In 1787, several of the greatest minds America has ever produced gathered in Philadelphia for what became known as the Constitutional Convention. Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton and Gouverneur Morris, all there to write a Constitution, knew they were sailing in uncharted waters—embarking on a bold new plan to establish a federal government for the purpose of unifying the colonies under one nation. After the Constitution became supreme law in the U.S. on March 4, 1789, America quickly ascended to astonishing heights, becoming the most powerful and dominant nation this world has ever known.

But to what extent can that awesome development and growth be attributed to America’s humble beginning? As far as human government goes, the United States started about as right as any government man has ever produced. Critics today can say what they will about why it started right. But the Founding Fathers all seemed to be in perfect agreement on one important cornerstone: that the nation would survive and prosper only if it was founded upon religion and morality.

George Washington firmly believed that high morals and sincere religion had to be the fundamental building blocks of American society—if it was to succeed and prosper. In his First Inaugural Address on April 30, 1789, President Washington said, “The foundations of our national policy will be laid in the pure and immutable principles of private morality.” For Washington, what Americans did in the privacy of their own homes was not a peripheral issue. It was the foundation of our national policy!