observation and experiment.” He was the son of a deacon who believed that there is a God but rejected the divinity of Jesus and the idea that God interferes in our lives. He had an appreciation of “the Author of the Universe” and believed in the positive teachings of religion. The center of the New England (Massachusetts) community where he grew up included regular gatherings in meeting houses, which provided a chance to discuss civic issues. Adams advocated a bicameral legislature with checks and balances provided by an independent executive and judiciary. He also originated the idea of having the Constitution drafted by elected conventions and submitted for popular ratification. He wrote: “All men would be tyrants if they could…the selfish passions are stronger than the social…no single government can secure man against the violences of power.” He saw – and often regretted – the excesses of his own volatile temper and kept a journal where he acknowledged his unpredictable nature. He assumed others to be inwardly like him. He warned about the excesses of the French revolution and was critical of the optimism and romantic assessments of human nature presented by other founders, particularly Jefferson. He believed that knowledge and learning are the foundation of democracy, with public education a necessity.

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)
The author of the Declaration of Independence and third president (1801-1809) believed that Americans should work together toward a common vision based upon the founding principles, moderation, and consensus. He declared in his 1801 Inaugural Address (after defeating John Adams): “Every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle. We have called by different names brethren of different principles.” However, this view was not always on display during his term. He was the quintessential man of the age of enlightenment – and avid connoisseur of philosophy, math, science, metaphysics, wine and fine dining as well as being an architect, inventor and musician. He presided over a country during the first years of his term in what was called the “Era of Good Feeling.” A slave holder and aristocrat who rallied against slavery and the abuses of monarchy. He was able to “synthesize vast amounts of information and learning into what an overarching world view informed by an imagination both powerful and dignified.” Like many of his era he was a deist and saw God in nature. The Declaration evokes the “Laws of Nature and Nature’s God” and the “self evident truths” that “all men are created equal.” He followed Hume who taught that “moderate opinions” could “find the proper medium in all disputes.” Thus he believed that leaders can and must resolve their differences and agree on a course of action for the good of the nation. He was clear that religion had no proper role in government, as in his native Virginia one had to be a member of the church to hold public office which violated the “natural rights of man” a la Rousseau. “Our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions any more than our opinions in physics or geometry,” and “I do not find in orthodox Christianity one redeeming feature.” Jefferson did not believe in the divinity of any man – including Jesus – and went to the trouble re rewrite the Gospels to include the wisdom therein only. As president, he championed states’ rights over Federalism, limited government and taxes, and cut spending to eliminate the national debt, but disposed of the standing arm which led to near disaster when the Capital was burned by the British a few years after he left office. He cleared native lands for white expansion, and imposed autocratic rule on the Louisiana Territory because he distrusted the ability of its residents of this new acquisition to govern themselves. He also advocated the expansion of slavery into the new territories. His vision of how the passage of time affects the interpretation of laws: “I am not an advocate of frequent changes in laws and constitutions, but laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind. As that becomes more developed, more enlightened, as new discoveries are made, new truths discovered and manners and opinions change, with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also to keep pace with the times. We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors.”

James Madison (1751-1836)
Author of most of the US Constitution and at least one third of the Federalist Papers. When a member of the first US Congress, he was responsible for the first ten amendments to the Constitution, otherwise known as the Bill of Rights. With Jefferson, he organized the Republican Party (later Republican-Democrat) in opposition to the Federalists under Hamilton, and was opposed to Hamilton’s Federal Bank. He supervised the Louisiana Purchase as Secretary of State under Jefferson. He led the nation into war against England in the war of 1812, in which the capitol was burned due to the weakened state of our armed forces that happened under Jefferson as part of his effort to reduce the size of government. As President (1809-1817), Madison eventually reversed many of his earlier positions: he supported the second Federal Bank, a strong military, and protective tariffs. His religion was Episcopalian, but he strongly opposed the support of any church institutions by the state. He wrote an article in 1792 insisting on the separation of church and state. He was a Deist, as were the majority of the key founders.

Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804)
He was largely responsible for holding together our young nation at its most vulnerable point. The author of the Federalist Papers promoted realism in politics. Our system must be based upon what can reasonably be expected of people, not what we hope or idealize about them. Leaders must take responsibility for the direction of our country, and not pander to popular prejudices or passions. Acknowledging the irrational nature of people makes it clear that we need to submit our whims to rational principles to hold society together (see David Hume). Don’t promise more than you can deliver. Once established, there must be “strength and stability in the organization of our government.” The power of the states poses a threat to the union. “Those men who have overturned the liberties of republics rose to power by courting the people and ended up as tyrants. He emphasized commercial development and capitalism under a strong Federal government as a source of taxes that allows the government to function. He presided over a nearly bankrupt treasury under Washington at the beginning, but was able to raise taxes to support the needs of the new nation. He also rallied to create the Federal Reserve Bank, despite objections from early constitutional literalists who said that the Constitution did not empower the Federal government to do so. He countered with Article I, Section 8, which “grants Congress the authority to enact all laws which shall be necessary and proper to achieve the ends which the Constitution puts forth.” Hamilton was one of the few founders who seemed to remain steadfast in his Christian faith through most of his life.

Thomas Paine (1737-1809)
Greatly influenced by Locke, Voltaire, and Rousseau. Author of Common Sense, a 47 page pamphlet, that urged an immediate declaration of independence from Britain. The American Crisis, essays written during the Revolution, was a huge seller that kept up the enthusiasm for the war. It started with: “These are the times that try men’s souls.” In The Rights of Man, he stated that governments exits to guard the natural rights of people, as they are unable to ensure their rights without the government’s help. The four unalienable rights he named were life, property, security and resistance to oppression. His attack style of writing served well when inspiring colonists to severe ties with England, but he compromised his reputation when he continued as the perennial attack man after the revolution, even going after George Washington. He also was a Deist who believed that God is found in nature, not in organized religion.