• When the Second Virginia Convention was moved to St. John’s
Church in Richmond from the House of Burgesses on March 23, 1775, Patrick Henry
delivered his famous speech that ended with the words, “give me liberty or give me death.”
This well-known speech mentioned God numerous times. Patrick Henry said
that “we shall not fight alone. There is a just God…who will raise up friends to
fight our battle for us.” [22] He believed that God was an important element in their fight
for liberty and essential to their victory. He is also known for stating that, “It cannot
be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not
by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of
Jesus Christ. For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum,
prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”[23] He felt that the reason this country has so many
religious freedoms is because it is based on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Even if people of other religions are to be welcome,
the country’s foundations were still to be based on Christianity.
His grandson, William Wirt Henry, said that his grandfather “Looked to the restraining and elevating principles of Christianity as the hope of his country’s institutions.”[24]
Patrick Henry, a very important
figure in American history, was the Commander-in-Chief of the
Virginia militia, a member of the Continental Congress, a member of the House of Burgesses and governor of Virginia for five terms.