Getting Jefferson Right: Fact-Checking Claims About Thomas Jefferson – 2nd Edition

On November 1, 2023, the second edition of Getting Jefferson Right: Fact-Check Claims About Thomas Jefferson by Warren Throckmorton and Michael Coulter will be available on Amazon.com and via retailers who order it through Amazon distribution.

As of today (October 27), you can pre-order the e-book on Amazon.com. The paperback and hardback versions will come out on November 1.

Endorsements:

In Getting Jefferson Right, Coulter and Throckmorton prove beyond doubt that Barton is no more scrupulous about the facts of American history than the “revisionists” whose work he pretends to correct. The authors have performed a valuable service.

-Alan Pell Crawford, Author of Twilight at Monticello: The Final Years of Thomas Jefferson

As a historian, reading Getting Jefferson Right consistently elicits in me a dual response: the first is a deep appreciation for the careful, objective and thorough scholarship of Coulter and Throckmorton; the second is incredulous outrage at the numerous historical distortions, misreadings, and outright falsehoods they labor to debunk.  Based in a thorough and careful analysis of primary sources in their full context, Getting Jefferson Right is an essential volume for understanding Jefferson in all his complexity, and a robust defense of historical truth against the propagandists who twist the past to serve their agenda.

-Aaron Cowan, Associate Professor of History, Slippery Rock University and author of A Nice Place to Visit: Tourism and Urban Revitalization in the Postwar Rustbelt

Getting Jefferson Right by Warren Throckmorton and Michael Coulter stands up for truth in scholarship against the scholarly problems found in David Barton’s ‘The Jefferson’s Lies.’ Because of the courage of Throckmorton and Coulter, Barton has regrettably fallen from his pedestal of preeminence as a scholar of the early American era. Throckmorton and Coulter deserve the ‘Medal of Honor’ for courage and probity.

-Chuck Dunn, Professor Emeritus of Government, Regent University and author and/or editor of 20 books on American politics, including The Seven Laws of Presidential Leadership and American Culture in Peril.

Ideologues and demagogues are working harder than ever to control how the story of our history is told. We cannot even speak to each other effectively, much less find common ground, if each of us lives in our own little self-created universe where we can make anything up and refuse to be held accountable to the actual historical record. Careful and responsible investigations, focused above all on getting the facts right, are indispensable to any effort to resist the siren songs of extremism. Getting Jefferson Right helps us get Jefferson right, and by doing so, helps Americans of all persuasions understand both themselves and one another more clearly.

– Greg Forster, Senior Fellow and Affiliate Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, IL and president of the Karam Fellowship.

This timely second edition of Getting Jefferson Right addresses a new wave of alt-Right Christian nationalists who get Jefferson wrong by downplaying his secular contribution to the rise of religious freedom in America. Yet again, Warren Throckmorton and Michael Coulter separate Jefferson fact from fiction in an eminently readable book that belongs on the shelf of any serious student of early American history.

-Paul Matzko, Historian and Research Fellow at the Cato Institute

In Getting Jefferson Right, Throckmorton and Coulter provide a valuable public service to readers in at least two important respects.  First, they expose some of the tactics increasingly employed by so-called Christian leaders to obfuscate and manipulate the facts of the past to advance various social and political agendas.  And second, they supply us with a model of patient, nuanced truth-seeking that should be the unwavering standard of every historian and of every Christian.

-Jay Green, Professor of History, Covenant College, and author of Christian Historiography: Five Rival Versions.

I cannot overemphasize the importance of reading Getting Jefferson Right, by Warren Throckmorton and Michael Coulter. It is a point-counterpoint to David Barton’s aptly titled, The Jefferson Lies; and it corrects every myth that Barton presents. Every evangelical pastor in America, especially African-American pastors, needs to not only read, but also study the facts in Getting Jefferson Right.

-Ray McMillian, President, Race to Unity

In Getting Jefferson Right, professors Throckmorton and Coulter offer a thoroughgoing effort to understand our third president in all of his human complexity. In their avoidance of special pleading and their pursuit of scholarly integrity, Throckmorton and Coulter serve both the living and the dead. For the living, they advance the field of early US history and help clarify the lines of Christian orthodoxy. For the dead, they honor Jefferson’s humanity by dealing with him honestly. Honor and soundness are the results of their labors.

-John D. Wilsey, Associate Professor of History and Philosophy at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and author of American Exceptionalism and Civil Religion: Reassessing the History of an Idea.

Getting Jefferson Right is an intellectual and historical takedown of David Barton’s pseudo-history of Thomas Jefferson by two Christian professors who teach at a conservative Christian college. Michael Coulter and Warren Throckmorton have done their homework. Anyone who reads this book must come to grips with the untruths and suspect historical interpretations that Barton regularly peddles in his books, speaking engagements, and on his radio program. I have yet to read a more thorough refutation of Barton’s claims.

–John Fea, Chair of the History Department, Messiah College and author of Was America Founded as a Christian Nation?: A Historical Introduction

As a pastor and historian, Getting Jefferson Right has been my go-to recommendation when asked the dreaded question, “what is your take on David Barton?” Throckmorton and Coulter judiciously provide evidence and historical context to place Thomas Jefferson in his era, rather than the version of Jefferson that conveniently fits ideological commitments held by Barton. Instead of hot takes with bullet points, Throckmorton and Coulter spend time with the evidence and help the reader to better understand one of our most interesting Founding Fathers. Furthermore, this new edition considers the rise of white Christian Nationalism over the past five years. This updated text includes ways Christian Nationalists mishandle and misinterpret Jefferson. I will continue to recommend Getting Jefferson Right and am grateful for this new edition.

-Rev. Dr. Bobby Griffith Jr., Sr. Minister, Westfield Presbyterian Church, Faculty, Flourish Institute of Theology

Getting Jefferson Right is an excellent example of the art of historical contextualization, of trying to tell the whole story, not just part of it. For those reasons, the work should become a standard reference.

-Paul Harvey, Professor of History, University of Colorado

Jefferson’s legacy as an imperfect, complex figure cuts against the demi-god status some erroneously confer on our Founding Fathers. In Getting Jefferson Right, Throckmorton and Coulter demonstrate in exquisite, painstaking detail how an honest recount of Jefferson’s imperfections not only serves as a reliable basis for historical and cultural analysis, but also how Jefferson — like the American experiment itself — was unfinished and evolving, amending and reforming, to hew more closely to ideals often disappointed by the Founders.

-Daniel Hanson, Founder of LTZF Capital Management and Senior Fellow, American Enterprise Institute

Getting Jefferson Right is a great book for pastors to study. Today we continue to have debates on Christian nationalism and right-wing revisionist history. Many of our church members are exposed to these issues through the Internet and Christian mass media. Pastors need to be up to date on these matters, and this book gives excellent rebuttals based on genuine historical research and facts to counter what David Barton and others claim as support for their assertions on American history and the evangelical church’s role in it. Disinformation is real and Throckmorton’s and Coulter’s work brings true historical research to dispel it. I highly recommend it for pastors so that they can help members discern truth from intentional disinformation.

-Eli Garza, Former pastor, First Spanish Baptist Church, Detroit, MI

Thomas Jefferson is one of the most revered Presidents in U.S. history; and also one of the most misunderstood. In Getting Jefferson Right, Throckmorton and Coulter confront some of the biggest myths with objective facts. The result is a provocative and informative book that has something to teach everyone.

-Jonathan Merritt, author of Learning to Speak God from Scratch, and A Faith of Our Own: Following Jesus Beyond the Culture Wars

As Christian Nationalism continues to rise in the American Evangelical church, so does the spread of misinformation and revisionist history regarding the founding fathers. Getting Jefferson Right is a thoughtful, well researched resource for anyone seeking to discern historical fact from politicized fiction.

-Rev. Caleb E. Campbell, author of Disarming Leviathan: Loving Your Christian Nationalist Neighbors

In Getting Jefferson Right, Throckmorton and Coulter plead for good historical thinking because “history done right will lead to an accurate account.” The historian’s job, regardless of religious persuasion, is to tell the truth, not making a case for a client but rather making an account of the evidence from the past. Through their examination of Christian nationalists’ historical claims, Throckmorton and Coulter exhibit sound historical reasoning. They test the conclusions of historians as they consider the full context of the events and people. Their work continues to be necessary as the battle for telling the truth about the American past continues with assaults from all sides. Letting go of current political agendas and allowing the evidence from the past to speak reveals a powerful story of how the United States has changed over time.

– Brenda Thompson Schoolfield, professor and chair of history, government, & social science at Bob Jones University

Warren Throckmorton and Michael Coulter offer a valuable contribution to Jefferson scholarship and a needed correction to historical revisionism in their second edition of “Getting Jefferson Right.” They expand their critique of Christian nationalist revisionists like David Barton and offer valuable resources for placing Thomas Jefferson firmly in his historical and cultural context. With so many political and cultural forces working to distort historical understanding for their own ends, Throckmorton and Coulter model historical research as it should be done with careful consideration for what the primary sources say on their own terms before making conclusions about contemporary issues. The book is accessible for general audiences while still resting on a foundation of rigorous research that is clearly documented in extensive notes and primary source engagement.

-K. Scott Culpepper, professor of history at Dordt University and author of Francis Johnson and the English Separatist Influence: The Bishop of Brownism’s Life, Writings, and Controversies

Greatest Hits: Should Christians Be Nationalists? Julie Roys Radio Show 2017

My schedule these days is keeping me from blogging much so I thought I would bring up some of past material which is relevant to now. One of my earliest meetings with Julie Roy was in 2017 when she hosted a radio show with Moody. This program related to Christian nationalism.

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At noon (ET) tomorrow, I will be on the Moody Radio Network program “Up for Debate with Julie Roy” to discuss the question, “Should Christians Be Nationalists?”

The guest taking a contrasting position will be Ken Klulowski who is the Legal Editor at Breitbart News and Senior Counsel & Director of Strategic Affairs at the First Liberty Institute.

I originally wanted to debate whether or not America is a Christian nation.
You can listen online here: https://www.moodyradio.org/upfordebate (updated link).

As background, see these posts on the subject (herehere, and here)

UPDATE: (7/1/17)
The show went well I think in that both sides had the ability to make important points. I do want to correct or least amend a couple of Ken Klukowski’s claims.

On one occasion he said he didn’t recognize James Madison from my quote of Madison and then said Madision’s views could be discerned by his vote for chaplains in Congress. He also said most of the founders had seminary degrees.

One. my Madison quote is sound and two, Klukowski did not tell the rest of the story on Madison. Later, Madison forcefully disagreed with the funding of chaplains and said so here.

On the founders and seminary degrees, this is a distortion made famous by David Barton. See this piece about that misleading claim.

David Barton Gets Called Out in Colorado

There isn’t much new here for regular followers of this blog, but I just wanted to give a shout out to Rich Allen and the Aspen Daily News.

David Barton and friends have been traveling around the country on a post-COVID, pre-midterm election scare out the vote tour. Reporter Allen and the Daily News folks were on top of it. Allen noted that Barton’s 2012 book on Jefferson “was voted the least credible history book in print by the independent History News Network.” Oh, and Allen just happened to cite a certain blogger and his co-author, who opined on Barton’s The Jefferson Lies. What was it The Blogger and Michael Coulter said?

“Barton misrepresents and distorts a host of Jefferson’s ideas and actions, particularly his views and practices regarding religion, slavery and church-state relations,” they said in a co-statement.

As good as Allen’s article was, it could have gone a little deeper. I wish some enterprising reporter would do a deep dive into Barton’s fleeting claim to have an earned doctorate. Of course that turned out to be a big old story about as true as his NCAA basketball story.

In any case, readers in that part of the country have a little more of the story than people usually get when Mr. Barton shows up.

John Throckmorton and Separation of Church and State

In 1640, thirty-nine male residents of Providence in what is now Rhode Island voted to ratify a system of government that allowed residents complete freedom of conscience in religious matters. The exact phrase they agreed to was “Wee agree, as formerly hath bin the liberties of the town, so still, to hould forth liberty of Conscience.”

This was the settlement of Roger Williams, the Baptist minister who had been expelled from Salem, MA and who championed religious freedom next door to John Winthrop’s Massachusett’s Bay colony. As Williams and other Rhode Island dissenters learned, the wrong beliefs earned you trouble not just with the ministers and the church but also with civil authorities.

Williams founded Providence in 1636 and deeded shares of the land to twelve other men in 1638. One of those men was John Throckmorton. Throckmorton, a direct ancestor of mine, came from England with Williams and was also one of the 39 residents of the city who signed the first charter guaranteeing liberty of conscience.

Doing a little Ancestry.com research, I recently discovered this direct line back to John Throckmorton and I must admit it gave me an irrational measure of pleasure. I have taken pretty clear stands for separation of church and state and vigorously opposed Christian nationalism. My David Barton fact checking work was partly motivated by passion for the belief in church-state separation. The current revival of Christian nationalism motivates me to counter it as I am able. Learning that a great, great, (five more greats) grandfather was involved at the beginning as a co-laborer and friend with Roger Williams is deeply satisfying.

Even after John Throckmorton became a Quaker, he stood up to Williams when Williams criticized the Quaker movement. It appears my ancestor was zealous to defend his independence of mind, even when his old friend came against him. Another plus in my mind.

Baptists Then and Now

The story of Williams and Great(x7)-Grandpa Throckmorton reminds me that once upon a time Baptists were known for their fierce dedication to separation of church and state. Now, they are known for these shenanigans:

Here is John MacArthur declaring that he doesn’t support religious freedom.

John Leland, the great Baptist who preached in MA and VA, said:

No national church can in its organization be the Gospel Church. National church takes in the whole nation and no more, whereas the Church takes in no nation but those who fear God and work in every nation. The notion of a Christian commonwealth should be exploded forever.

Should one sect be pampered above others? Should not government protect all kinds of people of every species of religion without showing the least partiality? Has not the world had enough proofs of the impolicy and cruelty of favoring a Jew more than a Pagan, Turk, or Christian, or a Christian more than either of them? Why should a man be proscribed or any wife disgraced for being a Jew, a Turk, a Pagan, or a Christian of any denomination when his talents and veracity as a civilian, entitles him to the confidence of the public?

Government should protect every man in thinking and speaking freely, and see that one does not abuse another. The liberty I contend for is more than toleration. The very idea of toleration is despicable; it supposes that some have a pre-eminence above the rest to grant indulgence, whereas all should be equally free, Jews, Turks, Pagans and Christians.

Many Christian nationalists today want the government to privilege Christianity. They don’t like what some people do in their private lives and want the government to legislate against it. Even though the state has no compelling interest in regulating this private conduct or conscience, Christian nationalists appeal to concepts like biblical law and biblical morality to suggest that the civil law should reflect their idea of what the Bible teaches.

 

Getting Jefferson Right Gets a Rise from the Fall of Mars Hill Church

I haven’t written much about the Rise and Fall of Mars Hill Church because I wanted to hear the whole thing before I did. Now that I have, I will say more about it over time. On the whole, I recommend it. Several years ago when Mars Hill Church was unraveling, I assumed someone would do a deep dive into the rise and fall of the church; I just didn’t think it would be Christianity Today.

On the level of individual work, Mike Cosper did an superb job of weaving characters and various story lines in and out of the narrative.  Having written and produced a documentary in the past, I can appreciate the amount of work that goes into that beast.

What brings me to the blog backroom at this time is something I just learned over the weekend: Mike Cosper’s casual mention of my book with fellow Grove City College professor, Michael Coulter, has led to a modest Mars Hill bump in interest in Getting Jefferson Right since The Tempest episode came out on November 12. I’ll call it a Mars Hill Rise.

Here is what Cosper said about the Jefferson book starting at 1 hour and 11 minutes into The Tempest episode.

There’s a sense in which he (Throckmorton) was an ideal candidate to respond to this particular moment in the story (the plagiarism aspect). For several years, much of Throckmorton’s blogging had been focused on debunking the work of David Barton, a Christian nationalist, known for writing books and curriculum about the origins of the U.S. that are popular in some very conservative homeschool circles.

That led to the publication of a book called Getting Jefferson Right which Throckmorton co-wrote with Michael Coulter. The book carefully deconstructs many of Barton’s Christian nationalist myths and it led to one of Barton’s books being pulled from publication. His foray into looking at Driscoll didn’t come from any specific interest in his work. I think in a way that’s also reflected in his interest in Barton. Warren has a mind for detail; a mind attuned for the kind of research and cataloging necessary to track instances of plagiarism.

I love it when threads of my life come together and this was a significant couple of minutes for me. The modest sales boost or the Facebook page interest aren’t the remarkable points here. For me, it was Cosper’s matter-of-fact dismissal of Christian nationalism. The reference to David Barton’s “Christian nationalist myths” was extremely gratifying. As I listened, I became aware that numerous people who had never thought about Christian nationalism in a negative way (or at all) were listening to the podcast since Rise and Fall has remained near the top of the podcast charts since it came out.

Indeed, in Getting Jefferson Right, we deal with some of the foundational stories that Christian nationalists like to tell. Did Congress publish the first English Bible in the U.S. for the use of schools? Did Jefferson create an abridgment of the New Testament to evangelize native Americans? Was Jefferson forbidden to free his slaves by Virginia law? Did Jefferson sign his presidential documents in the Year of our Lord Christ? Christian nationalist history is unlike any history most of us have heard or studied. In our book, we focus on claims involving Thomas Jefferson and give the facts.

For more on Getting Jefferson Right, click through this link. You can find the book in Kindle and paperback format on Amazon. Conveniently, Amazon says it arrives before Christmas!

For more on the removal of Barton’s book from publication, see this link.