Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Enlightenment. Christianity at the time, both Protestant and Catholic was highly monarchical and really pushed the divine right of kingship in terms of temporal governance. The enlightenment broke with that idea and focused on the rights of the individual.
None of the above. The founding principles were expressed by James Madison in the Constitution and Bill of Rights; which anticipated utilitarian philosophy, as well as the secularist movement of the Nineteenth Century. In this regard, it should be noted that Thomas Jefferson’s ideas regarding natural rights expressed in the Declaration of Independence were not incorporated into our Constitution, which is the structure of our government and font of our rights by law.
Only about 1/3 of the founding fathers were Freemasons. However, they did incorporate some ideas that contributed to the structure of the country. One man, one vote is the way Lodges do things, and all members are equal is another basic principle. George Washington, Ben Franklin, Paul Revere, John Hancock, John Paul Jones, and the Marquis de Lafayette were all Masons. Thomas Jefferson was not.
The founding of this country would not have been possible had it not been for the Age of Enlightenment. That said, those considered among the Founding Fathers included Christians, Theists, Deists, Gentile FreeMasons (a.k.a True Noahides), and Rosacrucians.
Our miltiary at the time of this nation's founding was most definitely controlled by the Gentile Freemasons.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wendell Phillips
................. In this regard, it should be noted that Thomas Jefferson’s ideas regarding natural rights expressed in the Declaration of Independence were not incorporated into our Constitution, which is the structure of our government and font of our rights by law.
This is not completely accurate. Jeffersons (a Deist) ideals of pre-existing inalenienable rights takes form in the limiting of the governmental powers with the power of liberty of the individual being foremost. The 1st and 2nd Amendments to the US Constitution also take into account pre-existing natural rights.
The founding of this country would not have been possible had it not been for the Age of Enlightenment. That said, those considered among the Founding Fathers included Christians, Theists, Deists, Gentile FreeMasons (a.k.a True Noahides), and Rosacrucians.
Our miltiary at the time of this nation's founding was most definitely controlled by the Gentile Freemasons.
This is not completely accurate. Jeffersons (a Deist) ideals of pre-existing inalenienable rights takes form in the limiting of the governmental powers with the power of liberty of the individual being foremost. The 1st and 2nd Amendments to the US Constitution also take into account pre-existing natural rights.
Contrary to popular belief, the Declaration of Independence was not a foundational document; it was a declaration of our independence from the colonial rule by the English Monarchy, and an act of war. It was also, idealistically, a pretty piece of propaganda! Likewise, it may come as a surprise (even a shock) for some to learn that Thomas Jefferson’s ideas about natural rights were not adopted by the framers of our Constitution. (Jefferson was not a framer of the Constitution. He was serving as Ambassador to France at the time of the Constitutional Convention; and except for his correspondence with some of the delegates, what resulted was largely the work of James Madison. Even his draft Constitution and Declaration of Rights for Virginia was rejected in favor of the model of George Mason.) Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights; that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the consent of the governed . . . ." The framework of our government, however, did not incorporate the ideals expressed by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. The intoxicating ideas of Rousseau and Locke that Jefferson so admired, and that inspired our revolution (and that of France as well), gave way to a more sober expression of our rights and freedoms in the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The framers of our Constitution created a nation of laws and not men; which represents a compromise between the rights of individuals and the power of the state. All men are not created equal, they are equal under the law; and the rights to "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" are not unalienable, they are subject to law. In this compromise - this social contract that is our Constitution - rests the security for our individual rights and liberty.
I would say a combination of enlightenment and freemasonry. Many of the founding fathers and their associates were Freemasons. For the ones that can't be proven or disproved to be Freemasons seemed to be children of the "enlightenment" era non the less.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
