Radio Commentary, WMVV 90.7 New Life FM, November 5, 2010
By Sue Ella Deadwyler

Good morning, Jim. We Americans used to know who we were and where we came from. But, history is being revised to eliminate God’s guidance on our founding and unique prosperity. Revised history ignores God’s influence on our early presidents and congress that used the nation’s Capitol for church services while it was being built, even before Congress officially moved into it. Church services continued in the Capitol there until after the Civil War. While the Capitol was under construction, a Boston newspaper published this good news in 1795: “It is with much pleasure that we discover the rising consequence of our infant city. Public worship is now regularly administered at the Capitol, every Sunday morning, at 11 o’clock by the Reverend Mr. Ralph.”

While he was vice president, and then president, Thomas Jefferson attended church at the Capitol, where he regularly occupied the same designated seat throughout his presidency. Jefferson’s faithfulness was so impressive that one of his contemporaries wrote, “It was very rainy, but his [Jefferson’s] ardent zeal brought him through the rain and on horseback to the Hall,” for the 1.6-mile ride from the White House to the Capitol. Jefferson’s successor, President James Madison, also attended the Capitol Church, but he rode in a coach driven by four white horses.

John Quincy Adams, as senator, then president, then a representative in Congress, went to church twice on Sunday – in the Capitol before noon, where the Marine Band played in early years, and in the afternoon he went to church in the Treasury building. Chaplains appointed by Congress preached on a rotating basis and oversaw interdenominational services that were held in the Hall of the House of Representatives. Not only that, up to four different churches held weekly services in the Capitol each Sunday.

The truth is, America’s roots are in God, our Lawmaker, the Creator, Source of all rights, supreme Judge and Protector. Because America was created and nurtured by the Lord God Himself, our Christian roots are under attack. Just as dead roots indicate a dead plant, dying roots in a nation indicate a dying nation. We must work and pray for God to, “Revive us again,” and breathe new life into these United States! For Georgia Insight I’m Sue Ella Deadwyler, your Capitol correspondent.