“A general dissolution of the principles and manners will more surely overthrow the liberties of America than the whole force of the common enemy…. While the people are virtuous they cannot be subdued; but once they lose their virtue, they will be ready to surrender their liberties to the first external or internal invader…. If virtue and knowledge are diffused among the people, they will never be enslaved. This will be their great security.”
What’s most interesting about this is that Sam Adams was in no way the “Christian tee-totaler” that his cousin John was. While John was austere, Sam was a bit wild. So, he’s not suggesting that everyone needs to “go to church,” but he is as clear as his cousin that our government is founded on moral virtue. And, for Sam Adams, as well as most all of the original American colonists and citizens for the first 275+ years would have claimed and accepted, meant moral virtue built on the foundation of Christianity.