My Great Awakening

[RJNorton]

(01-08-2019 07:41 PM)L Verge Wrote:  Was it safer to stay a safe distance from discussing his personal views? Can't afford to lose votes...

The following story has no footnote, and it may well be apocryphal. In 1846 Lincoln was running for Congress against a frontier preacher named Peter Cartwright. The story is from a book entitled Religious Beliefs of Our Presidents by Franklin Steiner:

"A story is told of Mr. Cartwright's holding a revival meeting while the campaign was in progress, during which Lincoln stepped into one of his meetings. When Cartwright asked the audience, "Will all who want to go to heaven stand up?" all arose except Lincoln. When he asked, "Now, will all who want to go to hell stand up?" Lincoln still remained in his seat. Mr. Cartwright then said, "All have stood up for one place or the other except Mr. Lincoln, and we would like to know where he expects to go." Lincoln arose and quietly said, "I am going to Congress," and there he went."

This was the campaign in which Cartwright attempted to make Lincoln's religion or lack of it an issue in the campaign. Lincoln responded by issuing his "Handbill Replying to Charges of Infidelity." The text of this is here:

http://teachingamericanhistory.org/libra...nfidelity/