Research On Religion » Gettysburg Address

Daniel Dreisbach on Biblical Rhetoric in the Founding Era

tonygill — Sun, 15 Jan 2017 09:00:18 +0000

The Bible was the most common book to be found in houses throughout the United States in the late 18th century, and it is no surprise that the Founders would rely upon passages from Scripture to inform the dialogue around the building of a new nation and governmental system. Prof. Daniel Dreisbach, a professor in the School of Public Affairs at American University, elaborates on how the Bible was used to frame political ideas during this revolutionary era. Our conversation begins with how religious symbolism manifested itself in the first presidential inauguration of George Washington, and how the choices made back then still echo throughout the ages and up to the present. We also discover that despite all the thoughtful planning that went into the pageantry of the first inauguration, the planners almost forgot one crucial thing. (You will have to listen to the audio to find out what that was.) We then turn to a discussion of the role of literacy, religion, and the King James Bible in the British American colonies and how this impacted how political leaders would frame their arguments for the new republic and communicate with the citizens. Irrespective of the religiosity of any given Founder, the presence of the Bible in American education meant that it was a references point for all people and a literary source for speaking a unified language in a new nation. Daniel notes that the King James version had a certain rhythm and poetry to it that lent itself to rhetorical uses. He also points out how Protestantism’s “dangerous idea” about a “priesthood of all people” also became a crucial component of justifying a democratic republic placing sovereignty in the common person as opposed to a monarch. We then discuss how the Bible was used rhetorically, with Daniel emphasizing its importance in crafting metaphors, providing weight and authority to political language, modeling new precedents that were being established with this revolutionary form of government, and promoting the notion of Providence at work in American history. Prof. Dreisbach provides specific examples of how this plays out and gives reference to a couple critical biblical passages including Micah 6:8 (on the role of government by covenant), Proverbs 14:34 (the need for an informed and virtuous citizenry), and Proverbs 29:2 (on the character of the magistrate). Daniel points out that while the Founders desired a virtuous political class, the Calvinist emphasis on original sin made it necessary to create institutions that built in a “Plan B” to contain the worst desires and actions of are all-too-human leaders. We finish off with Daniel providing his personal thoughts on what all this means for our contemporary period, what he learned over the decades of studying this era, and promising to come back later in the year to talk about the role of religious rhetoric in justifying the notion of liberty within the American experiment. Recorded: December 19,2016.

Daniel Dreisbach on Abe Lincoln’s Religious Rhetoric

tonygill — Sun, 08 Mar 2015 08:00:27 +0000

On the sesquicentennial anniversary of the waning months of the US Civil War, Dr. Daniel Dreisbach — professor of Justice, Law, and Society at American University — stops by to discuss the use of religion in Abraham Lincoln’s rhetoric. We pay special attention to Lincoln’s most famous, and shortest, speeches – the Gettysburg Address and the Second Inaugural.

The conversation starts with an examination into the use of biblical language dating back to the earliest days of colonial America. Prof. Dreisbach notes three consistent aspects of political language used from the early 17th century through Lincoln’s era: 1) the citizenry was biblically literate; 2) the nation was by and large Protestant; and 3) there was a vision of America as being God’s “new Israel.” We revisit some themes of earlier podcasts with Mark David Hall regarding how many of the Founding Fathers of the revolutionary era were influenced heavily by religious thinking, despite the best known Founders (e.g., Madison, Jefferson) being more influenced by the Enlightenment.

The interview then jumps over to the early life and times of Abraham Lincoln, a descendant of Puritans and born into a family that was active in a Calvinist Baptist tradition. While Daniel points out that Abe was known to ridicule preachers and exhibit some skepticism about his theological upbringing in his teen and early adult years, Lincoln was unmistakably shaped by the religious milieu of his time. The role of the King James Version Bible weighed heavily in his early education and was the dominant translation of Scripture in America during the early 19th century. Prof. Dreisbach points out some of the unique aspects of the KJV Bible with respect to its use of words and cadence that made it accessible to a “less educated” (or ploughboy) population. Tony notes that given Lincoln’s humble upbringing, this version of the Bible would seem to resonate with Lincoln.

We then move to Lincoln’s political career observing that the use of religious rhetoric in speeches was apparent quite early, including in his Young Men’s Lyceum and “House Divided” speeches. Lincoln comes to the White House at a time when states are seceding from the republic and his First Inaugural Address takes on a more “workman” flavor, laying out the difficulties facing the divided nation, though at the end there are references to the “better angels of our nature.” The podcast then fast forwards to the Gettysburg Address, given several months after the famed battle, and turning point, of the Civil War. Daniel fills us in on some of the background of the speech itself, dismissing the popular notion that it was written on the back of an envelope during the president’s train ride to Pennsylvania. Instead, Prof. Dreisbach points out that it is a carefully crafted speech with language that is not directly taken from the Bible, but calls strongly upon its use of particular words and phrases. He recounts a number of these portions of the speech and further observes that in its spoken form it has a cadence that is reminiscent of the King James Bible. The theme of conception, birth, death, and re-birth is also highlighted.

With Gettysburg and Vicksburg behind us, and the war drawing to a close, we then examine Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, which also clocks in as a remarkably short speech. Unlike the Gettysburg Address, though, the Second Inaugural uses references to God and the Bible more directly. Daniel observes that this is not a speech that gloats upon (inevitable) victory by the Union forces, but instead develops a tone of reconciliation and noting that all parties in the conflict have borne the costs of the sin of slavery that blemished this young nation. We discuss whether the concept of providence was a strong theme in the speech, with Daniel taking a very nuanced version of this question and noting that Lincoln was circumspect in seeing the United States as the “new Israel” as earlier Puritans had done. We finish with some of Dr. Dreisbach’s personal reflections on what he learned in studying Lincoln’s rhetoric and what it means for our understanding of our modern times. Recorded: March 6, 2015.

(Note: Tony is well aware of his odd pronunciations of “rhetoric” and “address” and was surprised at how “ploughboy” he sounded when reviewing the tape.)