01857cam a2200325 4500 513056486 TxAuBib 20110530120000.0 070522s2008||||||||||||||||||||||||eng|u 2007021710 9781400064373 hc 1400064376 hc (OCoLC)137244716 DLC DLC BTCTA BAKER YDXCP C#P BUR TxAuBib Waldman, Steven. Founding faith : providence, politics, and the birth of religious freedom in America. New York : Random House, 2008. xvi, 277 p. ; 25 cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. [209]-216) and index. The culture wars have distorted the dramatic story of how Americans came to worship freely. Author Waldman, cofounder of Beliefnet.com, argues that the United States was not founded as a "Christian nation," nor were the Founding Fathers uniformly secular or Deist. Rather, the Founders forged a new approach to religious liberty, a revolutionary formula that promoted faith--by leaving it alone. His narrative begins with early settlers' stunningly unsuccessful efforts to create a Christian paradise, and concludes with the presidencies of Washington, Adams, Jefferson, and Madison, during which the men who had devised lofty principles regarding the proper relationship between church and state struggled to practice what they'd preached. 20110530. Franklin, Benjamin 1706-1790. Adams, John 1735-1826. Washington, George 1732-1799. Jefferson, Thomas 1743-1826. Madison, James 1751-1836. Bill of Rights. Freedom of religion. United States Religion.