In the American Revolution, most of the founders were orthodox Christians; only a small number were deists or rationalists. They thus lived with a tension in their minds between two paradoxical principles. On the one hand, human beings were seen as being created in the image of God. This meant in principle that each individual has equal value and inalienable rights and thus should be given equal opportunities with everyone else. On the other hand, we are fallen creatures who suffer the effects of original sin and are thus prone to corruption. As a result, the government created by America’s
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