Founding Fathers were deists

As much as Stephen Thomson wants to believe the Constitution was based on Christianity (Readers' Forum Sept. 14), it fails to be historically accurate. Given that the majority of the Founding Fathers were not Christian (they were deists), it would seem an odd choice for them to draft a document based on Christian principles.

I could find numerous quotes from the Founding Fathers arguing that the Constitution is not based on Christianity. However, instead of pulling quotes out of context, I'll focus on the actual document as written. The Constitution itself makes no mention of God. Seemingly to drive the point home even further, the First Amendment declares that government may not establish an official religion nor prohibit the free exercise thereof. A simple reading of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights makes it rather clear that religion had very little to do with either of them.

Boyd Petrie

Salt Lake City