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From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Newsgroups: sci.crypt
Subject: Re: An interesting message from SECURITY-DIGEST@RUTGERS
Message-ID: <3453@sol.ARPA>
Date: Wed, 21-Oct-87 11:50:35 EDT
Article-I.D.: sol.3453
Posted: Wed Oct 21 11:50:35 1987
Date-Received: Fri, 23-Oct-87 07:26:57 EDT
References: <7449@reed.UUCP> <8746@utzoo.UUCP> <471@auscso.UUCP> <4623@videovax.Tek.COM> <1415@osiris.UUCP> <4634@videovax.Tek.COM>
Reply-To: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Organization: U of Rochester, CS Dept, Rochester, NY
Lines: 24
Keywords: NSA, DES, STU-III

>The Founding Fathers were steeped in the philosophy of the Reformation,
>which taught that man was by nature sinful and in need of a Savior.
...
>Like the majority of the Founding Fathers, I realize that man is by
>nature sinful and in need of a Savior...
and so forth.

This is simply false.  The philosophy of the ``Founding Fathers'' was that
of the Enlightenment; they read and approved of Voltaire, Rousseau, and Locke.
I don't know who your list of founding fathers is, but I think that Franklin,
Jefferson, Washington, Madison, Paine, and John Adams must figure prominently.
Madison, in particular, was one of the main creators of the system of checks
and balances.  None of these people believed in a personal god, original
sin, the divinity of Christ, or a need for salvation.  In fact, one of the
primary motivations for the creation of the Constitution was a belief in
the ultimate perfectability of humankind and its institutions.  For a thorough
review of the beliefs of the people that started this country going, I suggest
you go directly to their letters, to the Federalist papers, to Franklin's
writings on religion and science, and to Thomas Paine's pamphlets.  The
founders, rather than espousing original sin and salvation, evinced
considerable contempt for the standard forms of Christian religion.  This
fact, and the great eloquence that some of the founders brought to the
issue, has caused such discomfort to the preachers that they have finally
taken refuge in lies about the past.