Christian amendment describes any of several attempts to amend a country's

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princip ...

in order to officially make it a

Christian state A Christian state is a country that recognizes a form of Christianity as its official religion and often has a state church (also called an established church), which is a Christian denomination that supports the government and is supported by ...

. In the United States, the most significant attempt to amend the United States Constitution by inserting explicitly

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

ideas and language began during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by state ...

and was spearheaded by the National Reform Association.

Samoa

In June 2017,

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

became a Christian state after Parliament passed a bill to amend its constitution; Article 1 of the Samoan Constitution states that "Samoa is a Christian nation founded on God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit".

United States

Initial proposals

In February 1863, during the

, a coalition of eleven

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

denominations from seven northern states gathered to discuss the state of the nation. Seeing the Civil War as God's punishment for the omission of God from the Constitution, they discussed a proposed amendment to alter the wording of the

Preamble A preamble is an introductory and expressionary statement in a document that explains the document's purpose and underlying philosophy. When applied to the opening paragraphs of a statute, it may recite historical facts pertinent to the subj ...

to acknowledge God. The idea that civil governments derive their legitimacy from

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

, and

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

in particular, was alleged to be based on Biblical passages such as

Psalm 2 Psalm 2 is the second psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "Why do the heathen rage". In Latin, it is known as "Quare fremuerunt gentes". Psalm 2 does not identify its author with a superscription, but Act ...

and

Romans 13 Romans 13 is the thirteenth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It is authored by Paul the Apostle, while he was in Corinth in the mid 50s AD, with the help of an amanuensis (secretary), Tertius, wh ...

. The original draft of the amendment, by

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

attorney John Alexander, read:The NRA (National Reform Association) and the Christian Amendment
by Jim Allison The Christian Amendment Movement was founded the next year and quickly renamed the "National Reform Association" with Alexander as its first president. They sent a memorial to

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

formally proposing the following amendment: A delegation from the National Reform Association sought to meet with Abraham Lincoln on February 11, 1864, to solicit his endorsement of the amendment. Lincoln's pastor, Rev.

Phineas Gurley Phineas Densmore Gurley (November 12, 1816 – September 30, 1868) was Chaplain of the United States Senate and pastor of New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. Early life Gurley was born in Hamilton, New York, on November 1 ...

, arranged for Lincoln to meet the delegation.Origin and Progress of the Movement to Secure the Religious Amendment of the Constitution of the United States
, by T. P. Stevenson. ''Proceedings of the National Convention to Secure the Religious Amendment of the Constitution of the United States'' (1872), pp. viii, x. After hearing their petition, Lincoln responded: The proposal was supported by Senators

Charles Sumner Charles Sumner (January 6, 1811March 11, 1874) was an American statesman and United States Senator from Massachusetts. As an academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the anti-slavery forces in the state and a leader of th ...

, B. Gratz Brown and

John Sherman John Sherman (May 10, 1823October 22, 1900) was an United States, American politician from Ohio throughout the American Civil War, Civil War and into the late nineteenth century. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Par ...

, but did not come to a vote in Congress. One member of the National Reform Association,

James Pollock James Pollock may refer to: * James Pollock (American politician) (1810–1890), governor of the State of Pennsylvania, 1855–1858 * James Pollock (artist) (born 1943), American artist * James Pollock (Northern Ireland politician) (1893–1982), ...

, played a role in getting the phrase " In God We Trust" on the two-cent coin in 1864. Another version of the amendment read: Similar proposals were considered by Congress in 1874, 1895, 1896, 1910, 1947, 1949, 1951, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1961, 1963, 1965, 1967, and 1969 but none passed.

Later attempts

With the growing backlash in American society against

communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society ...

in the 1940s and 1950s, new efforts were made to introduce

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesu ...

into the Constitution, although these efforts were now in the form of standard

constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, t ...

s. In 1954

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...

Ralph Flanders proposed: : Section 1: This nation devoutly recognizes the authority and law of Jesus Christ, Savior and Ruler of nations, through whom are bestowed the blessings of Almighty God. : Section 2: This amendment shall not be interpreted so as to result in the establishment of any particular ecclesiastical organization, or in the abridgment of the rights of religious freedom, or freedom of speech and press, or of peaceful assemblage. : Section 3: Congress shall have power, in such cases as it may deem proper, to provide a suitable oath or affirmation for citizens whose religious scruples prevent them from giving unqualified allegiance to the Constitution as herein amended. None of the proposals came to a Congressional vote. There were calls for similar amendments in the wake of the 1962

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

case '' Engel v. Vitale'', which ruled school-sponsored and dictated prayer in schools unconstitutional. Over 200 similar amendment proposals were introduced to Congress between 1894 and 1984.

References

External links

The NRA (National Reform Association) and the Christian Amendment
by Jim Allison, at the website "The Constitutional Principle: Separation of Church and State"

by William Gould, ''The Christian Statesman'', September–October 1996

by Raymond Joseph, ''The Christian Statesman'', January–February 1998

a written statement of Jon G. Murray to the Congressional Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs and Coinage, September 14, 1988

online Introduction from the book by Gaines M. Foster

3 June 2005 episode of the radio series ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' (''TAL'') is an American monthly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internatio ...

''
ACLU Briefing Paper on Church and State Issues
of 25 November 1999 {{authority control

Christian states Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρισ ...