Faith Matters but Not Enough to Follow Jesus

By Dr D. G. HART | Published: FEBRUARY 22, 2012

This week’s national holiday allowed the Gospel Coalition to don its patriotic colors and wave the flag of civil piety. A post by Thomas Kidd on the faith of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln took a fairly modest line by arguing that the first and sixteenth presidents were not orthodox Christians or even the best of believers. (This concession touched off a debate among the comments on the merits of Peter Lillback’s book on Washington, which is interesting in its own right.)

I believe that Washington, an Episcopalian, was a serious but moderate Christian, but there are reasons to wonder. Whether from personal scruples concerning his worthiness, or some other concern, he never took communion. And he displayed a remarkable aversion to using the name of Jesus in his voluminous correspondence. As Edward G. Lengel’s delightful Inventing George Washington has shown, 19th-century biographers eagerly recalled shadowy memories of Washington being discovered praying privately, to the extent that you’d think the man did little else besides kneeling in the woods. He almost certainly did pray privately, but as a proper Virginia gentleman, he did not wear his faith on his sleeve.

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Abraham Lincoln, American History, American Protestantism, American Spirituality, any religious affirmation less than the gospel will do, Dr. D. G. Hart, Dr. Darryl G. Hart, faith, George Washington, gospel, Old Life Theological Society, OPC, Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Peter Lillback, President's Day, Religious Affections, The Gospel Coalition, Thomas Kidd.