http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/capital.asp
http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/capital.asp
The thing to remember is that snopes is a liberal website and will lie when needed to deny the truth. On matters of political import they are totally unreliable
“We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We’ve staked the future of all our political institutions upon our capacity…to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.” ……James Madison [1778 to the General Assembly of the State of Virginia]
While this statement cannot be authoritatively confirmed as from Madison, it can also not be authoritatively rejected.
Snopes uses Madison's stance on separation of church and state as proof, however, the statement as written does NOT propose any official state church. It simply says that a private commitment to follow God's law is essential to the function of all our political institutions.
This lines up well with his move to accept Benjamin Franklins call to prayer at the Constitutional Convention in 1787.
It also lines up with his comments to the 1785 session of the General Assmebly of the State of Virginia on why he was opposed to establishment of religion by law (it is a freedom that should not be forced or restrained).
President Madison was a Christian man and the statement lines up perfectly with his beliefs (as I know them from his quotes I have access to)