OPINION:
“I always think of myself as a Christian who hates Christianity. … [I am against] religion in neutral and public spaces. … The Bible is all over the place [on marriage and morality]. … I trust women [and men] to make their own decisions.”
These are just a few quotes from Democratic candidate James Talarico, who is running (and leading in the polls) against Ken Paxton to replace John Cornyn as senator from Texas.
If you have a sense of deja vu — that you heard this all somewhere before — you are right. In fact, one of America’s most influential historical leaders said something similar more than 200 years ago. Consider the following:
“Whenever we read the obscene stories … with which more than half the bible is filled, it would seem more consistent that we called it the word of a demon than the Word of God. … I do not believe in the creed professed by any church that I know of. My own mind is my own church.”
These are quotes from Thomas Paine’s “Age of Reason.”
Now, some who fancy themselves to be more progressive in their thinking may say, “Well, there you have it! We’ve been trying to tell you that America was founded as a secular nation, not on religious dogma. These quotes are the proof that James Talarico is more in line with our founding ideals than you conservative Christians.”
Not so fast. Before we jump to such conclusions, maybe we should consider what the other Founding Fathers actually said about Thomas Paine’s work. In other words, did the preponderance of America’s patriarchs agree or disagree with him?
Here is just a sampling of responses from the likes of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and others.
Adams was quite blunt in his opprobrium for Paine’s “Age of Reason”: “The Christian religion is, above all the religions that ever prevailed or existed in ancient or modern times, the religion of wisdom, virtue, equity and humanity; let the Blackguard Paine say what he will.”
Franklin, likewise, pulled no punches: “I would advise you,” he wrote to Paine, “not to attempt unchaining the tiger, but to burn this piece before any other person sees it; whereby you will save yourself a great deal of trouble, and your enemies a great deal of triumph.”
Benjamin Rush, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, called Paine’s writing “absurd and impious.”
Charles Carroll, another Declaration signer, described Paine’s work as “blasphemous writings against the Christian religion.”
John Witherspoon, president of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton) and another signer, said Paine was “ignorant of human nature as well as an enemy to the Christian faith.”
Sam Adams, whom some called the firebrand of the American Revolution, delivered a stiff rebuke to Paine: “When I heard you had turned your mind to a defense of infidelity, I felt myself much astonished.”
He urged Paine to reconsider writing what Adams considered a betrayal of the very moral foundations that made the Revolution possible.
Elias Boudinot, president of the Continental Congress, did not just criticize Paine; he also wrote a full-length rebuttal titled “The Age of Revelation.” In it, Boudinot systematically dismantled Paine’s arguments and showed that Christianity, not secularism, was the true foundation of human flourishing and the American experiment.
Paine, though hugely influential in the first days of the American Revolution (he is the one who wrote, “These are the times that try men’s souls,” after all), died a pariah. His enthronement of himself as the final authority over all morality led nearly all his fellow Founders to condemn him as a menace rather than a hero of freedom.
Paine set reason against revelation as if they were enemies and became more a champion of the French Revolution than of America’s.
Thomas Paine died on June 8, 1809, in New York City. Only six people attended his funeral. He was buried in a cow pasture in an unmarked grave. The man who had helped birth a nation was laid in the ground and forgotten.
Why was he so ostracized and shunned? As one writer puts it, “A man cannot build a house and then burn down its foundation and expect to keep living in it.”
Let this be a cautionary tale (and perhaps a prophetic one) for the likes of James Talarico and all those who align with such a broken and arrogant worldview. Elevating your feelings above facts and your reason above God’s revelation never ends well.
We should all pray that in November, Texas voters will remember the wisdom of John Adams and Benjamin Franklin: “Let the Blackguard Talarico say what he will. His words are ignorant of human nature as well as an enemy to the Christian faith and freedom.”
• Everett Piper (dreverettpiper.com, @dreverettpiper), a columnist for The Washington Times, is a former university president and radio host. He is the author of “Not a Day Care: The Devastating Consequences of Abandoning Truth” (Regnery). He can be reached at epiper@dreverettpiper.com.
Follow the author
Please read our comment policy before commenting.