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Station 2 - The Hebrew Republic

God’s People Governed by Covenant and Law - A Biblical Root of the American Republic

Faith · Morality · Law · Education · Liberty

Station overview

Faith | Morality | Law | Education | Liberty

Faith, morality, law, education, and liberty - biblical principles that built a nation

Foundation

The one true God stands above rulers and citizens. He gives the standard for truth, justice, human dignity, and right conduct.

Key Scripture

Deuteronomy 17:14-20 - even the king had to live under God’s written law and was forbidden to lift his heart above his brethren.

Contributions

Covenant or compact government; the rule of law; representative leadership; consent of the people; equal justice; accountable officers; strong families; education; ordered liberty.

Gospel Truth

Good government can restrain wrong and protect what is right. It cannot save the soul or change the heart. Jesus Christ alone does that.

Page Thread

Faith forms morality. Morality shapes law. Law requires education. Education helps preserve liberty.

The Big Idea

A Biblical Root of the American Republic

The American Republic did not appear out of empty ground. Long before 1776, the Bible had taught the Western world that rulers are not gods, that public power is a trust, that written law stands above leaders, that the poor and the powerful deserve the same justice, and that liberty survives only where people learn self-government.

Ancient Israel brought these truths together in one public order. E. C. Wines calls that order the Hebrew Republic. Israel was a unique nation in God’s plan, so America is not a new Israel and the Constitution is not another Bible. Still, the Hebrew Republic gave Bible-reading Christians a working pattern of covenant, law, representation, accountability, family strength, education, and liberty. Wines states the claim plainly: the American Republic’s roots lie “ultimately in the laws of Moses.” (Wines, Introduction, pp. ii-iii.)

The Founders also learned from English law, colonial experience, natural rights, and classical history. Those streams mattered. Yet the Hebrew stream ran deep. For generations, families heard Moses read in church, children learned biblical stories at home, towns made compacts before God, and ministers preached that rulers and people were both answerable to a higher law. The Hebrew Republic supplied much of the moral language and many of the governing habits that made American self-government possible.

“I will insist that the Hebrews have done more to civilize men than any other nation.” — John Adams, 1809 (Source 7)

John Adams: I will insist that the Hebrews have done more to civilize men than any other nation

A Gospel Guardrail

God’s Law Brings Order - The Gospel Changes Hearts

This station is not saying that law saves us, that America is God’s chosen nation, or that every law given to ancient Israel should be copied into modern civil law. Jesus fulfilled the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 5:17). We are saved by grace through faith, not by law-keeping (Ephesians 2:8-10). God’s moral truth still teaches us what justice looks like, but only the gospel gives a new heart. Faith must be preached and freely received; civil government can judge outward wrongdoing, but it cannot produce conversion.

The "gospel of the kingdom" is a phrase used by Jesus to include the truths of God's Word that apply to the individual, home, church and state. In both the Old and New Testaments, the law is applied as a godly rule, but it is not the engine that change the heart. The Bible declares that the law is good for us because it brings order (1st Timothy 2:1-5), exposes our sin (Romans 5:12); and is "a tutor to bring us to Christ" (Galatians 3:24).

A Gospel Guardrail - God’s Law brings order and the Gospel changes hearts

Key Scripture for Station 2

Deuteronomy 17:18-20 (KJV)

“And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book ... And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life ... That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren.”

This passage puts the ruler under the law. The king did not create truth by speaking. He had to copy God’s law, keep it near him, read it, obey it, and remember that he was a brother among brothers. He was also warned not to multiply military power, wealth, or wives for his own glory. The lesson is simple: authority is necessary, but no human authority is absolute.

Plain lesson: The Hebrew Republic began with God above the ruler, written law above personal will, and leaders who were accountable for the way they used power.

How the Hebrew Pattern Reached America

The Road from Sinai to Philadelphia

The road from Sinai to Philadelphia was long, but the main steps are easy to see.

The Hebrew root. Scripture showed a people living under one God, one known law, chosen local officers, divided responsibilities, public consent, family teaching, and justice for the small as well as the great.
The Bible-reading Christian bridge. The Reformation and later Protestant movements put Scripture into ordinary homes and churches. Christians did not all agree on every doctrine, but they shared the stories of Moses, the judges, the kings, the prophets, and the apostles. These stories taught that rulers could sin, nations could be judged, and law must rest on truth higher than the state.
The compact habit. The Pilgrims followed the counsel of their pastor, John Robinson, in extending the principle of covenant they already practiced in the church to that of civil government, or as they put it, a “civil Body Politick.” This pattern was continued throughout colonial America with pastors giving guidance as to how the ideas of covenant, consent, law, duty, and community could be applied, without control of the church over the state, or state over the church - it was a jurisdictional, rather than ideological, separation of church and state.
The American fruit. By the Founding era, elected officers, written constitutions, public accountability, checks on power, local schools, and liberty under law had become familiar parts of American life. The Founders did not all share the same faith, but they lived in a culture filled with the language and pictures of the Hebrew Bible. The role of the clergy, particularly as their influence expanded during the Great Awakening, was significant. Historians who have analyzed the sermons of the clergy conclude that virtually every idea contained in the Declaration of Independence had been preached from pulpits by 1763. The average churchgoer heard more than 7,000 sermons—over 15,000 hours in total—during a lifetime. (Sources: Alice M. Baldwin, The New England Clergy and the American Revolution , Frederick Unger Publishing, 1928, p. xii; Harry S. Stout, The New England Soul , Oxford University Press, New York, 1986, pp. 3–10.) One of the most frequent analogies offered by the clergy for how civil government ought to operate was the Hebrew Republic of ancient Israel before its people chose a king.

A Founding-Era Picture from Exodus

In 1776, Benjamin Franklin suggested that the Great Seal show Moses parting the Red Sea while Pharaoh was overwhelmed. Thomas Jefferson suggested Israel in the wilderness, led by the cloud and the pillar of fire. Neither design was adopted, but the proposals show how naturally the Founders used the Hebrew story to picture freedom from tyranny. (Source 6.)

Faith

Who Is Highest?

Faith answers the first public question: Who is highest? The Hebrew answer was clear. The Lord is God. Government is His servant, not His replacement. That truth gave Israel a standard by which both rulers and citizens could be judged.

The Unity of God - One Highest Authority (1 in the chart below).

Israel confessed one true and living God. In the ancient world, kings often claimed divine power, and every city or appetite could have its own god. Israel’s confession broke that pattern. One God meant one moral order for worship, home, work, court, and government. No king could honestly claim to be the highest law. (Wines, pp. 3-5; Deuteronomy 6:4-5.)

National Unity - Many Tribes, One People (2 in the chart below).

Israel’s tribes and families kept their real identities, yet they were joined as one people under God’s covenant and law. Their unity did not come from worshiping one human ruler or erasing local life. Wines says the whole people formed the state and shared the same basic duties and protections. This is an early picture of unity with variety - many parts joined in one common responsibility. (Wines, pp. 6-9.)

Deuteronomy 6:4-7 (KJV)

“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart ... And these words ... shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children.”

Notice the order: God’s truth reaches the heart, then the home, then the next generation, and finally public life. Biblical faith is not a decoration placed on top of a nation. It teaches people who they are, what they owe God, and why their neighbor’s life and rights matter.

Plain lesson: A nation is strongest when its people know that no ruler is God, no party owns truth, and every person must answer to the Lord.

Morality

Faith Lived Out in Daily Choices

Morality is faith lived out in daily choices. Written laws are important, but laws cannot watch every room, field, road, business, and family. A free people needs inward character - truthfulness, self-control, courage, mercy, hard work, and respect for others.

“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.” — George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796 (Source 8)

George Washington on religion and morality as indispensable supports of political prosperity

Peace - Defense Without a Love of Conquest (9 in the chart below).

The Hebrew system permitted defense, but it worked against a permanent hunger for military glory. The king was warned not to multiply horses. Israel began without a paid warrior class ruling the country. Peace was to be offered before battle, and ordinary life centered on homes, fields, worship, and work rather than conquest. Strength was for protection, not pride. (Wines, pp. 22-26; Deuteronomy 17:16; 20:10.)

Agriculture - Stewardship, Stability, and Provision (10 in the chart below).

Families received land to cultivate and care for. Farming trained people to think beyond the moment: prepare the soil, plant, wait, protect, harvest, share, and save seed for the next season. The larger principle is stewardship. Free people should build, tend, conserve, and improve what God has placed in their care instead of living by plunder or permanent dependence. (Wines, pp. 26-27.)

A Garden Lesson

A garden is a simple picture of biblical freedom. Boundaries protect the bed. Work prepares the soil. Patience waits for growth. Stewardship keeps the ground healthy. The harvest becomes food for the household and something to share. Liberty bears good fruit when responsibility is planted beside it.

Universal Industry - Useful Work for the Whole People (11 in the chart below).

“Universal industry” means that useful work belonged to the whole community. Hebrew society did not honor an idle ruling class while treating workers as lesser people. Farmers, shepherds, builders, craftsmen, merchants, and artists served the common good. Work supported households, developed skill, and made citizens less dependent on powerful patrons. (Wines, pp. 40-43; 2 Thessalonians 3:10.)

The Sacredness of the Family - The First School of Character (13 in the chart below).

Marriage and the household were treated as basic parts of public strength. Parents carried the first duty to teach children. Children learned worship, honor, work, mercy, courage, and responsibility close to home. Government can protect the family, but it cannot replace a loving father, a faithful mother, or daily instruction around the table. (Wines, pp. 43-45; Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Ephesians 6:4.)

The Sanctity of Human Life - Protect Life and Prevent Harm (14 in the chart below).

The command against murder was only the beginning. A roof needed a protective rail. A dangerous animal had to be restrained. Unexplained deaths were investigated. These laws taught that human life is too precious for violence, neglect, or careless excuses. Because people are made in God’s image, both private citizens and public officers have a duty to protect life. (Wines, pp. 45-46; Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 22:8.)

Plain lesson: A moral republic honors peace, work, stewardship, family, and life. Personal responsibility is not cold individualism; it is love made dependable.

Law

Known Law Above Personal Will

Good law asks, “What is right under God?” rather than, “What can the powerful get away with?” The Hebrew Republic placed rulers and citizens under a known standard and spread responsibility among many qualified people.

Deuteronomy 1:13, 16-17 (KJV)

“Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you ... Hear the causes between your brethren, and judge righteously ... Ye shall not respect persons in judgment; but ye shall hear the small as well as the great.”

Political Equality - The Same Justice for Small and Great (4 in the chart below).

Israel had different offices and callings, but no person was born with permission to stand above God’s law. The poor and the rich were to be heard by the same standard. Wines also points to broad family ownership of land as a practical support for political independence. Equality did not mean identical gifts or outcomes. It meant equal human dignity and equal justice before the law. (Wines, pp. 11-16; Leviticus 19:15.)

Elective Magistracy - The People Choose Public Officers (5 in the chart below).

“Elective magistracy” simply means that public officers are chosen rather than inherited. Moses told the people to select wise, understanding, and known men from among their tribes. Character mattered: leaders were to fear God, tell the truth, reject dishonest gain, and possess the ability to do the work. Office was a trust, not a family title. (Wines, pp. 17-18; Exodus 18:21; Deuteronomy 1:13.)

The People’s Voice in the Law - Government by Consent (6 in the chart below).

At Sinai the law came from God, but the people heard it, answered together, and pledged to obey. Later, the law was read publicly so each generation knew the covenant. This was not a modern legislature, but it established an important principle: public government should not be secret property of a ruler. The people must know the law, accept their duties, and have a real voice in the officers who administer it. (Wines, pp. 18-19; Exodus 24:3; Deuteronomy 31:10-13.)

Supporting Story 1 - God Uses Jethro to Help Moses Share the Work

Moses was sitting alone from morning until evening while the people waited for him to hear every dispute. His father-in-law Jethro watched and said, in plain words, “The thing that thou doest is not good.” Moses was wearing himself out, and the people were wearing out with him.

Jethro advised Moses to teach the people God’s laws and then appoint able men who feared God, loved truth, and hated dishonest gain. These men would serve over groups of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens. They could settle ordinary matters close to home, while the hardest cases came to Moses.

Moses listened to wise counsel. Deuteronomy adds that the people selected wise and well-known men from their own tribes, and Moses appointed them. God used Jethro to move Israel from one exhausted leader to shared, local, representative responsibility.

It is interesting to note that many of the colonies adopted the pattern of Jethro’s counsel in their systems of justice. A neighborhood was often considered to comprise at least ten families; a village, fifty families (at which point a school would be established); a town or city, at least one hundred families; and one thousand families formed a county. In fact, in England, the county was called “the hundredth.”

This was not a copy of Congress or a modern court system. It was an early biblical seed of representative government: qualified leaders chosen from among the people, authority divided into workable levels, local access to justice, and a clear path for difficult appeals.

Read: Exodus 18:13-26; Deuteronomy 1:9-17

Story lesson: Good government does not pile every decision onto one powerful person. It shares work, chooses people of character, keeps justice near the people, and leaves room for appeal.

The Responsibility of Public Officers - Leaders Must Give an Account (7 in the chart below).

Public office did not belong to the officer. It was held for the people under God. Samuel stood before the nation and invited anyone to accuse him of theft, oppression, or bribery. Kings were restrained by written law. Citizens were expected to remember the standard and speak truthfully about the conduct of those who governed them. (Wines, p. 19; 1 Samuel 12:3-5.)

Cheap, Speedy, and Impartial Justice - Courts People Can Reach (8 in the chart below).

Wines uses old words for a simple idea: justice should not be reserved for rich people who can wait years and pay enormous costs. Israel had judges in towns, different levels of courts, and a right of appeal in hard cases. The small and great were to be heard without fear or favoritism. Justice delayed, hidden, or sold to the highest bidder is not justice. (Wines, p. 22; Deuteronomy 16:18-20.)

The Inviolability of Private Property - Protect the Fruit of Honest Labor (12 in the chart below).

God owns all things, yet He gives people real stewardship over homes, land, tools, and the fruit of their work. “Thou shalt not steal” protects ownership; “Thou shalt not covet” reaches the heart behind theft. Property helped families remain independent and responsible. At the same time, gleaning laws and generosity reminded owners that possessions are a trust to be used with mercy. (Wines, pp. 43-44; Exodus 20:15, 17; Leviticus 19:9-10.)

“If men were angels, no government would be necessary.” — James Madison, Federalist No. 51 (Source 9)

Madison’s point fits the Hebrew pattern. Human beings need government because sin is real. Government also needs limits because rulers are human beings too. Elections, written law, divided powers, courts, public records, and honest citizens help government control wrong without becoming a greater wrong itself.

James Madison: If men were angels, no government would be necessary

Supporting Story 2 - Samuel Opens His Record to the People

At the end of his public service, Samuel did not hide behind his title. He asked the people whose ox or donkey he had taken, whom he had cheated, whom he had oppressed, and from whose hand he had accepted a bribe.

The people answered that he had not defrauded or oppressed them. Samuel then called the Lord as witness. It was a public accounting by a leader who understood that authority belongs to God and is entrusted for the good of others.

The story also places a duty on citizens. They must not excuse corruption because it helps their side. They must tell the truth, know the law, and expect clean hands from public servants.

Read: 1 Samuel 12:1-5

Story lesson: Public office is a trust. Good leaders welcome honest accountability, and good citizens require it without hatred or favoritism.

Plain lesson: Law is above rulers and citizens alike. Leaders should be chosen for character, power should be divided, justice should be reachable, and property should be protected with responsibility and mercy.

Education

A Family Duty and a Public Necessity

A self-governing people must understand what it is governing, why its laws are just, and what liberty requires. The Hebrew Republic therefore treated education as a family duty and a public necessity.

“The only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in Religion.” — Benjamin Rush (Source 10)

Benjamin Rush on religion as the foundation for useful education in a republic

Education of the Whole People - Teach Truth, Memory, and Duty (15 in the chart below).

Parents taught God’s words during ordinary life - at home, on the road, in the morning, and at night. The law was read aloud to the assembled people. Feasts retold the nation’s history. Children were expected to ask questions, and adults were expected to know the answers. Education joined faith, moral character, law, memory, and useful skill so that ordinary people could live responsibly and govern themselves. (Wines, pp. 49-55; Deuteronomy 6:6-9; 31:10-13.)

Education was more than job training. It prepared people to read, remember, compare, judge, work, and pass truth to the next generation. A citizen who cannot understand the law is easy to mislead. A citizen who knows Scripture, history, and duty is better prepared to resist fear, rumor, flattery, and tyranny.

Supporting Story 3 - A Schoolhouse Built So Children Could Read the Bible

In 1647, Massachusetts required towns to provide schooling. The law warned that the “old deluder Satan” tried to keep people from knowledge of the Scriptures.

The wording sounds unusual today, but the purpose was plain. Children needed to read the Bible for themselves. Towns with fifty families had to provide a teacher, and towns with one hundred families had to establish a grammar school.

The system was not perfect, but the connection was strong: literacy helped form people who could read Scripture, understand law, keep records, take part in town life, and pass knowledge forward.

Read: Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Story lesson: Education protects liberty when it teaches truth, character, memory, and the duties of self-government.

Rev. E. C. Wines, whose comprehensive study of the Hebrew Republic included an examination of its universal education system, wrote:

“It is hence plain that Hebrew parents were required not only to teach their children orally, but also to impart to them the arts of reading and writing. There is reason to believe that the ability to read and write was an accomplishment more generally possessed by the Hebrews than by any other people of antiquity... From a survey of the matter, the conclusion seems warranted that the education of the Hebrew people, conducted mainly, though not wholly, under the domestic roof, was nevertheless a national education and worthy of the imitation of other nations… The result was that the nation reached a high point of literary attainment and distinction.” — E. C. Wines, The Hebrew Republic , American Presbyterian Press; republished as The Roots of the American Republic by Plymouth Rock Foundation, Plymouth, Massachusetts, 1997, pp. 46, 51.

Plain lesson: Children need more than information. They need God’s truth, their people’s history, habits of wisdom, useful skills, and practice in responsible freedom.

Liberty

Freedom That Serves Rather Than Destroys

Liberty is the fruit of the whole order. Faith gives a standard. Morality trains the heart. Law restrains wrong and protects rights. Education prepares citizens. Together they make room for freedom that serves rather than destroys.

Ordered Liberty - Freedom Under God, Not Freedom From All Restraint (3 in the chart below).

The Hebrew idea of liberty was freedom from bondage and protection in the peaceful enjoyment of worship, family, labor, property, and duty. It was not permission to harm a neighbor or ignore every rightful authority. Law acted like a guardrail: it restrained violence, theft, fraud, and oppression so ordinary people could live and work in peace. (Wines, pp. 9-10; Leviticus 26:13.)

Galatians 5:13 (KJV)

“For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.”

Civil liberty is precious, but it is not the deepest freedom. A person may live under a good constitution and still be ruled by sin, fear, greed, addiction, bitterness, or pride. Jesus said, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36). Government can open a prison door, but only Christ can free the heart.

Social Union, Balanced Powers, and an Informed People - Liberty Held Together (16 in the chart below).

Wines closes these chapters by showing that a free nation needs more than separate individuals. Israel’s families, tribes, public gatherings, worship, charity, and shared memory created social union. Its judges, elders, priests, tribal leaders, and limited king kept power from resting in one pair of hands. Public reading and teaching gave the people knowledge to judge public conduct. In American terms, these ideas point toward federal union, checks and balances, local associations, a free and responsible public voice, and citizens who know enough to hold leaders accountable. (Wines, pp. 58-66.)

Why Public Opinion Matters

Public opinion can restrain bad leaders, but only when people love truth more than excitement. Rumor, anger, and party loyalty can make a crowd easy to use. An informed public reads carefully, listens fairly, checks facts, remembers history, and judges its own side by the same standard it applies to others.

Supporting Story 4 - Hebrew Words on America’s Liberty Bell

In 1751, Isaac Norris chose a Bible verse for the Pennsylvania State House bell: “Proclaim Liberty throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof.” The words came from Leviticus 25:10.

The verse described the Jubilee, when liberty was proclaimed and property returned within Israel. The bell later became known as the Liberty Bell. In the nineteenth century, abolitionists adopted its message as a call to end slavery.

An American symbol of freedom literally carries Hebrew Scripture on its side. The nation did not always obey those words, but the words remained in public view, calling each generation to bring its practice closer to its promise.

Read: Leviticus 25:10

Story lesson: American liberty did not spring from empty ground. One of its clearest public voices came from the law of Moses.

Plain lesson: True liberty is not life without authority. It is freedom under God to do what is right, protect our neighbor, fulfill our calling, speak truth, and serve the common good.

The Sixteen Principles at a Glance

One Public Order

No.	Principle	Plain Definition	Pages
1	Unity of God	One true God is the highest authority over every part of life.	Wines 3-5
2	National Unity	Many families and tribes become one people under a shared covenant and law.	Wines 6-9
3	Liberty	Freedom is protected by righteous law and is not the same as license.	Wines 9-10
4	Political Equality	The same basic justice reaches the small and the great.	Wines 11-16
5	Elective Magistracy	The people choose known and qualified public officers.	Wines 17-18
6	People’s Voice in Law	The people know, accept, and live under public law.	Wines 18-19
7	Officer Accountability	Public servants answer to God, law, and the people they serve.	Wines 19
8	Accessible Justice	Courts should be local, timely, affordable, appealable, and impartial.	Wines 22
9	Peace	Defense is proper, but conquest and military glory must not rule the nation.	Wines 22-26
10	Agriculture	Stewardship of land and productive households support stable freedom.	Wines 26-27
11	Universal Industry	Useful work is honorable and expected across the community.	Wines 40-43
12	Private Property	The fruit of honest labor is protected and held as a trust under God.	Wines 43-44
13	The Family	Marriage, home, and parental teaching are basic supports of public life.	Wines 43-45
14	Human Life	Law must punish violence and require reasonable care to prevent harm.	Wines 45-46
15	Education	The whole people should know truth, law, history, and civic duty.	Wines 49-55
16	Social Union	Shared truth, balanced powers, and informed citizens hold liberty together.	Wines 58-66

Closing Takeaway

God Above Rulers, Written Law Above Personal Will

The Hebrew Republic did not hand America a ready-made copy of the Constitution. It gave the Bible-reading world a powerful pattern: God above rulers, written law above personal will, leaders chosen for character, public authority held in trust, justice for the weak as well as the strong, property joined to stewardship, strong families, education for the whole people, and liberty guarded by moral responsibility.

Those ideas traveled through Scripture, Christian preaching, family teaching, colonial compacts, local courts, churches, schools, and public debate. The American Founders drew from more than one source, but the Hebrew Republic was one of their deepest roots. The Mayflower Compact, founding-era Exodus imagery, John Adams’s praise of the Hebrews, and the Scripture on the Liberty Bell make that influence visible.

Good government is a blessing, but it is not the gospel. Only Jesus Christ saves. Christians serve their country best when they love God, tell the truth, protect life, honor marriage and family, work faithfully, seek justice, teach their children, hold power accountable, and use liberty to serve their neighbors.

Station 2 Memory Line

The Hebrew Republic taught that God is above rulers, law is above leaders, and liberty is safest among people of faith, character, knowledge, and responsibility.

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Source Notes

Sources

E. C. Wines, The Roots of the American Republic , Introduction and Chapters I-III, printed pp. i-22. User-supplied scan: INTRODUCTION.pdf.
E. C. Wines, The Roots of the American Republic , Chapter IV, printed pp. 22-27. User-supplied scan: CHAPTER IV.pdf.
E. C. Wines, The Roots of the American Republic , Chapters V-VII, printed pp. 40-67. User-supplied scan: CHAPTER V (1).pdf.
The Holy Bible, King James Version. Principal passages: Exodus 18:13-26; 20:13, 15, 17; 24:3; Deuteronomy 1:9-17; 6:4-9; 16:18-20; 17:14-20; 20:10; 22:8; 31:10-13; Leviticus 19:9-15; 25:10; 1 Samuel 12:1-5; John 8:36; Galatians 5:13; Ephesians 2:8-10.
Library of Congress, “The 400th Anniversary of the Mayflower Compact.” Open source.
National Museum of American Diplomacy, U.S. Department of State, “The Great Seal.” Open source.
John Adams to F. A. Van der Kemp, February 16, 1809, in The Works of John Adams , vol. 9, pp. 609-610; Online Library of Liberty edition. Open source.
George Washington, “Farewell Address,” 1796; Yale Law School, Avalon Project. Open source.
James Madison, Federalist No. 51; Library of Congress, Federalist Papers Primary Documents guide. Open source.
Benjamin Rush, “Thoughts upon the Mode of Education Proper in a Republic,” in The Founders’ Constitution , University of Chicago Press. Open source.
Commonwealth Museum, Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, “First in Education” and the 1647 Old Deluder Satan law. Open source.
National Park Service, “The Liberty Bell,” including the Leviticus 25:10 inscription and its later use by abolitionists. Open source.
Library of Congress, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic , sections on religion in eighteenth-century America and religion in the Revolution. Open source.