<p>James Madison, according to his later writings, actually agreed with Wheaton that Congress had (improperly according to Madison) established two religions in 1789 by creating the Congressional Chaplainships. James Madison was ahead of his time with regard to religious liberty and perceived evil lurking under the plausible disguise of the Congressional Chaplains the eyes of others were sealed by custom to its inherent impropriety</p>
<p>Madison, in his post-presidency writings advised us rather than let a step beyond the landmarks of power have the effect of a legitimate precedent, it will be better to apply to the establishment of the Congressional Chaplainships the legal aphorism of the courts does not view as valid legal precedents trivial deviations from a principle or class it with slight mistakes forgivable in view of our human frailties. It appears Madison may have preaching that same sermon in 1811.</p>
<p>The same House of Representatives that voted 100 to 0 to pass the bill that Madison vetoed, voted 71 to 29 to sustain the Presidents veto. The No National Church Interpretation was rejected in favor of the Total Separation of Religion and Government interpretation of the President. James Madison was thus installed as the authority on the meaning of the religion clauses.</p>
<p>During the Early Days of the Grand and Glorious Republic it was always James Madison’s interpretation of the establishment clause that eventually prevailed in every dispute over its meaning. These early Church State disputes included the following:</p>
<p> Presidential Religious Recommendations</p>
<p>James Madisons view that government religious recommendations were improper prevailed in 66 of the first 74 years of the young Republic. President Madison himself made the mistake of trying to accommodate Congressional requests for proclamations during the War of 1812 while at the same time making it clear that he claimed no civil authority over religion. President Madison claimed that his four proclamations employed a form and language meant to stifle any claim of political right to enjoin religious observances by resting his recommendation expressly on the voluntary compliance of individuals and even by limiting the recommendation to such as wished simultaneous as well as voluntary performance of a religious act on the occasion. [Note 3] </p>
<p>President Madison’s wartime proclamations - according to Representative Gulian Verplanck of New York, in an 1832 speech in the House of Representatives that helped to defeat an attempt to pass a joint resolution asking President Andrew Jackson to issue a fasting recommendation to the people - were kept with too much of the old leaven of malice and bitterness and the Gospel of the Savior was employed by ministers and politicians to point political sarcasm and to rekindle partisan rage. </p>
<p>Future Congresses and Presidents took a lesson from President Madisons wrong step of mixing religion and politics and every President from 1816 to 1860 flatly refused to issue religious proclamations under any circumstances. In 1832, Henry Clay and the Counterfeit Christians in the Senate took advantage of an impending cholera epidemic and attempted to pass a join resolution requesting President Andrew Jackson to issue a prayer and fasting proclamation. Clay’s resolution passed in the Senate but it failed in the House without even getting an up or down vote, when Gulian Verplanck of New York concluded his great speech by urging the House to “leave prayer to be prompted by the devotion of the heart, and not the bidding of the State.” </p>
<p>Congressional Prayer</p>
<p>Contrary to the widespread myth, there were no daily opening prayers in the First U S. Congress according to the official records. If you know of any evidence of morning prayers in the official records of the First Congress, please tell me where it is.</p>
<p>Article III of the Northwestern Ordinance</p>
<p>Article III of the Northwestern Ordinance, according to some, obligated the government to support religion in the Ohio Territory. The U. S. Congress believed that it did not and several attempts to enact legislation to “give legal effect” to the support of the gospel interpretation of Article III never even made it out of committee.</p>
<p>Sunday Mail Delivery</p>
<p>The Sunday Mail dispute raged from 1810 to the development of the telegraph and railroad train systems. The subject of the controversy was an 1810 post office law that required the transportation and opening of the mail on Sundays. There were numerous attempts by the Christian Party to convince Congress to repeal the 1810l law, but they all failed. Representative Colonel Johnson of Kentucky, chairman of the House Post Office Committee, issued a famous report in 1830 that adopted James Madisons view that religion was exempt from the cognizance of the government. One of the many petitions from citizens supporting the 1810 Post Office law declared that the establishment clause was intended to, Leave the religion of the people as free as the air they breathe from government influence of any kind. </p>
<p>Ten Commandment Displays in Federal Courts</p>
<p>The 1789 Judiciary Act did not include a requirement for the display of the Ten Commandments in Federal Courts. I am not convinced that such a suggestion was actually introduced in Congress. </p>
<p>During the Early Years of the Republic (1789 to 1860) there were no disputes over one Nation under God in the Pledge of Allegiance, In God We Trust on the nations coins or government displays of the Ten Commandments. The Federal Government respected Gods authority over the conscience of men and refrained from using its legislative authority to issue religious advice to the people.</p>