Fifteen years of exhaustive research of Washington’s writings set George Washington’s Sacred Fire by Peter A Lillback apart from other studies about our first President. It sites many samples from his writings and from people who knew him, showing that without a doubt, Washington trusted in his savior. Walter A McSougall, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Historian, from the University of Pennsylvania said "Secular historians ignore George Washington's ward Nelly Custis, who wrote that doubting his Christian faith was as absurd as doubting his patriotism. But they cannot ignore this mountain of evidence suggesting Washington's religion was not Deism, but just the sort of low-church Anglicanism one would expect in an 18th century Virginia gentleman. His 'sacred fire' lit America's path toward civil and religious liberty."Rodney Stark of Baylor University says this book is "An enlightening, engaging, and long overdue correction of the falsehood that Washington lacked faith." Robert P. George of Princeton University believes "...Dr. Lillback buries the myth that Washington was an unbeliever---at most a 'Deist'---under an avalanche of facts..."
This fantastic book is found in our library with other biographies under the number B/Was.

This book was written to prove that Washington was, contrary to popular opinion, no Deist, but he was a Christian. With this aim in mind, Lillback did an excellent point of achieving his objective. Lillback uses Washington's own writings, and the testimony of those who knew him best, to argue for Washington's Christianity. He does a good job of showing that Washington either was not a Deist, or he was very deceitful. Washington could not have made the statements that he did if he were both a Deist and a man of integrity. The quote that hit me the hardest was one that Washington's granddaughter, Nellie, made. She said that doubting Washington's Christianity is as sensible as doubting his patriotism. Few people knew Washington better than she, and she was very adamant in her beliefs concerning his faith. The only issue that I had with this book was the repetition. In order to make his point, Lillback would repeat things numerous times throughout the book. I prefer things to be a little more concise, and to have much less repetition, but I would still recommend this book. ( )

The work is quite an eye-opening since it has been quite a while that I have read, and assumed I knew, Washington. Lillback revises a common secular assumption about Washington as a Deist. Several of the leading biographies, including Pulitzer Prize winning, Joseph Ellis, is flawed.

Peter Lillback on "One Nation Under God"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eerxC-uWhs
Dr. Peter Lillback's appearance and discussion of George Washington on the national television special "One Nation Under God."

Over the years I have read many biographies of George Washington but I guess what sets this book apart from the others is the author’s research into George Washington’s religious views, personal history, and his personal writings. The author leaves no doubt that Washington was not only a god fearing Christian man but the only man worthy to lead a young nation out of the grips of the British Empire. It’s my opinion that this book should surely be a must read for anyone who wants to learn about one of the finest president’s this nation has ever had and the period in which George Washington lived during the Revolutionary War. ( )

I have read several biographies of George Washington but I guess what sets this book apart from the others is the author’s research into George Washington’s religious views, personal history, and his personal writings. The author leaves no doubt that Washington was not only a god fearing Christian man but the only man worthy to lead a young nation out of the grips of the British Empire. It’s my opinion that this book should surely be a must read for anyone who wants to learn about one of the finest president’s this nation has ever had and the period in which George Washington lived during the Revolutionary War. ( )