How has Massachusetts turned out? Alot different than it started out.
This is from the original Massachusetts Constitution on this page.
http://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch1s6.html
Massachusetts Constitution
2 Mar. 1780Handlin 441--72
A CONSTITUTION OR FRAME OF GOVERNMENT, Agreed upon by the Delegates of the People of the STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS-BAY,--In Convention,--Begun and held at Cambridge, on the First of September, 1779, and continued by Adjournments to the Second of March, 1780.
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Part the First. A Declaration of the Rights of the Inhabitants of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Art. I.--All men are born free and equal, and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights; among which may be reckoned the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties; that of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property; in fine, that of seeking and obtaining their safety and happiness.
II.--It is the right as well as the duty of all men in society, publicly, and at stated seasons, to worship the SUPREME BEING, the great creator and preserver of the universe. And no subject shall be hurt, molested, or restrained, in his person, liberty, or estate, for worshipping GOD in the manner and season most agreeable to the dictates of his own conscience; or for his religious profession or sentiments; provided he doth not disturb the public peace, or obstruct others in their religious worship.
III.--As the happiness of a people, and the good order and preservation of civil government, essentially depend upon piety, religion and morality; and as these cannot be generally diffused through a community, but by the institution of the public worship of GOD, and of public instructions in piety, religion and morality: Therefore, to promote their happiness and to secure the good order and preservation of their government, the people of this Commonwealth have a right to invest their legislature with power to authorize and require, and the legislature shall, from time to time, authorize and require, the several towns, parishes, precincts, and other bodies-politic, or religious societies, to make suitable provision, at their own expense, for the institution of the public worship of GOD, and for the support and maintenance of public protestant teachers of piety, religion and morality, in all cases where such provision shall not be made voluntarily.
And the people of this Commonwealth have also a right to, and do, invest their legislature with authority to enjoin upon all the subjects an attendance upon the instructions of the public teachers aforesaid, at stated times and seasons, if there be any on whose instructions they can conscientiously and conveniently attend.
Provided notwithstanding, that the several towns, parishes, precincts, and other bodies-politic, or religious societies, shall, at all times, have the exclusive right of electing their public teachers, and of contracting with them for their support and maintenance.
And all monies paid by the subject to the support of public worship, and of the public teachers aforesaid, shall, if he require it, be uniformly applied to the support of the public teacher or teachers of his own religious sect or denomination, provided there be any on whose instructions he attends: otherwise it may be paid towards the support of the teacher or teachers of the parish or precinct in which the said monies are raised.
And every denomination of christians, demeaning themselves peaceably, and as good subjects of the Commonwealth, shall be equally under the protection of the law: And no subordination of any one sect or denomination to another shall ever be established by law.
Chapter VI. Oaths and Subscriptions; Incompatibility of and Exclusion from Offices; Pecuniary Qualifications; Commissions; Writs; Confirmation of Laws; Habeas Corpus; The Enacting Style; Continuance of Officers; Provision for a future Revisal of the Constitution, etc.
Art I.--Any person chosen Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, Counsellor, Senator, or Representative, and accepting the trust, shall, before he proceed to execute the duties of his place or office, make and subscribe the following declaration, viz.--
"I, A. B. do declare, that I believe the christian religion, and have a firm persuasion of its truth; and that I am seized and possessed, in my own right, of the property required by the Constitution as one qualification for the office or place to which I am elected."
I have found 8 of the 13 original state constitutions. Most have similar passages. Some are like this from the Delaware Constitution.
" I, A B. do profess faith in God the Father, and in Jesus Christ His only Son, and in the Holy Ghost, one God, blessed for evermore; and I do acknowledge the holy scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by divine inspiration."
Most have a restriction for pastors that does not let them hold elected office as long as they are a pastor. I thought it strange because of the fact that you had to be a Christian to hold office until I found this from the New York Constitution.
XXXIX. And whereas the ministers of the gospel are, by their profession, dedicated to the service of God and the care of souls, and ought not to be diverted from the great duties of their function; therefore, no minister of the gospel, or priest of any denomination whatsoever, shall, at any time hereafter, under any presence or description whatever, be eligible to, or capable of holding, any civil or military office or place within this State.
The sermon that Jim posted shows the wisdom of the restriction.
The brainwash media and educational system has done a really good job hiding the facts about our Christian founders. They have used a half truth. They claim the founders came here for freedom of religion. There were little or no Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist etc. They were, for the most part, Protestant Christians wanting to practice what they believed the Bible said.
During my search for the Constitutions, I found a site that is a proponent of freedom of religion lie. It listed all of the states that had the oaths but twisted it around to make them Christian bigots who were not for freedom of religion. They were thankful that the laws were changed to get rid of such a terrible blight on the country and gave everyone true freedom of religion.
Some of the Constitutions are on this page. http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/18th.htm When I read those or other documents on that page or other pages from that site I was amazed at the education and/or intelligence of the people who wrote them.
Bump!
Well, I did suggest we knew there had been some changes since they stopped burning witches and became anti-tax maniacs, but since I stopped reading the 'sermon' at this point...
III. We come to speak of the duty and dignity of civil rulers, as the ministers of Christ.
1st. It is their duty to uphold the kingdom of Christ, which consists in "righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost."
...and having dismissed three-quarters of the world's population I have finally figured out why we are having such a hard time establishing democracy in those heathen reaches of China, India and of course Moslem dominated cultures.