The Only Safeguard Of Liberty
Is A Religious Oath Based
On The Ten Commandments

The religious test oath requiring a public official to govern according to the Ten Commandments lies at the heart of Christian liberty in civil government. Why then did the Founding Federalists outlaw the religious test oath in Article VI, Section 3?

Good question. But everybody just assumes it was the right thing to do. After all, they are the Founding Federalists.

Ever hear this one: “He sounded so good before he got elected, but after a few years in office he changed”. Does politics necessarily have to corrupt everything it touches? Is there any remedy?

The Religious Test Oath

For the answer we turn again to the Old Testament book of Nehemiah. Chapter 9 rehearses the sins of the people of Israel and the condition of slavery they endured because of those sins. Verse 37 tells us that the king enjoyed the produce of the land and the people were in “great distress.” Some things never change.

At the end of this tragic story the nation came to their collective senses and determined to make “an agreement in writing; and on the sealed document are the names of our leaders, our Levites and our priests (Neh.9:38). In this covenant they agreed to take “…on themselves a curse and an oath to walk in God’s law, which was given through Moses, God’s servant, and to keep and to observe alla the commandments of God our Lord, and His ordinances and His statutes (Neh. 10:29).

Here we learn that God requires that the leaders of the nation -- leaders of both church and state -- enter into covenant with each other to govern according to the Ten Commandments. This covenant is sealed with an oath and a written document to which future reference may be made.

God deals with mankind via covenant. The religious test oath lies at the heart of the covenant.

The Religious Test

In the Bible God specifies the qualifications of the men to whom He delegates civil authority. The qualifications for public office delineated by the Old Testament were fear of God, ability as evidenced by success in other spheres of leadership, and demonstrated character able to resist pressures (bribes, etc.) to temporize justice. According to Deut. 1:13, Judges in particular were to possess wisdom and understanding based on the Ten Commandments.

Because successful government moves internal to external through the several spheres of government self, family, church, civil we may conclude that the qualifications for success at the inner levels are prerequisites for success in civil leadership. These are detailed as qualifications of elders and deacons in I Tim. 3:1-13.

They include, among others, commitment to the marriage covenant, temperance, hospitality, gentleness, and dignity. The civil magistrate is called the "deacon of God" in Romans 13:4. This is one reason why faith was a prerequisite for holding public office in colonial America. Rus Walton notes that "eleven of the first 13 colonies required faith in Jesus Christ and The Bible as basic qualifications for holding public office.

In New Hampshire, until 1877, state senators and representatives were required to be of the 'Protestant religion. Piety and the fear of God is the prime and principal qualification in those who sit chief in places of authority,' insisted Joseph Belcher, in a sermon delivered at Dedham in 1701"

It is impossible, of course, for a government to function in a God-fearing fashion apart from the direction of godly men. Only a people of firm religious character will properly value and tap such men for office.

In the Old Testament these are listed as wisdom, understanding, ability, fear of God, honesty, name recognition, and freedom from covetousness (Deut. 1:13 & Ex. 18:21). Yet even these godly men are required to bind themselves by oath to govern in accordance with the Ten Commandments.

No system of government, no matter how carefully crafted, no matter how closely patterned after the Word of God, can endure apart from personal purity in the lives of its citizens and its public officials. Only a people whose lives are being molded by the Word of God will produce the quality of leadership that can avoid abuse of governmental power.

Thus, true religion is the essential qualification for public office. Apart from the preservative influence of the Ten Commandments, government and culture can only deteriorate.

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