DOUBTING THOMAS by Mark Beliles and Jerry Newcombe

When Jefferson was a young man he acted as a professing Trinitarian Christian

In 1777. Jefferson helped found an evangelical church

Now in print---for the first time ever---many religious letters and 2 sermons from the church that Jefferson funded and attended

Jefferson encouraged non-coercive religion in public life and the right of state governments to decide religious policy

DOUBTING THOMAS by Mark Beliles and Jerry Newcombe

This new book presents new evidence that calls into question the view that Jefferson was a lifelong skeptic and that he believed in the "naked public square"

When Jefferson was a young man he acted as a professing Trinitarian Christian

Later in life Jefferson changed in his views, privately, to a more unorthodox position. But the point here is that he was not a lifelong skeptic.

In 1777. Jefferson helped found an evangelical church

The same year he wrote the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, Thomas Jefferson helped create the Calvinistical Reformed Church of Charlottesville.

Now in print---for the first time ever---many religious letters and 2 sermons from the church that Jefferson funded and attended

DOUBTING THOMAS contains in the Appendix about a dozen religious letters of Jefferson that have never been in print before now, plus two sermons by Rev. Charles Clay, whose ministry Jefferson supported.

Jefferson encouraged non-coercive religion in public life and the right of state governments to decide religious policy

Jefferson approved and attended regularly the Christian worship services held Sundays at the US Capitol building and in his local courthouse. He refrained from issuing national religious proclamations but had no objection to state proclamations.

Fresh Insights About Jefferson's Religious Views Based on NEW Evidence

"DOUBTING THOMAS? The Religious Life and Legacy of Thomas Jefferson" by MARK A. BELILES and JERRY NEWCOMBE deals with the faith---or the lack thereof---of one of our most important founding fathers. But this volume provides NEW information, some of which has not been in print before. To learn more about the book, see www.americapublications.org DOUBTING THOMAS contains previously unpublished documents including a dozen religious letters by Jefferson and two sermons by his pastor Charles Clay. Jefferson voluntarily joined and donated to Clay’s Calvinistical Reformed Church of Charlottesville.

Jefferson Generously Supported Christian Causes

Our book “Doubting Thomas” shows that it’s a myth that Thomas Jefferson was a lifelong skeptic. In fact, he was very generous virtually all his life to many causes, including many Christian clauses. One man he supported a lot through the years—financially and in other ways—was an evangelical preacher, ordained …

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For a Time, Jefferson’s Chosen Pastor Was an Evangelical

[File photo by Jerry Newcombe-interior of colonial American church] Recently, I quoted the opening portion of an agreement for the creation of a Christian church in Charlottesville that Thomas Jefferson wrote up in 1777. This provides ample evidence that he was a Christian at this stage of his life when …

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The Idea Jefferson Was a Life-long Skeptic Is a Myth

The notion that Thomas Jefferson was a life-long skeptic is a myth. It can be disproved, for instance, in the fact that in 1777, Jefferson wrote up an agreement for the establishment of a church in Charlottesville, his home. They called a patriotic pastor, an evangelical named Rev. Charles Clay, …

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Jefferson Takes Initiative to Help Found a Gospel-Preaching Church

[File photo by Jerry Newcombe-of a box pew in a colonial church] Concrete indications of Jefferson’s own religious beliefs began to be clear in the early months of 1777, as he took voluntary initiatives to support a new church in his town. The legislature had created a new Anglican parish eastward in …

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