Cassini told of a time in the WH when JFK told him he would never quote Thomas Jefferson in a presidential speech b/c Jefferson was anti-Catholic. The author of the Declaration of Independence, and a US President himself, unabashedly rejected the Trinity, Jesus's divinity as the Son of God, miracles, the Resurrection of Christ, atonement from sin, original sin and the Virgin birth.....all core Catholic beliefs.
Pretty common Enlightenment beliefs. Unfortunately.
Just keeping things real. This is what is on Thomas Jefferson's gravestone.
He was most proud that he assured religious freedom was upheld and protected by statute."on the grave a plain die or cube 3 feet without any moldings, surmounted by an obelisk of 6 feet height, each a single stone: on the faces of the obelisk the following inscription and not a word more –
Here was buried
Thomas Jefferson
Author of the Declaration of American Independence
of the statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom
and Father of the University of Virginia
On the Die
Born April 2, 1743 O.S.
Died July 4, 1826By these as testimonials I had lived and desire most to be remembered."
Most of the Virginia planter class, which occupied the legislature and the public offices, were Anglican. Public officials swore to uphold the thirty-nine articles of Anglican faith. State and religion were intertwined, and the Anglican Church was established as Virginia’s official religion. From the beginning of the Virginia colony, the General Assembly had taken church rules and turned them into laws, making it a crime to violate church doctrine. A 1705 statute required belief in the tenets of the Christian church “to hold and enjoy any office or emploiment, ecclesiastical, civil, or military,” The Anglican church was supported by taxes which everyone was required to pay. After 1750, there was increasing tension between the Anglican Church and the expanding appeal to the working-class in the message of the Baptist and Presbyterian ministers. They did not believe in the ceremonies that were reminiscent of the former Catholic Church in England, or in the hierarchy which dominated the Anglican Church and set the rules by which one could reach heaven. They were known as “dissenters,” and were part of a wave of revivalism which swept through the colonies in the middle of the 18th century. This spirit of revivalism emphasized religious experience rather than doctrine and challenged the authority of the state to require all citizens to follow the dictates of the Anglican Church. However, all ministers were required to be licensed. Many of the Baptist and Presbyterian ministers were unlicensed “street preachers,” who did not have a regular church, and were often impoverished. Those who sought to be licensed were opposed by the Anglicans in the legislature. Many continued to preach and were jailed. Monuments remain throughout Virginia today at various courthouses, as evidence of their opposition.Shouldn't it be enough that no matter what beliefs Thomas Jefferson held, he made sure that government would not infringe on your right to believe as you will?
Just so you know Protestants believe in The Trinity of The Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Jesus's divinity as the Son of God, miracles, the Resurrection of Christ, atonement from sin, original sin and the Virgin birth.....all also core Protestant beliefs as we are part of the "holy catholic church".
Here is another JFK statment:
"I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone." -- "Remarks at a Dinner Honoring Nobel Prize Winners of the Western Hemisphere (161)," April 29, 1962, Public Papers of the Presidents: John F. Kennedy, 1962.It seems that JFK thought well of Thomas Jefferson.
