George Washington and the Question of Church and State

No American living in 1800 would have predicted that Thomas Jefferson’s idiosyncratic views on church and state would eclipse those of George Washington—let along become constitutional dogma. Yet today’s Supreme Court guards no doctrine more fiercely than Jefferson’s antagonistic "wall of separation" between church and state. Washington’s sharply contrasting view is explored in this presentation. The most admired man of his age, Washington presided over the Constitutional Convention and was president when religious freedom was enshrined in the Bill of Rights. His claim to constitutional authority is considerably more impressive than the brilliant—but eccentric—Jefferson’s. Washington considered religion essential for the virtue required of self-governing citizens. Though careful not to favor particular sects, he believed that a republic must not merely accommodate religion but encourage it.