GOVT 200
Comparison Paper
Hope Symes
Govt 200, C02
GOVT 200
The Constitution of the United States, the Declaration of Independence, and Thomas
Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists are all important documents that came about with the
founding of our nation. Written in different contexts and with different purposes, all three
documents are similar in nature. The Declaration of Independence stated that the United States,
or at least the original 13 colonies, was a free nation no longer under the British rule, while the
Constitution and the letter to the Danbury Baptists in 1802 enhances unity among the people of
America.
Adopted into Congress on July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was the first
document to have come forth. It is important to note because up until this point, America was
still under the British rule. They were still subject to the British laws and taxes although they
weren’t being represented in Parliament. The Declaration contained the goals for our nation as
well as the complaints of the colonists against the British king, followed by the arguments as to
why they were entitled to be free of the British rule.
Unlike the other two documents, The Declaration of Independence (US, 1776) makes
four specific references to God.
1. The “laws of nature and of nature’s God” entitle the U. S. to independence.
2. Men are “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.” Among these are
“Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
3. Congress appeals “to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our
intentions.”
4. The signers, “with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence,” pledge
their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor to each other.”
“Nature’s God” is referring to whatever it is that we believe is responsible for our existence.
Common sense and reasoning would tell us that if we violate basic rules then we will suffer from
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evils to include death, slavery, and misery. It was explained by a Boston preacher as being “the
law of nature (or those rules of behavior which the Nature God has given men … fit and
necessary to the welfare of mankind) is the law and will of the God of nature, which all men are
obligated to obey … The law of nature, which is the Constitution of the God of nature, is
universally obliging. It varies not with men’s humors or interests, but is immutable as the
relations of things” (Williams, 1762). This is important as they acknowledge that God was the
creator of the world and gave us the right to be free, which in turn was the basis for our
Constitution.
The United States Constitution followed the Declaration of Independence in September
of 1787. The main purpose of the Constitution is to protect individual freedoms as well as
spelling out what those freedoms are. It gives the power of the government to the citizens of the
United States, while simultaneously limiting government with a checks and balance system.
While never explicitly mentioning God or a divine being, it does prevent Congress from making
laws that would establish a religion as well as prohibit the government from proscription of any
chosen religion, basically separating church and state.
The letter to the Danbury Baptists in 1802, was written by Thomas Jefferson in response
to a letter he had received voicing their concerns about the lack of clearly stated religious
liberties. Jefferson wrote back explaining that he, like them, believed that religion was “solely
between Man & his God.” It was during this letter that Jefferson seemed to suggest that the
government was going to be cordoned off from religion with no meaningful interaction between
the two (Hutson & Jefferson, 1999, p. 775). Much like the Constitution, Jefferson was trying to
bring unity to the church and allow for all people to live and worship as they deem fit.
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I don’t believe that the founders thought that there should be a separation of God and
government. In fact, I think they believed the opposite. When drawing up the Constitution they
created it off the basic principles of right and wrong founded in the Bible. Democracy has
succeeded largely due to the inclusion of God and our inalienable rights that we were granted in
the Constitution. Like the Constitution, The Declaration of Independence also acknowledged that
our fundamental laws came from God. While not looking to establish a national religion or
chose one over another, they were affirming that we were given all our rights to include religion,
from the “Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.” With separation of God and government we
would have no “unalienable rights.” There are many examples from our early governing
documents that promoted religion to include the Magna Carta, Northwest Ordinance, and each
individual stat’s Bill of Rights.
I believe that the signers did feel as though church and state should be separated. It is
important to recognize that separation of church and state doesn’t mean that state isn’t permitted
to acknowledge God as many people think. It means that these two jurisdictions as well as their
functions should be separate and distinct from each other. The signers recognized that Britain
was combining the two and in turn forcing many people to convert or practice their religion in
secret unless they wanted to face harsh punishments which could include death. While still
believing the God was the Devine being and was the ruler of all, they wrote the Constitution with
the basic rules from the Bible and separated the institutions allowing both to be put into practice
without the interference of the other.
References
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Hutson, J.H. & Jefferson, T. (1999). Thomas Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists: A
controversy rejoined. The William and Mary Quarterly, 56(4), 775. Doi:10.2307/2674235
Williams, A. (1762). Election Sermon. Boston.
