Transcript

Stephen McDowell takes a look at James Madison's faith and political ideas

>> Stephen McDowell: Welcome to America's Providential History Podcast, where we talk about the real story of America and explore the hand of God in our history. Now, here's your host, Steven McDowell. Hello. I'm glad you're joining us for this edition of America's Providential History Podcast. In the last number of podcasts, we began to take a look at the faith of the presidents of the United States. We, we examine George Washington, our first president, Jon Adams, our second president, Thomas Jefferson, the third president. Today I want to, take a look at James Madison, centering in on his faith, but also some of his contributions in the cause of liberty. Now, James Madison was small in stature. He was maybe 5ft 6 inches tall, but he was big in his influence on establishing a new government in the United States. He was soft in speech, but the force of his governmental ideas were great. His health was generally poor throughout much of his life, but he lived longer than any other framer, dying in the year 1836. Now, James Madison was born at his maternal grandparents home in Port Conway, Virginia on March 16, 1751. James was the first of 10 children born to James and Eleanor Madison. They were moderately wealthy planters. James Sr. His father was a vestryman of the Episcopal Church and was a lay delegate to the episcopal Convention of 1776. James Jr. Was baptized in the family church three weeks after his birth in 1756. Now, James was taught at home until about the age of 12. His mother and his paternal grandmother were his primary teachers at that time. The Madison library wasn't extensive, but it did contain many excellent works and included such Christian writings as the Bible as every home in America just about had, the Book of Common Prayer, Gospel, Mystery of Sanctification, and the Life of God in the Soul of Man. Around the age of 11 or 12, Madison was sent to a boarding school of a Scottish minister, Donald Robinson. Now, as I've mentioned in times past, the primary educators in early America were ministers. They certainly were educators through what they taught in church, through being the primary professors at the universities. But also they conducted a, majority of the schools that were established. this certainly included James Madison. Now, he studied a variety of subjects. Latin, Greek, arithmetic, geography, algebra, geometry, literature, French. He read many great authors, including Virgil, Horace, Justinian, Montaigne, Locke, Montesquieu, Smollett, Thomas Kempis, to name a few. But, later Madison commented on the influence that this Scottish minister, his first teacher outside the home, had when he said, all that I have been in life I owe largely to that man. Again, this is one way that the clergy in early America disciple the nation. They trained those who gave birth to the United States. After five years of study under Robertson, Madison was then tutored at his home by an Episcopal minister, Thomas Martin, who was the rector of his parish church. Reverend Martin was a recent graduate of the College of NewSong Jersey, which became Princeton University, and he urged the Madisons to send their son there. So at, age 18, Madison enrolled in college, but not like most Virginians who went to college. Of course, a majority of Virginia of early Americans attended college. But if you lived in Virginia, most of those who went to college would have gone to William and Mary. But his mother especially thought that the Presbyterian College of NewSong Jersey, as I said we became Princeton University later, better reflected their views on religious liberty, American independence and Christian orthodoxy. the president of the college and the principal instructor in 1769 when Madison, attended that was the Scottish Presbyterian pastor, minister Reverend Jon Witherspoon. Witherspoon's ideas greatly affected Madison's religious and political ideas. There at the college he studied divinity and theology, along with the classics, history, philosophy, writing and speech. And Madison had a great interest in Christianity. In fact, he considered a career in the ministry. Bishop Mead, who had visited Madison's home, said of him, Mr. Madison was sent to Princeton College, perhaps through fear of the skeptical principles then so prevalent at William and Mary. During his stay at Princeton, a great revival took place and it was believed that he partook of its spirit. On his return home, he conducted worship in his father's house. He soon after offered for the legislature, and it was objected to him by his opponent that he was better suited to the pulpit than to the legislative hall. So here we have a testimony of a contemporary, leader in the church, Bishop Mead, of Madison's participation in revival that swept through Princeton College at this time. Now, Madison's friends at college were Christians. A number of them became ministers like Samuel Stanhope Smith and Jon Blair Smith. Others went into public service as government officials like William Bradford. And some did both, like Caleb Wallace. After Madison graduated From Princeton in 1771, he stayed another half year in the town of Princeton to study further under Jon Witherspoon because he, loved not only his theological ideas, but his worldview and how that worldview impact government and every other sphere of life. Well, upon returning home to Virginia, Madison still pursued his theological studies, thinking, maybe this is what I'm called to be called to be a minister. Some of his Bible study notes are preserved today. Just a couple of examples of those Notes. He writes Matthew, chapter first. Jesus is a Hebrew name and signifies a Savior. Verse 1. Christ is a Greek name and signifies anointed pollution. Christ did by the power of his Godhead, purify our nature from all the pollution of our ancestors. Acts 20. Why kept by the Christians for the Sabbath? Verse 7. Humility. The better any man is, the lower thoughts he has of himself. So these are just a few entries, in his notes on studying the Bible that certainly reflect an understanding of the Christian faith and a belief in the basic tenets of Christ and who he is and what he did for us. One historian writes of Madison's study of the Bible. He said this after the manner of the Bereans. He seems to have searched the Scriptures daily and diligently. He explored the whole history and evidences of Christianity on every side, through clouds of witnesses and champions for and against, from the fathers and schoolmen down to the infidel philosophers of the 18th century. No one, not a professed theologian, but few even of those who are, have ever gone through more laborious and extensive inquiries to arrive at the truth. And so this testimony, this historian speaks of, searching out truth deeply that Madison did. Now, while considering his career future, he wrote to his friend William Bradford, and in One letter of November 9, 1772, he said, a watchful eye must be kept on ourselves, lest while we are building our ideal monuments of renown and bliss here, we neglect to have our names enrolled in the annals of heaven. Now, when his friend Bradford notified Madison of his decision to become a lawyer, this was In August of 1773, Madison commended him, but urged him to keep the ministry obliquely in view. Whatever your profession be, he said there could not be a stronger testimony in favor of religion than for men who occupy the most honorable and gainful departments and arising in reputation and wealth publicly to declare their unsatisfactoriness by becoming fervent advocates in the cause of Christ. And I wish you may give in your evidence in this way. And so we see here as a young man, while he's contemplating what his career would be, really what God had called him to be, he was professing and encouraging his friends to keep God in mind, to keep the ministry, in mind to champion the cause of Christ. Put that out foremost in whatever you were doing, if you're called to be a lawyer or called to be a minister.

Madison viewed firsthand the persecution of religious dissenters before independence

It was around this time that Madison viewed firsthand the persecution of religious dissenters. Several well meaning men, that's the way Madison described them, were put in Jail for their religious views. Now this would have been in Orange County, Virginia. That's where he lived in Orange County Virginia. And this is of course before independence. And the Anglican church was, was the established church, even though at this time two thirds of Virginians were not a part of the established church, they would have been what would be termed dissenters, not part of that established church. These were Presbyterians, Baptists especially in Orange county. Lots of Baptists there, Methodists were just beginning. And so Madison observed that some of these Baptists in particular were put in jail for their religious views. And this was not the first time such a thing had occurred either. In fact just a couple years before, in 1771, and this was just prior to Madison's return from college. Back he was in college before he came back to Montpelier, his home in Orange County Virginia. There was one Baptist minister, Elijah Craig, who is imprisoned for preaching without a license. Craig continued preaching through the jail windows until his was released. And not long after his release, Reverend Craig and others conducted a series of meetings at Blue Ridge Baptist Church, which was founded by Craig and was just down the road from Madison. It was close to where Madison's home was, where he grew up. And at this series of meetings a crowd of 5,000 people gathered in camp for days to hear the preaching. And Madison was certainly aware of this event, aware of what happened to Craig, how he was tossed in jail. And then this, this happened for a couple of years after this. They continued to jail people. But these events helped to solidify in Madison his lifelong support of religious freedom. So from these early years he began to defend the Baptist in his area against acts of persecution because they were prominent dissenters in the area. And at least in this part of Virginia there is quite a bit of persecution that they faced. He continued to work for many years to end state religious taxes, licensing of preachers by the state, special privileges for the Episcopal clergy and any compelling by the state in religious affairs. And after Independence the Episcopal Church formed on kind of the patriot Anglicans who've left the Anglican Church formed the Episcopal Church and for a brief time in Virginia it received preference from the state. It was the state, established religion, just for a brief time because men like Madison and Thomas Jefferson, others work to disestablish the official church. And we talked about that Jefferson's role contributing to the disestablishment of the official church. And so Madison's views would be expressed in the constitution of Virginia 1776. He drafted the article dealing with religious freedom, which says that religion, or, the duty which we owe to our Creator and the manner of discharging it can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence. And therefore that all men should enjoy the fullest toleration in the exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience, unpunished and unrestrained by the magistrate, unless under color of religion, any man disturb the peace, the happiness or safety of society. And that it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian forbearance, love and charity towards each other. So one Madison here gives a good definition of religion. See, religion, when we think of religion today, we think of any faith, belief that anybody creates, any. That they. They declare what religion is. But to our founders, religion was the duty we owe to our Creator. And they believed it wasn't the creature who determined the duty, but it was the Creator. And in America, where the Christian faith was, was the, true religion that it was. God of the Bible reveals in this holy Scriptures what our duty is. So religion is the duty we owe to our. And that duty is to be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence. Because in the centuries prior to this state established religion in western Europe, it was a form of the Christian religion that often at times, it would use force, external force, to get people to embrace or do what they considered that religion, ought to do. And that was not unusual. That's basically the view of about every nation in all of history had that those in charge used force to get people to not just act right, but to think right and to worship according to what the state says, not according to conviction from the heart of man. That was developed as we searched the holy Scriptures and discovered our duty that the Creator requires of us. And, of course, so we have freedom to worship according to the dictates of our conscience. But of course, that's not unrestrained. Unless under color of religion, any man disturb the peace, the happiness or safety of society. So we can't, challenge, or hurt or harm others right to life, liberty and property through what we claim to be exercising our free religion, freedom of religion. It's the mutual duty of all to practice Christian forbearance, love and charity towards each other, as the constitution of Virginia, which Madison, helped to draft, says. During the time Madison witnessed this religious persecution of the Baptists and others in his area, he began devoting himself to service in public life. He studied law, and in 1774, was elected to serve on the Committee of Safety for Orange County. And so this was the beginning of public service that lasted about a half a century. Now, Madison did not give a reason for not entering the ministry. Remember he was considering maybe this is what I'm called to do. And was trained. Of course. Anybody who went to any college at this time received theological training, biblical worldview training, whether they're going to be whatever field they're called to, law or business or anything else. Madison didn't give a reason for not entering the ministry. Some have suggested it was his soft voice which was not suitable for preaching, and others suggest his poor health. His theological education did, however affect his political ideas. And Witherspoon's influence can be seen throughout his life, throughout his political and public life. So Madison spent nearly half a century in public service. His positions include a member of the Orange County's Committee of safety in 1774. Member of Virginia's Constitutional Convention 1776, where he drew up the first draft of the Article of Religious Freedom. Member of Virginia's first state legislature, the House of Delegates, 1777. And here he fought for establishment of complete religious freedom. He was part of the Governor's Council 1778, 1780, under Governor Henry Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson. He is responsible for preparing many state papers, thus receiving useful knowledge of the day to day work of government. He was a member of Congress under the Articles of Confederation from 1780 to 1783. And this helped to give him a national point of view. Having experienced the weakness of the government under the Articles of Confederation, which was our first form of government until the U.S. constitution went into effect, he saw the weakness. He spoke of the necessity for their revision and for more power in the central government. He was a member of the Virginia House of delegates from 1784-86. He was a leader in establishing religious freedom. He's the one who introduced Jefferson's bill for religious freedom. As we mentioned in previous podcasts that Jefferson wrote the Virginia Statute for religious freedom in 1779. But it wasn't agreed on or approved until 1786. And it was by that time Jefferson had moved away to France. And Madison picked up the, this bill and saw it go into effect. And Madison was a member of the constitutional convention in 1787. His draft for a new constitution formed the framework for what became our current form of government, the United States Constitution. And after the convention approved it and it was sent to the states, Madison led the forces to ratify the Constitution in the state of Virginia, then under the NewSong Constitution. He was a member of the U.S. house of Representatives from 1789 to 1797. And in the first Congress of 1789, Madison proposed 12amendments to the Constitution, of which 10 were ratified by the states. And they've now become what we know as the Bill of Rights. So Madison's kind of. He was the chief architect, of the Constitution, but also these amendments, first amendments to the Constitution, and this Bill of Rights became part of our constitution on December 15, 1791. Madison served as Secretary of State under Thomas Jefferson from 1800 to 1807. And he was the fourth president of the United States, 1808 to 1817. And he was also part of Virginia's constitutional convention of 1829. And from 1826 to 1836, he served as the rector of the University of Virginia. So he had nearly 50 years of service in different capacities in civil government, had great, put into the beginning of our country and the US Constitution in particular. And so many of those ideas that are expressed in our framework of government were shaped by his biblical education he received at home, by his early tutors that were ministers, and by Jon Witherspoon and the training that he received at College of NewSong Jersey.

After entering public life, Madison wrote very little about his religious beliefs

Now, after entering public life, Madison wrote very little about his religious beliefs. so it's difficult to accurately present his faith throughout his life. His early writings certainly reveal his orthodox beliefs. I've pointed out a few things that he wrote to different people. but nothing in his later writings negate these or show any doubting of his Christian faith or any loss of interest in Christianity at all. In fact, he remained friendly to Christianity and attended church throughout his life. Now, three factors probably affected his lack of writing on his religious beliefs. Again, early on, he wrote quite a bit. After entering public life, we don't find too much on his writing about that, but some possible effects. One, at this time, most people considered their doctrinal beliefs were really private matters, and so he kept these things private. Two, as a public official, Madison may have thought it best remain silent or neutral so as not to divide the nation because there is great diversity in Christian beliefs, many different denominations, many different sects. And especially as his service in government, he represented people from all different, persuasions of Christian faith. And then a third factor is that his view of the relationship of church and state probably restrained him as well from publicly addressing religion. That, he, like Jefferson, thought certainly the national government, the religious affairs were outside the jurisdiction of national government. according to our Constitution, states could deal with the subject of religion. And they did because at our founding as a nation, eight of the 13 states had a state established religion, a particular denomination as the established religion for others had Protestant Christianity in general on the state level. Now on the national level, they didn't want a national church. And Amendment one says congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. So Congress couldn't set up a national church. And so Madison would have, could have kind of extended that to think, well, the national government really, it's outside its limited function and this is an issue should be left to the people and government's role should be local or state, level. Now his faith did affect his principles of government and law. Jon Witherspoon and his Calvinistic ideas are reflected in Madison's thought. Madison certainly believed in the innate depravity of man. And since man was sinful, as Madison and just about all of our framers thought, government not only needed to restrain sinful actions of citizens, but there also had to be restraints on governmental leaders. So Madison sought to limit powers. And we see that in our U.S. constitution there's a separation of powers between the executive, legislative and judicial functions of government. There's a system of checks and balances to hold one another, keep one another from abusing authority and power. In his political thinking, he stated, started from a theological base. See, a biblical view of man caused Madison to say all men having power ought to to be distrusted. Now that's a theological foundation to that statement, because man, the Bible teaches that man has great value and we protect the life, liberty and property of man. But man is sinful and can't be trusted with too much power. And all men having power ought to be distrusted. Madison wrote. And that's a theological based upon a theology, theological idea, biblical idea. Now Madison's character was a product of his faith. In his Bible study notes from his post college days, he recorded humility. The better any man is, the lower thoughts he has of himself. Of course, Jesus taught that civil leaders are to be public servants. We're to serve, though not lorded over them. Madison under understood this is what the Bible and Jesus taught. And Madison portrayed this humble character. Paul Jennings was a former, ah, slave born and raised at Montpelier. That was the name of Madison's home. And he wrote of Madison 1865. He said, Mr. Madison, I think was one of the best men that ever lived. I never saw him in a passion and never knew him to strike a slave. Although he had over 100. Neither would he allow an overseer to do it. Whenever any slaves were reported to him as stealing or cutting up badly, he would send for them and admonish them privately and never mortify them by doing it before others. They generally served him very faithfully. I don't think he drank a quart of brandy in his whole life. For the last 15 years of his life, he drank no wine at all. So he was testifying to his self government, his humility, his concern, for all men. Madison acknowledged the hand of God and his providence in his first inaugural address after he was elected president, which he delivered on May 4, 1809, when he said, we have all been encouraged to feel in the guardianship and guidance of that almighty being whose power regulates the destiny of nations, whose blessings have been so conspicuously dispensed to this rising republic and to whom we are bound to address our, devout gratitude for the past as well as our fervent supplication and best hopes for the future. And so Madison, acknowledged the providence of God, Almighty God, and his hand in our history and in history. In the Federalist papers, Federalist number 20, point 24, paragraph 24. He gave thanks to God and called others to do so, writing, let our gratitude mingle an ejaculation to heaven for the propitious concord which is distinguished the consultations for our political happiness. And in the Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers, by the way, were a, series of newspaper articles. That's where they were first, published, that were published in the papers of NewSong York and others that were in support of the new constitution. These were written, by Madison, j. And Hamilton. And Madison wrote 29 of the 85 essays he wrote under the pseudonym of Publius. But, these were fleshing out of the Constitution, telling the people, hey, here's why you should support this new constitution. And so in the Federalist number 20, he said. He also acknowledged God spoke to him in written communication. That m. God spoke to man in general and written communication, saying, when the Almighty himself condescends to address mankind in their own language. And so he called everyone to give thanks to God in the Federalist Papers. These are again, political writings. And he acknowledged God spoke to man. Now, as I mentioned, Madison played an important role in the constitutional, convention. It was his letter to Washington that formed the basis of the Virginia Plan. And the Virginia Plan, while the delegates were sent to Philadelphia in 1787 to, correct the problems that articles of Confederation just. They're thinking we're going to revise These and work out the weaknesses of them. There's a whole group of people recognize we've just got to come up with something new because you can't correct the major problems in the articles. And so it was a letter Madison wrote, was the basis for what formed the United States Constitution. Fifteen resolves drawn up by Madison and the other Virginia delegates were part of this Virginia plan. Now, during the convention, Madison spoke 161 times, more than anyone except Gouverneur Morris and James Wilson. He also kept the most complete record of the convention notes on this. On this constitutional convention, and he helped broker many compromises. he was also on the committee of style which determined the final wording. And this is why he is called the father of the Constitution. A, Georgia delegate to the convention said of Madison, Mr. Madison is a character has long been in public life. But what is very remarkable, every person seems to acknowledge his greatness. He blends together the profound politician with a scholar in the management of every great question. He evidently took the lead in the convention. And though he cannot be called an orator, he is a most agreeable, eloquent and convincing speaker from a spirit of industry and application which he possesses in a most eminent degree. He always comes forward the best informed man of any point in debate the affairs of the United States. He perhaps has the most correct knowledge of any man in the union. Mr. Madison is a gentleman of great modesty, with a remarkably sweet temper. He is easy and unreserved among his acquaintances and has a most agreeable style of conversation. And so Madison, his Christian character was acknowledged by others here at the convention. And Madison himself, along with many others, said that the adoption of the Constitution was nothing less than a miracle. Washington acknowledged it a miracle. Benjamin Franklin acknowledged it as a miracle.

Madison's governmental philosophy was based upon biblical ideas

And Madison also said of the Constitution, it is impossible for the man of pious reflection not to perceive in it a finger of that almighty hand which has been so frequently and signally extended to our relief in the critical stages of the revolution, when he used that phrase, the finger of that Almighty. That's a biblical phrase, by the way, in scripture, the finger of the Almighty. So he recognized God and his providence had worked and was working in all these events taking place leading up to our independence and to. And to the establishment of us as a constitutional republic under this form of government that's lasted, over 240 years. Now, Madison in the Constitution saw no need for listing a. Having a listing of rights or provision protecting religious freedom in the Constitution, because, as he said, such A provision of rights was already guaranteed by each state. He also believed if there was a listing was attempted in the new national constitution, it might be construed to limit individuals to only those rights. He's afraid, well, if we start to list rights we possess, some people in the future might think that's all the rights we get. But what he understood is that we have God given inalienable rights. Each state protects those rights on the national level. We don't need them. But when there is a pushback by many and said, we're not going to, approve the Constitution unless we have a bill of rights, then he gladly took up that cause and took charge and even authored those, first 12amendments, 10 of which were, appointed. So Madison, as we said, served, 50 years in public service. He had many important political writings and speeches, in his life. The memorial and remonstrance against religious assessments having to do with, religious freedom. The Virginia plan which formed the US Constitution. He took notes on the debates of the Federal Convention of 1787. He, gave a speech to the convention of Virginia to ratify the Constitution. He was authored 29 of the 85 Federalist Papers and, a number of other things in his life was a great contribution. So Madison, though he thought maybe I might be called to be a pastor. He was trained as a theologian. Reverend Jon Witherspoon had a great influence in his life as well as early pastors and his Christian parents who trained him. But though he didn't go into the pulpit ministry, he went into the civil ministry. And his governmental philosophy, which we can certainly see through his writings, were based upon biblical ideas. His biblical worldview determined his governmental philosophy. his biblical view of man is evident, for example, in Federalist 51, where he writes, but what is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal could controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men. The great difficulty lies in this. You must first enable the government to control the governed and in the next place oblige it to control itself. So he understood the fallen nature of man. In constructing a government, you need to take this into consideration. It's very important. And so, we can see, for example in his Federalist Papers that he wrote his political philosophy come forth. Just some general principles that we can glean from those is that power is derived from the people. The people have a right to elect magistrates to represent their views in the seat of government. he embraced constitutional government, the concept of the rule of law with the limited power of the government. Very important idea to him. And that another idea is that a republic is best rather than a democracy. A pure democracy where every man votes for every issue is not practical in a large country but contend to mob rule as well. So you need to elect wise men who meet biblical qualifications to be your to represent you in this seat of government. He also m embraced the idea of separation of powers between the legislative, executive and judicial branches. He believed and presented checks and balances. He understood legislative authority as predominant but should be divided into two houses as well as a further check and balance. He understood the federal nature of the U.S. united States form of government where you have a national, government and state and local governments and each have their own unique jurisdictions and authority and they shouldn't abuse one another. He recognized the importance of minority rights, guarded which they would be in a constitutional form of government because a majority cannot take away minorities rights that are God given. He spoke about civil and religious rights that were equally protected. About protection of property rights is the first object of government. He wrote about justice as the end of government. This is of course what the Bible teaches us that civil leaders are, to administer God's justice in their sphere of responsibility. And he spoke about God's authority superseding man's. Madison believed that the constitution and governmental institutions could not contravene the transcendent, transcendent law of nature and nature's God. He wrote that in Federalist 43:30. And of course that's in our Declaration of Independence that our laws come from the law of nature, revelation of God in his creation and conscience of man and the law of nature's God which is revealed in the holy Scriptures. And so any action of civil government cannot contravene those higher authority, that higher authority of God. As I mentioned throughout his life, Madison was a champion of religious liberty. From early on. When he saw the persecution of Baptists and others, he took a firm belief in religious liberty. As a young man he wrote to his college friend William Bradford on January 24, 1774 that diabolical hell conceived principle of persecution rages among some and to their eternal infamy the clergy can furnish their quota of imps for such business. This vexes me the worst of anything whatever. There are at this time in the adjacent county not less than five or six well meaning men in close jail for publishing their Religious sentiments, which is the main, which in the main are very orthodox. so he certainly m believed in the rights of conscience of man to worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience. He understands, understood orthodox belief of the Christian faith. Having studied it thoroughly. He spoke against persecution of those who were exercising their God given right to worship God and he championed their cause as well. As I mentioned before, it was Madison who pushed through that Virginia statute for religious freedom. Jefferson first authored it and introduced it, but it was Madison who saw it through and he wrote a memorial and remonstrance in 1785, which was an argument, ah, really to support religious freedom, as well. And so his faith impacted his public civil action, it impacted his character, it impacted his worldview.

Some of our founding fathers did own slaves, Mont Dpel says

And some may say, well you know, it seems like he owned slaves. How did it impact that? And we've addressed this issue in past podcast, how some of the founding fathers did own slaves because it was when Europe colonized America, they brought with them slavery which had existed all over the world throughout all of history for all time. And so it wasn't invented by the founders. And Madison, like George Washington and most of our founders were against slavery, though he did own 100 slaves during his life and he only gave freedom to a few of them. But he grew up playing with slaves, was close to many throughout his life. He always treated them with respect, which was attested to by many. but his opposition to the institution of slavery is based on principles of justice and individual rights. He said that the whole Bible is against Negro slavery, but that the clergy do not preach this and the people do not see it. So you might ask, if he opposed slavery, why did he continue to have slaves? Well he thought that emancipation should take place gradually, giving the nation time to overcome any prejudices and prepare the blacks to live as freemen in society. And of course by the way, there were many free blacks who lived in America and have throughout all this time period, all this history, and there were many free blacks in the south as well as the north, but he has others believed and understood they need to be prepared, in every way to live as free men. Because without this he feared the freed slaves would not be able to live alongside the whites experiencing the same freedom. So he thought their conditions would even be worse without this preparation. They would suffer, as he wrote, the degrading privation of equal rights, political or social. So thinking it was in the best interest of all, Madison favored reparation, Excuse me. Repatriation of the freed black population to a new nation in West Africa called Liberia. So in 1816, the American colonization Society was formed to promote this purpose. And Madison was a lifetime member, even serving as president at one time, thinking, well, we'll set up a free nation in Africa, and whoever wants to, blacks that want to can live, move there and live, free. Madison wrote that those who oppose the Constitution because of its policies on slavery, in particular prohibiting the importation of slaves until 1808, were misrepresenting the purpose of the Framers. He wrote, it ought to be considered as a great point gained in favor of humanity, that a period of 20 years may terminate forever within these states. A traffic which is so long and so loudly upheaval braided the barbarism of the modern policy, of modern policy, that within that period it will receive a considerable discouragement from the federal government and may be totally abolished. And so that provision in the Constitution that allowed Congress to end the slave trade, by 1808, he saw it as a great step forward in ending slavery. In Federalist 42, he went on to point out that slaves in Europe had no such prospect in their future. And so we see the Founders were leading the way in the world to take steps to end slavery. And as we've discussed in the past, since independence, each state had the freedom to deal with slavery. And, more than half outlawed slavery, outright. They ended the slave trade. They prohibited slavery in the new territories of the Northwest. Many did manumit their slaves in the south as well. And they began to take steps to do something about this. And as we've discussed, we could argue, well, they should have done more and they should have done it faster. And we can look back and kind of make arguments like this, like today, saying, well, look, in the last 50 years, we've slaughtered over 60 million unborn children in the womb. So if we're going to have future generations judge us, we're going to have a much stiffer judgment, this generation, our generation, than the founding fathers, because they actually took steps to end slavery before anyone else in the world did so, or had done that. Now, when Madison's second term as president ended, he and his wife, Dolly Madison, gladly returned to their home in Orange, Virginia, known as Montpelier. Still there to day. You can go and visit Montpelier and, and see his home. And, in the next 20 years, they experienced much joy at home, which Dolly said was within a squirrel's jump of heaven. But they didn't really have much of an opportunity to be alone, because guests and friends continually visited them. In fact, at times, there are so many guests that they had to set up tables outdoors to accommodate them. Madison wrote in 1820, yesterday, we had 90 persons to dine with us at our table fixed on the lawn under a large arbor. Half a dozen only stayed all night, half a dozen only. So throughout years and years, they had all kinds of visitors come. That one time, 90 persons, had, dined. The guests that visited Madison's home were certainly reminded of his Christian faith, because when they walked into the entrance hall, there was a huge painting, 8 by 12ft, of Jesus with his 12 disciples. Many other Christian paintings as well. And if you visit Montpelier today, you can see, a testament to his faith by these paintings that Madison had in his home. And, of course, there were many families didn't have paintings, but Madison, like Jefferson, used such things to educate all these guests, these hundreds of guests who would come and visit to show him what they considered to be, important. Now, in his later years, in addition to entertaining visitors at his home, Addison served as the rector of the University of Virginia. This was the University of Jefferson started. Madison was involved really, from the very beginning, helping with this. so he served as rector. He collected his correspondence, he edited some of his previous writings, and occasionally wrote his thoughts on current political issues. So he kept very active until June 28, 1836. He died at home. He was the last surviving framer, and he's buried in the cemetery at Montpelier. So there you have just a little look at the faith of our fourth president, James, Madison. Now, if you would like to read some of this, one of our books, in God We Trust, Volume 1, Christian History Tour of Washington, D.C. and sites in Virginia. I have a chapter on James Madison in Montpelier, where you can read, about him and a little bit about his home at, at Montpelier. And you can get that by visiting our website, providencefoundation.com. so we have that book, many others that you can get and read. We have lots of free articles and videos and other things that will help equip you in the principles of Christian liberty. And as we're celebrating this year, the 250th anniversary of the founding of our nation 250 years ago this year, that was in 1776. We proclaimed our independence from Great Britain. We began as a nation. And of course, the Declaration, our founding covenant, in its reflects the great Christian faith and thinking of those men who gave us, this nation. So I'd encourage you to read the Declaration of Independence and recognize they appeal to God and our God given rights and liberties. So Visit our website, providencefoundation.com and, hope you can join us next week because we will take a look at some other of the early presidents of the United States and examine their Christian faith. So God bless you.