I write this column as an American historian. The axe I am grinding is not a political or religious one, but a historical one. As many regular readers of this column already know, I have recently written a book that cautions Americans who are quick to claim that we are a Christian nation. My goal is to challenge the powers-that-be at the National Museum of American History to consider the vast amount of scholarship on the role of religion in American history and consider integrating that scholarly work into their presentation of the nation's past.
Perhaps the model of Colonial Williamsburg is instructive. When faced with criticism that the religious experience of early Virginians was absent from their programs, the staff of this popular historical site responded with more religious content on their website, a "religious history month" in which the spiritual past of eighteenth-century America might be explored more fully through lectures and special events, and interpretive programs that address African-American and Baptist religious life in colonial Virginia. The place of Christianity in eighteenth-century America does not dominate the programming at Colonial Williamsburg. Nor should the decision to acknowledge the role of religion at the site be perceived as some kind of capitulation to the Christian Right. As I see it, it appears to be little more than an attempt to portray colonial life thoroughly and accurately.
Perhaps the National Museum of American History has already got the message. In November they will put Thomas Jefferson's Bible, otherwise known as "The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth," on display. We can debate whether Jefferson's Bible—an edited version of the four gospels void of anything supernatural, including the resurrection—is truly representative of the American religious experience, but the museum's decision to show it to the public is a step in the right direction.
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