Matt from Butler lists many quotes from the Founders allegedly supporting their religious fervor. While I do not doubt the veracity of the quotes, I do believe that the religious advocacy by some of the Founders did not include melding religion with government or creating religious tests for elective office, as some clamor for today. As Thomas Paine wrote, "All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit."