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Running Head: COMPARISON PAPER
The U.S. Constitution, The Declaration of Independence, and Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to Danbury
Baptists
Liberty University
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COMPARISON PAPER
Abstract
The U.S. Constitution, The Declaration of Independence, and the Thomas Jefferson letter to the Danbury
Baptists are all historical documents that have all given our country its foundation in one way or another.
These documents all have their own theme, purpose, similarities, and differences. These historical
documents were not all created at the same time and all serve a purpose in their own timeline. When I
compare the U.S. Constitution to The Declaration of Independence I will be giving my opinion on what
the signers of these documents thought about the separation of church and state or what they thought
about the separation of God from government.
COMPARISON PAPER
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On July 4, 1776 Congress officially adopted The Declaration of Independence. Prior to the
creation of this historical document radicals decided to fight for their independence against King George
III. January 1776 the radicals received word that King George III was ordering to enlarge the Royal
Army and Navy. The radical colonies that wanted their independence grew in numbers and came
together. The first motion for independence was brought forward by Virginia which caused a heated
debate and congress eventually called for a recess but in the mix of the debate Congress assigned a five
man team to draw a draft that eventually became the Declaration of Independence and declared the
break from Great Britain. This historical document was best summed up by the words of Colin Powell,
“The Declaration of Independence was like a 28 count indictment against King George”. The colonies
were expressing their freedom to King George III and that they didn’t want to be told how to run their
colonies and have someone control their freedom. The Declaration of Independence is the first document
to include the phrase “all men are created equal”. The radical colonies were determined to get their
independence and govern their colonies as individual states.
The U.S. Constitution is the basis for our country’s political and legal system. This historical
document guaranteed the citizens of the United States certain basic rights. The document was signed on
September 17, 1787 in Philadelphia presided over by George Washington. Prior to the writing of this
document our government was weak and all states operated like independent countries. The U.S.
Constitution was created to make our government stronger by increasing federal authority but
maintaining the rights of the citizens. The Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution to limit the
federal authority over the states during this same timeline. The main purpose of U.S. Constitution was
to create a perfect union amongst the states. The signers of the Constitution knew that if this didn’t
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work then there could never be an organized government. Needless to say they accomplished
organizing the government and the Constitution still governs the United States today.
The letter written to Danbury Baptists by Thomas Jefferson was a response from a letter that was
written to President Thomas Jefferson from the Danbury Baptists. Jefferson wrote his letter to explain
his beliefs on federalism. The letter assured Danbury Baptists that the federal government could not
interfere with their church.
In comparing of these historical documents it was important that The Declaration of
Independence was written before the Constitution because the U.S. had to first gain their independence
from Great Britain as individual states. The theme of the Declaration of Independence is freedom. Once
freedom was accomplished we had to face the dilemma of how to organize the government without
taking away the rights of the citizens so the founding fathers created the Constitution. The Constitution
represented unity. The U.S. would be nothing without either document and you have to have the
freedom before uniting as one.
The signers of the U.S. Constitution and The Declaration of Independence all came from
different religious backgrounds. The Declaration of Independence had 32 signers that were
Episcopalian/Anglican, 13 were Congregationalist, 12 were Presbyterian, 2 were Quakers, 2 were
Unitarian, and 1 was Catholic. The Constitution has 31 signers that were Episcopalian/Anglican, 16
were Presbyterian, 8 were Congregationalist, 3 were Quakers, 2 were Catholic, 2 were Methodist, 2
were Lutheran, and 2 were Dutch reformed. So as we can see our Founding Fathers all had some type of
religious background. When it comes to what I think the signers thought of separation of church and
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state I believe that they look at religion as its on entity and government as its on entity. It states in the
constitution "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people
peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." This leads me to
believe that the signers didn’t approve nor did they support the separation of church and government.
The signer’s created the first amendment so that government couldn’t create it’s on religion. The signers
didn’t look at separation of God from government because I feel that they knew that God was the law
and that God reigned over all creation. I believe all law and rights originate in God and I believe that the
signers of these documents felt the same way. As I mentioned earlier the signer’s came from all types
of religious background and this country was built on God’s word through the founding fathers of this
country. I believe God has his hand in everything that happens and I believe he was there in that room
writing these historical documents through the hands of our founding fathers.
In conclusion the historical documents listed in this paper were all relevant in the creation and
understanding of our government and in the rights of the citizens of this country. We live in a nation of
believers and non-believers. Religion is a belief and not an opinion. Without these documents our
country wouldn’t have the freedom or the organization that we have today. Without God watching over
us and working through us to do all things we wouldn’t survive existence.
COMPARISON PAPER
References:
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(n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2014, from http://www.archives.gov
(n.d.). Retrieved October 29, 2014, from
http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html
(2014, October 29). Retrieved from
http://www.truenews.org/Religious_Freedom/separation_of_church_and_state.html
The Declaration of Independence. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2014, from
http://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/declaration-of-independence
The Declaration of Independence. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2014, from
http://www.adherents.com/gov/Founding_Fathers_Religion.html
McClellan, J. (2000). Liberty, Order, and Justice, (Third ed.). Indianapolis: Liberty Fund.
