The Real Jefferson
Was Thomas Jefferson a skeptic and hostile to Christianity?
Dr. D. James Kennedy points out that he was not. Jefferson was the one who penned the famous “separation of church and state” line the ACLU and other godless people are so fond of quoting. That doesn’t mean he was hostile to Christianity.
So what about the Jefferson Bible, that miracles-free version of the Scriptures? It’s a myth.
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
This post has 10 comments
June 25th, 2002
definetly good to know.
June 29th, 2002
Thanks for the info. Entertaining enough to blog it myself.
July 1st, 2002
Funny — I was led to your blog by a BlogSnob link in my referrer logs, and yet just minutes ago I had been reading another opinion on Jefferson’s religious beliefs in a different weblog.
July 4th, 2002
And the Jefferson Bible on my bookshelf is a figment of my imagination?
July 4th, 2002
I’m not sure where James Kennedy gets his information, but the Jefferson Bible is NOT a myth. Further, the following quotes are attributed to one Thomas Jefferson:
$(CI (Bhave examined all the known superstitions of the word, and I do not find in our particular superstition of Christianity one redeeming feature. They are all alike founded on fables and mythology. Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned. What has been the effect of this coercion? To make one half of the world fools and the other half hypocrites; to support roguery and error all over the earth.$(D (Bn
$(CTh(Be day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the Supreme Being as his father, in the womb of a virgin, will be classed with the fable of the generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter.$(D (Bn
$(CCh(Bristianity…[has become] the most perverted system that ever shone on man….Rogueries, absurdities and untruths were perpetrated upon the teachings of Jesus by a large band of dupes and importers led by Paul, the first great corrupter of the teaching of Jesus.$(D
July 5th, 2002
To those who say, “I’ve got a copy of the ‘Jefferson Bible.’” I say “Show me the original manuscript in Jefferson’s handwriting.”
BTW, I’ve got a copy of Bullfinch’s Mythology on my bookshelf.
July 8th, 2002
Dear Anonymous:
I’ve got a copy of the bible on my bookshelf. Oh wait, it’s not the original manuscript written in Gawd’s handwriting (or anyone elses that I can tell).
July 8th, 2002
YaYa,
There are thousands of fragments of original Bible manuscripts in existence today. Ever hear of the Dead Sea Scrolls?
Regards,
Jason
July 9th, 2002
When you say that the Jefferson Bible is a “myth”, Jason, are you claiming that it does not exist?
JGB
September 22nd, 2002
When folks talk about the “Jefferson Bible” which one do they mean. the 1819 four language parallel Bible version (almost everyone) or the 1804 version prepared by President Jefferson while living in the White House (so much for “separation of church and state” by Jefferson) for Rev. Dowse as a Gospel Tract from “the Great While Chief” (the President) to evangelize the Indians to Christianity. Jefferson had financially supported Mr. Dowse missionary work among the Indians for several years.
The 1804 version was titled in part, “The Philosophy of Jesus of Nazareth…”
Further, the fraud of the anti-Christian crowd pertaining to the “Jefferson Bible” is first Jefferson was never so presumptuous to call his Gospel extract after himself.
Second, people today extract favorite portions of scripture for Gospel tracts, and are not maligned as Deists for so doing.
Third, what is the citation (addressee and date) for David’s post of 4 July a.d. 2002?
Fourth, if folks would like to actually read the Bible, Jesus never spoke of His virgin birth, only once listed some of His miracles but never described them, and spoke of His resurrection in ways many would not define as clear. Thus, Jefferson cutting those items out is not because Jefferson did not believe, but because Jesus did not speak the words.
Fifth, essentially, the Jefferson Bible is a “Red-Letter” version of the New Testament, that is the words of Jesus Christ with a few connective verses for contextual understanding.
Sixth, in a letter to Benjamin Rush in 1803, said in part… “My views… are…very different from the anti-Christian system imputed to me by those who know nothing of my opinions…”
Later in the same Rush letter Jefferson says, “To the corruptions of Christianity, I am, indeed, opposed; but not to the genuine precepts of Jesus himself. I am a Christian…”
Any questions? I welcome honest ones.
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