WASHINGTON CONSIDERED HIMSELF “A PREACHER OF PROVIDENCE”
General Washington once said of himself that he could become, should time and circumstances permit, “a preacher” of Providence. He made this pronouncement based on the fact that he had so often witnessed what he believed to be the Almighty intervening on behalf of the American cause. After several years of battle, the most powerful army in the world could not subdue a rag-tag assembly of farmers. So awestruck was Washington by God’s intervention that he said that an American who would not acknowledge God’s help to the American cause was “worse than an infidel.” An infidel, by the way, was a synonym for a Deist in Washington’s day.26 These points, and more, Washington made in a private letter to Brigadier General Thomas Nelson, August 20, 1778:
It is not a little pleasing, nor less wonderful to contemplate, that after two years Manoeuvring and undergoing the strangest vicissitudes that perhaps ever attended any one contest since the creation both Armies are brought back to the very point they set out from and, that that, which was the offending party in the beginning is now reduced to the use of the spade and pick axe for defence. The hand of Providence has been so conspicuous in all this, that he must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith, and more than wicked, that has not gratitude enough to acknowledge his obligations, but, it will be time enough for me to turn preacher, when my present appointment ceases; and therefore, I shall add no more on the Doctrine of Providence....27
Thus, in many ways, Washington did indeed become a “preacher of Providence.”
“THE DOCTRINE OF PROVIDENCE” ACCORDING TO GEORGE WASHINGTON
Washington’s writings show that not only was he a “preacher” of Providence, but in fact, he had a clearly developed “Doctrine of Providence,” which can be seen when his more than 270 usages of the words “Providence” and “Providential” are summarized. What follows is a complete summary of Washington’s “Doctrine of Providence.” Washington’s basic idea of “the Doctrine of Providence”28 is captured by several key concepts:
1. Providence is divine,29 that is, a property of God himself.
2. Since Providence reflects God’s nature, it shares in the properties of Deity also:
a. Providence is all-powerful.30
b. Providence is mysterious31 or inscrutable.32
c. Providence is immutable33 or unchangeable.
d. Providence is all-wise and all-knowing.34
3. Providence is God’s superintending35 or overruling36 of human events.
a. Providence is God’s invisible workings37 and interpositions38 in human history.
b. Thus Providence is the fulfillment of his purposes.39 It is his ordering,40 design,41 and good pleasure.42
c. God’s Providential agency includes his determinations,43 his presiding,44 his ruling of great events,45 his governing of all events, (including storms)46 whereby through his divine will,47 he not only permits things to happen,48 but also brings about the final results.49
d. God’s Providence is actualized through his just acts and decrees50 that are accomplished through his smile of Providence,51 his arm of Providence,52 his hand of Providence,53 or his finger of Providence.54
1. When these events are signal,55 singular,56 or favorable interpositions,57 they are gracious,58 good,59 benign,60 wondrous,61 merciful,62 bountiful,63 beneficent,64 kind,65 and even indulgent,66 including every blessing,67 favor,68 and even miraculous care.69
2. When they are signal or severe70 strokes one must submit71 without lament,72 murmur,73 or repine,74 knowing that God can bring good from evil,75 even if He scourges76 mankind or causes him to walk through a labyrinth, or live in darkness,77 or to struggle,78 as he tests man’s patience, fortitude, and virtue,79 so that ultimately a man can declare, “whatever is, is right,80 because his Providence is righteous.”
4. When man understands that he lives “under Providence,”81 then he must learn to respond correctly to God’s providential government of his world.
a. Thus, he is to acknowledge82 God’s Providence, showing gratitude83 and thanksgiving.84 He is in humility85 to adore,86 and give glory87 and praise88 for God’s Providence, looking up for light and direction,89 with appropriate piety,90 and sometimes even astonishment.91
b. God’s Providence gives man a rational ground for believing92 and hope,93 confidence,94 trust,95 dependence,96 reliance.97
c. Since God’s Providence makes man sure,98 he is to pray99 and invoke100 God’s Providence, committing himself and others to Providential care,101 thereby finding consolation102 and assistance.103
d. God’s Providence, however, does not excuse a man from his duty,104 his own human efforts at “providential” foresight,105 nor his own endeavor to reach ahead by not neglecting or slighting his own gifts.106 Rather than tempting Providence by half-hearted effort,107 he is to consider Providence without doubting,108 and be persuaded by it,109 so that he can deserve better of Providence,110 aiming at felicity and virtue.111
5. Washington’s faith in Providence was not simply connected with a theological or philosophical perspective. His faith indeed taught him to believe that Providence “never fails to take care of His children,”112 and that Providence “has appeared in many instances”113 with its “peculiar mark”114 or “token of Providential agency.” But Washington’s perspective on Providence was not only a matter of faith, which he sometimes struggled to maintain.115 He also saw illustrations of divine Providential activity in daily life, as well as in the War of Independence and in the life of the new nation. A summary of Washington’s extensive experiences of Providence include the following:
a. In daily life, Washington’s vast belief in Providence is connected with: one’s lot and station in life,116 blessings,117 preservation,118 protection,119 guiding and direction,120 aid and assistance,121 bountiful prosperity,122 happiness,123 provision,124 being upheld and cared for,125 being used as an instrument of God’s will,126 and finding assistance in one’s own inadequacy in facing the future.127 Providential matters even impacted Washington’s approach to business. Thus, the crops he grew were under God’s care,128 and consideration of difficult Providential actions determined how his landlords should collect rents from his tenants.129
b. In terms of war, God’s Providence was involved in unjust war130 and with the passions of men.131 Divine Providence extended to matters of safety,132 success,133 victory,134 prisoners,135 including a vast array of struggles in regard to the enemy (battles,136 blinding their eyes,137 discovering their intentions,138 disabling them,139 losses,140 evacuations,141 opportunities to defeat,142 forming a regiment in retreat,143 preventing their plans,144 disappointing their plans,145 having advantages over them,146 defeating them,147 preventing them from taking vigorous measures).148 Divine Providence also rendered assistance with direction,149 rescue,150 deliverance,151 and intervention at strategic moments152 and peace.153 No wonder soldiers considered participation in the Knights of Divine Providence.154
c. In terms of the new nation, Providence was seen by Washington in the directing of public officials,155 in divine favor on the nation156 which included preventing the dashing the cup of national happiness,157 inducing the people to adopt the new Constitution,158 bringing order out of confusion,159 ordaining the very disagreements of people over issues,160 the prevention of disease,161 preserving peace,162 increasing prosperity,163 tranquility, liberty, and independence.164
In light of all of the above, we can truly understand the sincerity of Washington in his opening remarks upon his assumption of the presidency as well as his final prayer for the nation. In each, the theme is the same—America is a nation under divine Providential care.165
WASHINGTON’S TRUST IN PROVIDENCE
There is no better way to capture Washington’s heart of faith than to read his words of reliance, trust, and dependence and faith in God’s Providential care. For the sake of clarity, we will highlight in italics, Washington’s words of faith. So here is a sampling of the many references in George Washington’s writings to Providence.
He wrote Martha a letter on June 18, 1775:
I shall rely, therefore, confidently on that Providence which has heretofore preserved and been bountiful to me, not doubting but that I shall return safely to you in the fall.166
He wrote his wife again on June 22, 1775, wherein he stated:
I go fully trusting in that Providence, which has been more bountiful to me than I deserve and in full confidence of a happy meeting with you sometime in the Fall.167
Long after the war and during the year between the writing of the Constitution (1787) and its adoption (1789), George Washington wrote of his own “pious exultation” to Connecticut governor, Jonathan Trumbull, on July 20, 1788:
Or at least we may, with a kind of grateful and pious exultation, trace the finger of Providence through those dark and mysterious events, which first induced the States to appoint a general Convention and then led them one after another (by such steps as were best calculated to effect the object) into an adoption of the system recommended by that general Convention....
That the same good Providence may still continue to protect us and prevent us from dashing the cup of national felicity ...168
George Washington wrote a letter to his brother, John Augustine Washington on March 31, 1776. This was after a major strategic victory for the American cause. For more than a year, the Americans surrounded British-occupied Boston, trying to strangle the bottled up red backs into submission. In early March 1776, Washington and his men managed to secretly assemble major artillery aimed at the then indefensible British garrisons and ships. Through the ingenuity of Henry Knox, whom Washington assigned the task, the Americans managed to sled more than two hundred gigantic cannons and weaponry from the captured Ft. Ticonderoga through countless miles of wilderness tract of ice and snow. In the middle of the night, without the British noticing or stopping them, the Americans placed this artillery upon the heights at Dorchester, looking down at the British. By the time the British discovered this, it was too late. Thus, the British, under General William Howe, suffered a humiliating setback. All they could do was flee the city and the big guns as quickly as possible. To whom did Washington give the praise for this remarkable turn of events? To God. He wrote these words to his brother:
Upon their discovery of the works next morning, great preparations were made for attacking them; but not being ready before the afternoon, and the weather getting very tempestuous, much blood was saved, and a very important blow, to one side or the other, was prevented. That this most remarkable Interposition of Providence is for some wise purpose, I have not a doubt.169
Indeed, the remaining Loyalists chose to risk the elements rather than the fury of the returning citizens. Washington continues:
When the Order Issued therefore for Imbarking the Troops in Boston, no Electric Shock, no sudden Clap of thunder, in a word the last Trump, could not have struck them with greater Consternation. They were at their Wits’ end, and conscious of their black ingratitude chose to commit themselves in the manner I have above describ’d to the Mercy of the Waves at a tempestuous Season rather than meet their offended Countrymen.170
George Washington wrote a letter to Major General John Armstrong on the 4th of July, 1777. He noted that the evacuation of the British troops from New Jersey occurred just before the harvest—too early to burn the nearly-ripe crops, but not too early or late for the Americans to harvest the grain:
The evacuation of Jersey at this time, seems to be a peculiar mark of providence, as the Inhabitants have an Opportunity of Securing their Harvests of Hay and Grain.171
He wrote to Major-General Israel Putnam on October 19, 1777, and said, “Should Providence be pleased to crown our arms in the course of the campaign with one more fortunate stroke...I trust all will be well in His good time...”172 The Providence of God worked in God’s sovereign time in Washington’s thoughts, based in part on the biblical text of Ecclesiastes 3:11.
General Washington wrote a letter to Landon Carter on October 27, 1777, in which he discussed prisoners rounded up by the American patriots in the North. He notes:
This singular instance of Providence, and of our fortune under it, exhibits a striking proof of the advantages which result from unanimity and a spirited conduct in the militia...
I flatter myself that a superintending Providence is ordering everything for the best, and that, in due time, all will end well.173
From his Farewell Address, 1796, we read these words:
Observe good faith and justice towards all Nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all. Religion and morality enjoin this conduct; and can it be that good policy does not equally enjoin it? It will be worthy of a free, enlightened, and, at no distant period, a great Nation, to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a People always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence. Who can doubt that in the course of time and things the fruits of such a plan would richly repay any temporary advantages wch. might be lost by a steady adherence to it? Can it be, that Providence has not connected the permanent felicity of a Nation with its virtue? The experiment, at least, is recommended by every sentiment which ennobles human Nature. Alas! is it rendered impossible by its vices?174
