19. Valley Forge: The Crucible of Washington’s “Sacred Cause”
PART V: THE DEBATE OVER GEORGE WASHINGTON AND COMMUNION
20. George Washington and Communion: Did Washington Take Communion?
21. Shadow or Substance?: Putting Professor Boller’s Evidence for Washington’s Deism on Trial
22. The Struggle for the Episcopal Church: Washington’s Non-Communication and Non-Communion in Philadelphia
PART VI: GEORGE WASHINGTON THE DEIST?
23. George Washington and The Enlightenment
24. George Washington and Religious Liberty: A Christian or Deist Idea?
25. George Washington, Member of the Masonic Order
26. More Objections to Washington the Christian: Slaves, Slander, Passion, and Tripoli
27. “Minds of Peculiar Structure:” George Washington Vs. Deism
PART VII: GEORGE WASHINGTON THE CHRISTIAN
28. George Washington’s God: Religion, Reason, and Philosophy
29. Washington and the Doctrine of Providence
30. George Washington’s Christian Worldview
31. The Gospel According to George Washington
32. George Washington and Forgiveness: A Consideration of the Historicity of Two Classic Washington Anecdotes on Forgiveness
33. George Washington’s Clergy and Their Sermons
34. George Washington on Heaven and Eternal Life
35. The Revenge of Parson Weems: Washington’s Unparalleled Praise for an Unexpected Person
CONCLUSION
36. Conclusion: George Washington’s Sacred Fire
APPENDICES
Appendix 1: The Rules of Civility and Decent Behaviour in Company and Conversion
Appendix 2: Representative Biblical Quotations and Allusions Used by George Washington
Appendix 3: George Washington’s Written Prayers
Appendix 4: George Washington’s “Daily Sacrifice Prayers” or “The Spurious Prayers”
Appendix 5: A Summary of Washington’s Most Important Sermons
Appendix 6: Abiel Leonard’s Prayer
Appendix 7: Sermon by the Reverend Bryan Lord Fairfax
Appendix 8: The Wisdom of George Washington
Appendix 9: George Washington and the Anglican Theology of Latitudinarianism
Appendix 10: Tributes to Washington by his Contemporaries: His Christian Faith, Striking Appearance, and Moral Character
ENDNOTES
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Acknowledgements
George Washington’s Sacred Fire was a spark of an idea that first glimmered in my heart over twenty years ago. Somehow, it never was extinguished even though it flickered in the winds of pressing duties and weightier concerns. But over the last ten years, and then especially so in the last two, the spark became a flame and finally George Washington’s Sacred Fire was ablaze and ready to shed its light on the debate over Washington’s religious faith.
The fuel for a fire is the sine qua non of its existence. And so the many friends, institutions, and libraries that have assisted in this work have been the very fuel for George Washington’s Sacred Fire. Although I’m sure I cannot fully remember nor recount each one who has contributed their valued support, I wish to do the best I can to thank those who have made this book a reality.
