He served two terms as President. Many historians consider him the greatest of American leaders. A tall, white, landowner from Virginia. Impeccable credentials, but a couple of serious issues. Liaisons with “other women.” Well, we are kind of used to that by now. A supporter of slavery. Hmmm, that’s a real problem. An owner of slaves? This is . . . troubling. Created his own version of the Bible by cutting out all the miracles, leaving the moral lessons to be read among the gaping holes in the pages. That could be a problem. Founded the University of Virginia and insisted that a chapel would not be allowed on the campus. Unlike the other universities in the United States, his would be the first to have a library as the center, instead of a chapel. Knowledge instead of God. Interesting. A deist, slave-owning landowner from Virginia. Yes, this is Thomas Jefferson and one of our “founding fathers.”

The red, white, and blue banners are up on the brick front of the local church. Impassioned sermons are being honed and practiced, as the fourth of July approaches like a lit fuse on a Chinese firework. Typically, we hear about our founding fathers perfection, similar, perhaps, to the stories of starry-eyed grandparents. But we know that all the oratory isn’t true. Sure, some of them were, by today’s standards, committed and godly men. But not all were. The fact that they were all “fathers” (no mothers allowed at that point), that they were all white (an additional requirement), and relatively wealthy landowners (also required) does not help define their perfection, but highlights the beautiful reality of a new and struggling nation, emerging slowly like a diamond from a very rough and grey stone.  

Here is my point: let’s change the approach in church this Sunday. Instead of trying to push the founding fathers into the “they were all just like us” mold, let’s celebrate God’s grace to our entire nation. Let’s rejoice in the fact that he can use all of us, together, to be a unique place on the face of the earth. We don’t have to believe the same things, we don’t have to have the same history. God has used all us, crooked businessmen, bigots, liars, and drunks alike, to craft a nation that is better than all us. The real beauty of the founding fathers this fourth of July is that they were just as messy as we are today.  We can take encouragement from the fact that today, just like then, God is in control and may choose to sustain and magnify our meager efforts.