Experience the American dream with today’s Patriots of the Past interview. I’m your host, John Gillespie.
It’s November 2, 1754. I’m in Paris, France, with Baron de Montesquieu.
JG: “Monsieur, in your classic book, The Spirit of the Laws, what is your main argument?
BM: Mr. Gillespie, I believe that the key to successful government is to have the powers separated and balanced against each other and that the laws of men should be based upon the laws of God as found in the Holy Scriptures.”
Montesquieu’s book, The Spirit of the Laws, profoundly influenced the checks and balance system adopted by the founding fathers.
Read the full text of The Spirit of the Laws.
John and Jan Gillespie are the founders of the Rawhide Boys’ Ranch; they have fostered 351 teenagers and wrote the book Our 351 Sons; they have also assisted numerous churches in developing youth programs and expanding their total church ministries. After running for U.S. Senate, John founded 1776 American Dream, which exists to demonstrate the vision of our founding fathers and help our generation of youth passionately embrace those values.
A new book coming out in September from Bloomsbury, “The Books That Made the European Enlightenment,” shows that Montesquieu’s book was censored and condemned by Christian leaders because it refuted the then common view that a monarch had to exhibit virtue. In suggesting otherwise, Montesquieu was sometimes accused of atheism and following Spinoza and other radicals. The truth is (as usual) somewhere between.