Why Did George Washington Retire Before He Became President?

One of the questions asked often on the Internet is why George Washington retired as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army before becoming President of the United States. The simple answer is that General George Washington was done with public life....in 1783. Once the British signed the Treaty of Paris recognizing American independence, General Washington's task was done and all he wanted to do at that point was head home to Martha and Mount Vernon. He had no interest in serving in any public office, political or otherwise, when he retired in 1783.

Note that this was four years before the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia and five years before the election for the first President of the United States created by that Constitution. The presidency that Washington would step into was still several years off when the Treaty of Paris was signed. The only "president of the United States" at the time of General Washington's retirement was the head of the Congress under the nascent Articles of Confederation, and that was a very different office from the one created by the Constitution in 1787-88.

General Washington would of course come out of retirement to attend, and later preside over, the Constitutional Convention in 1787. That body was called to revise the Articles of Confederation. It ended up replacing them entirely. The requisite number of states ratified the new compact by the time of the presidential election in 1788. George Washington was unanimously elected. By that time, he was out of retirement, being an advocate for the new Constitution.

After two terms as President, Washington announced his retirement again, returning to Mount Vernon. He was called once more out of retirement by President John Adams who asked him to command the American army in preparation for a possible invasion from France, a Revolutionary War ally that had experienced a violent change in government. Washington agreed on the condition that he remain at Mount Vernon. His second-in-command, Alexander Hamilton, became the effective commander of the American army, which was dissolved once peace with France was established.

Retirement is actually one of the keys to Washington's greatness. Washington had several opportunities to seize power and essentially hold it until his death. He could've been a king or dictator in America. He refused. His humility and self-restraint make him one of the greatest leaders in all of history.

**For more on George Washington's character, check out The Religion of George Washington: The Faith and Moral Philosophy of our Greatest Founding Father

Why Did George Washington Not Call a Priest or Pastor to His Deathbed?

On this day (December 14) in 1799, the father of the United States of America breathed his last breath. George Washington was the greatest statesman North America ever produced and, quite possibly, one of the greatest in all of human history.

Given his immense stature in world history, it's understandable that many debate the specific nature of his faith. Washington was formally associated with the Anglican Church (which, of course, in America, became the Episcopal Church). He was also a Freemason. Yet, when it came to his faith, he played his cards close to his vest and many argue that these affiliations were more social than spiritual. They allege that Washington was never really a genuine, orthodox Christian and one of their best (at least in their mind) pieces of evidence is that neither Washington nor his family called a priest or pastor to his bedside at the time of his passing. Is the absence of clergy at Washington's passing indicative of his true spiritual or intellectual leanings?

In my short book Was George Washington a Christian?, I examine much of the debate surrounding the specifics of Washington's faith. I talk about the fact that he rarely, if ever, took Communion. And I address how little he publicly spoke of Christ. And I talk about the absence of clergy at his deathbed, which is what we will focus on in this article.

In His Excellency: George Washington, historian Joseph J. Ellis argues that Washington died a "Roman stoic" and not a Christian, and he points to the lack of clergy as Exhibit #1 in drawing that conclusion. This is a huge overreach on Ellis' part. Let me give you four reasons why:

1. While Stoicism was distinct from Christianity in the ancient world, there are many Christians today (and many in Washington's day) who displayed Stoic tendencies or who held some Stoic convictions alongside their biblical beliefs. There's no reason to make this an "either-or" scenario. Yes, Washington was, in many ways, a "Roman Stoic." He was also, in many ways, a Christian. One such way was his official membership in the Episcopal Church.
2. Calling clergy to one's bedside was not as convenient or as simple in Washington's day as it would be in later years. As a pastor, I've been called to the bedside of dying members...literally. Clergy in Washington's day had no phone. Getting a priest or pastor to Washington's bedside required a little more effort.
3. According to the Bible, it's not necessary for clergy to be at someone's bedside when one passes into eternity. Catholics believe that "last rites" are a crucial part of someone's passing, since they involve a set of sacraments meant to prepare the soul for death. Anglicans, at least traditionally, put more emphasis on faith than on works or sacraments when it comes to a person's relationship with God or eternal destiny. If a member of the clergy had been at Washington's bedside, it would've been to provide spiritual comfort and encouragement to the Washingtons, not to help usher Washington into eternity. 
4. Clergy were a part of Washington's funeral.

When it comes to those who question whether Washington was a true Christian, the best argument they have is that Washington rarely spoke of Christ publicly. That he didn't have clergy at his deathbed is frankly irrelevant to the authenticity or specific nature of his faith. And, honestly, the whole Communion issue is likewise a bit of a red herring. There are several reasons why someone, including a professed Christian, might decline to take Communion. We should not conclude that such a refusal equates with a denial of the faith.

George Washington died with dignity and confidence. He did not fear death, having faced the prospect of death many times before. He knew his time had come, and he was ready for the "Hand of Providence" to usher him from this life into the next.

For more on Washington's faith, I encourage you to read Was George Washington a Christian? 

Blessings!

EBook on George Washington is an Amazon Top 100 Bestseller!

For the last few weeks, my eBook on George Washington's Christian faith, Was George Washington a Christian?, has been an Amazon bestseller. As of March 2, 2012, it is a bestseller in the following categories:


#15 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Religion & Spirituality > Religious Studies > Church & State
#26 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( W ) > Washington, George
#59 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Religious Studies > Church & State


I'm very excited about this and I want to thank all of you who have downloaded the eBook, either during its free promotion or for its regular price. As you can tell from the regular price, I didn't write it to get rich. :-)  I wrote it because I care deeply about the subject and want to do my part to set the record straight.

There are a lot of misconceptions regarding George Washington's faith. Some want to make him out to be a D.L. Moody type. Others say he was a "Roman Stoic" or "Deist." My eBook, while brief, is written to give you the facts. If you want a quick read that costs less than a medium-sized fountain soda, this is for you.

God bless you!

Was George Washington a Christian? Free eBook Available Feb 28 and 29

Was George Washington a Christian? Was George Washington a Deist? Did George Washington pray? How should we understand the faith of George Washington? These questions and more are addressed in an eBook I recently wrote, which examines the faith of George Washington, the man I believe to be the greatest of our Founding Fathers and the most important leader in American history. 


If you act today (February 28) or tomorrow (February 29), you can discover the facts by getting a free copy of my short eBook Was George Washington a Christian? In order to take advantage of this offer, you need to do the following three things:

• Sign up for an Amazon account (if you don't already have one)
• Download a free Kindle app. The free Kindle app can be used to read Amazon Kindle eBooks on your PC, tablet (like an iPad) or smart phone. You just need to go to the following link for information and instructions... Free Kindle Reading Apps
• Once you have a Kindle reading app (or a physical Kindle), you just need to "purchase" my eBook for free and then download it to your PC or device.

Since the eBook is short, it is not available as a print book at this time. I may do an expanded version later, and make that available for print, but right now, it's only available as an eBook for the Amazon Kindle or an Amazon Kindle reading application.

Since you're getting this eBook for NO COST, I would like to ask the following of you...

Please leave a review on its Amazon sales page.

Your review can be as simple as 1 or 2 sentences. It doesn't have to be anything extensive. But leaving this review will really help other readers make an informed decision about whether to invest in this resource. And it will help me out. Even if your comments are negative, I can take those into account for updates and revisions. All I ask is that negative reviews be constructive.

Please note that this offer is available only for February 28 and 29, 2012. After that, the price returns to $1.76 (which is still quite a bargain).

I hope you enjoy the eBook. And, again, please leave a review. Thank you.

Washington's Tomb Points to Promise of Easter

Thinking of Easter, I couldn't help but reflect on the tomb of George and Martha Washington. The Washington Tomb, which became the resting place for the remains of George and Martha Washington in 1831, carries an overt Christian declaration.

To read my latest post over at American Creation that deals with the Washington tomb, click on the following link...

"Washington's Very Christian Tomb"

For more on whether George Washington was a Deist, Unitarian, skeptic, or Christian, check out...

"Was George Washington a Deist?" - an article at Suite101 Protestantism

Washington's God by Michael Novak and Jana Novak

George Washington's Sacred Fire by Peter Lillback