John
Quincy Adams
1767-1848
—
6th President of US (1825-1829).
. . Massachusetts State Legislative (1802) . . .
Senator from Massachusetts (1803-1808). . . US
Secretary of State (1817-1825) . . . House of Representatives: Massachusetts (1831-1848),
during which, he was an opponent of slavery . . . Other Offices: Minister to the
Netherlands; Minister to Prussia; Minister to Russia; Minister to Great Britain.
By the time he died, he was known as a champion of freedom of speech
"The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were . . . the general principles of Christianity."[1]
"My hopes of a future life are all founded upon the Gospel of Christ and I cannot cavil or quibble away [evade or object to] . . . the whole tenor of His conduct by which He sometimes positively asserted and at others countenances [permits] His disciples in asserting that He was God."[9]
"Duty is ours; results are God's. The first and almost the only Book deserving of universal attention is the Bible. I speak as a man of the world to men of the world; and I say to you, Search the Scriptures! The Bible is the book of all others, to be read at all ages, and in all conditions of human life; not to be read once or twice or thrice through, and then laid aside, but to be read in small portions of one or two chapters every day, and never to be intermitted, unless by some overruling necessity. In what light so ever we regard the Bible, whether with reference to revelation, to history, or to morality, it is an invaluable and inexhaustible mine of knowledge and virtue. It is no slight testimonial, both to the merit and worth of Christianity, that in all ages since its promulgation the great mass of those who have risen to eminence by their profound wisdom and integrity have recognized and reverenced Jesus of Nazareth as the Son of the living God." "… Posterity — you will never know how much it has cost my generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make good use of it." — America's God and Country, William Federer, p.19-20[43]
". . . So great is my veneration for the Bible, and so strong my belief, that when duly read and meditated on, it is of all books in the world, that which contributes most to make men good, wise, and happy — that the earlier my children begin to read it, the more steadily they pursue the practice of reading it throughout their lives, the more lively and confident will be my hopes that they will prove useful citizens to their country, respectable members of society, and a real blessing to their parents."[7]