Presidents Refer to GOD

Presidents Refer to GOD

"The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained." George Washington

"Veneration for the religion of a people who profess and call themselves Christians, and a fixed resolution to consider a decent respect for Christianity among the best recommendations for the public service." John Adams

"I shall need the favor of that Being in whose hands we are, who led our forefathers, as Israel of old from their native land and planted them in a country." Thomas Jefferson

"We have all been encouraged to feel in the guardianship and guidance of that Almighty Being whose power regulates the destiny of nations." James Madison


"With my fervent prayers to the Almighty that He will be graciously pleased to continue to us that protection which He has already so conspicuously displayed." James Monroe

"Knowing that 'Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh in vain,' with fervent supplications for His favor, to His overruling providence I commit with humble but fearless confidence my own fate and the future destinies of my country." John Quincy Adams

"It is my fervent prayer to that Almighty Being before whom I now stand, and who has kept us in His hands from the infancy of our Republic to the present day." Andrew Jackson

"I only look to the gracious protection of that Divine Being whose strengthening support I humbly solicit, and whom I fervently pray to look down upon us all. May it be among the dispensations of His Providence to bless our beloved country with honors and length of days; may her ways be pleasantness, and all her paths peace!" Martin Van Buren

"I deem the present occasion sufficiently important and solemn to justify me in expressing to my fellow citizens a profound reverence for the Christian religion, and a thorough conviction that sound morals, religious liberty, and a just sense of religious responsibility are essentially connected with all true and lasting happiness." William Henry Harrison

"I fervently invoke the aid of that Almighty Ruler of the Universe in whose hands are the destinies of nations and of men to guard this Heaven-favored land ... I enter upon the discharge of the high duties which have been assigned to me by the people, again humbly supplicating that Divine Being, who has watched over and protected our beloved country from its infancy to the present hour." James K. Polk

"It must be felt that there is no national security but in the nation's humble, acknowledged dependence upon God and His overruling providence." Franklin Pierce

"We ought to cultivate peace, commerce, and friendship with all nations ... in a spirit of Christian benevolence toward our fellowmen, wherever their lot may be cast." James Buchannan

"Intelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a firm reliance on Him who has never yet forsaken this favored land, are still competent to adjust in the best way all our present difficulty." Abraham Lincoln

"I ask ... a determined effort on the part of every citizen to do his share toward cementing a happy union; and I ask the prayers of the nation to Almighty God in behalf of this consummation." Ulysses S. Grant

"Looking for the guidance of that Divine Hand by which the destinies of nations and individuals are shaped, I call upon you, Senators, Representatives, judges, fellow-citizens, here and everywhere, to unite with me in an earnest effort to secure to our country the blessings, not only of material property, but of justice, peace, and union." Rutherford B. Hayes

"Above all, upon our efforts to promote the welfare of this great people and their Government I reverently invoke the support and blessings of Almighty God." James Garfield

"And let us not trust to human effort alone, but humbly acknowledge the power and goodness of Almighty God who presides over the destiny of nations, and who has at all times been revealed in our country's history, let us invoke His aid and His blessings upon our labors … Above all, I know there is a Supreme Being who rules the affairs of men and whose goodness and mercy have always followed the American people, and I know He will not turn from us now if we humbly and reverently seek His powerful aid." Grover Cleveland


"Entering thus solemnly into covenant with each other, we may reverently invoke and confidently extend the favor and help of Almighty God -- that He will give to me wisdom, strength, and fidelity, and to our people a spirit of fraternity and a love of righteousness and peace." Benjamin Harrison

"Invoking the guidance of Almighty God. Our faith teaches that there is no safer reliance than upon the God of our fathers, who has so singularly favored the American people in every national trial, and who will not forsake us so long as we obey His commandments and walk humbly in His footsteps." William McKinley

"No people on earth have more cause to be thankful than ours, and this is said reverently ... with gratitude to the Giver of Good who has blessed us." Theodore Roosevelt

"The feelings with which we face this new age of right and opportunity sweep across our heartstrings like some air out of God's own presence, where justice and mercy are reconciled and the judge and the brother are one ... God helping me, I will not fail." Woodrow Wilson

"I must utter my belief in the Divine Inspiration of the founding fathers. Surely there must have been God's intent in the making of this new world Republic ... America is ready to encourage ... that brotherhood of mankind which must be God's highest conception of human relationship. I ... implore the favor and guidance of God in His Heaven ... I have taken the solemn oath of office on that passage of Holy Writ wherein it is asked: 'What doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.'" Warren G. Harding

"America seeks no earthly empires built on blood and force ... The legions which she sends forth are armed, not with the sword, but with the Cross. The higher state to which she seeks the allegiance of all mankind is not of human, but Divine origin. She cherishes no purpose save to merit the favor of Almighty God." Calvin Coolidge

"This occasion is ... a dedication and consecration under God to the highest office in service of our people. I assume this trust in the humility of knowledge that only through the guidance of Almighty Providence can I hope to discharge its ever-increasing burdens ... I ask the help of Almighty God in this service to my country to which you have called me." Herbert Hoover

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself ... On my part and on yours we face our common difficulties. They concern, thank God, only material things ... Where there is no vision the people perish. (Pr. 29:18) ... In this dedication of a nation we humbly ask the blessing of God. May He protect each and every one of us! May He guide me in the days to come." Franklin D. Roosevelt