And to which religion is Adams referring? He gave us an answer when he wrote to Thomas Jefferson on June 28, 1813. "The general principles on which the Fathers achieved independence were the only Principles in which that beautiful Assembly of young Gentlemen could Unite. ... And what were these general Principles? I answer, the general Principles of Christianity, in which all these Sects were united."
John Quincy Adams, America's sixth president, spoke at an Independence Day celebration in 1837: "Is it not that the Declaration of Independence first organized the social compact on the foundation of the redeemer's mission upon earth? That it laid the cornerstone of human government upon the first precepts of Christianity?"
Andrew Jackson, our seventh president, pointed to a Bible as he lay dying in 1845 and said, "That book, sir, is the rock on which our republic rests."
How much clearer can it be? There are no contradictions between the preceding leadership sayings and those drafted by Joel Barlow, the author and diplomat of the Treaty of Tripoli, when one understands the historical, diplomatic and religious context of it all.
America was founded as a Christian nation. Now whether or not it has remained one is the discussion for another day!