Many ask how it is possible that men from states whose constitutions were not shy about acknowledging God could not leave out any mention of him in the federal Constitution.
One theory, according to James Madison, to explain why the Constitution addresses religion only in an indirect way is because there were different Christian denominations represented at the constitutional convention. It is thought that the proliferation of opinions prompted the representatives to guard against the federal intrusion, preserving the authority of the states to establish their own religious parameters.
The federal Constitution, as a creation of the states, did not nullify the states' right to govern. The government would only do what the several states could not do individually. Powers not delegated to the national government remain with the states.
Certainly, biblical principles of limited and representative government, a sound monetary policy, the establishment of justice, the maintenance of liberty and the preservation of peace are principles that ripple through the federal Constitution.
The Constitution itself states the drafting took place, "In the year of our Lord." If the Constitution framers could get a glimpse of America today, would they have rethought their decision to only make a passing reference to the lordship of Jesus Christ in the body of the Constitution? Or would they have been more specific of God and the need for the nation's reliance on him in light of a secularizing spirit that seems to have America in its grip?
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It is an undeniable truth that Christianity served as the foundation for the political edifice we know as America. In 1982, Congress declared 1983 to be the "Year of the Bible." In that official pronouncement it was stated that "biblical teachings inspired concepts of civil governments that are contained in our Declaration of Independence and Constitution."
Clifford E. Crosby
Duluth
