When most people think of Wall Street in New York City, the first thing that comes to mind is that it is one of the most influential financial centers in the world. But the building at 26 Wall Street is the Federal Hall National Memorial. When the Constitution was first adopted, this building served as the nation’s first capitol, and George Washington took the oath of office as the first president of the United States, approximately where a statue of him now stands.
In that first Inaugural Address, President Washington wisely acknowledged the providence of God in the establishment of our nation, saying, “it would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official act my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations, and whose providential aids can supply every human defect, that His benediction may consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States.”
President Washington also said, “In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own, nor those of my fellow citizens at large less than either. No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States.”
In the hundreds of years that have passed since that auspicious first inauguration, many unbelievers have attempted to completely rewrite the early history of our nation. Some even claim that the Founding Fathers were secular-minded children of the Enlightenment who did not have God in their thoughts at all. In complete contrast, President Washington’s speech as the first President of the United States specifically stated that the people of America have a special duty to adore the Lord our God and to admit that His Invisible Hand controls the day-to-day lives of people everywhere.
America, America, God shed His grace on Thee!