What Washington really believed?
"The painting, 'The Apotheosis of Washington,' reminds us of a special challenge when assessing the faith life of George Washington: he was deified so early that it’s nearly impossible to separate fact from wishful thinking. For instance, it turns out that the source for the story about Washington praying on bended knee at Valley Forge – which inspired many a patriotic painting – was the biography by Parson Weems, the same creative fellow who made up the fictitious tale about young GW chopping down the cherry tree."
Comments (2)
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That Washington was and continues to be deified in our culture is obvious. The fact that folks care about what he thought after all this time is interesting indeed, as is the business of finding ways to claim him as "one of our own," by just about every group around.
One quote of his that I think might have got him booted out of the local fundamentalist church is pretty cool:
"If they are good workmen, they may be from Asia, Africa or Europe; they may be Mahometans, Jews, Christians of any sect, or they may be Atheists...."
[George Washington, to Tench Tighman, March 24, 1784, when asked what type of workman to get for Mount Vernon, from "The Washington papers" edited by Saul Padover]
Obviously, the man was far too liberal for today's world... {;-)
Posted on February 21, 2007 7:53 AM
Washington specifically overrode his speechwriter (yes, even back then, politicians had them) and removed mentions of Jesus from his Inaugural Adresses.
Posted on February 24, 2007 10:21 AM