Dr. Robert George, “The Declaration of Independence and the 'Imago Dei'”
While the Declaration of Independence declares that such foundational rights as the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are self-evident, many scholars argue these “self-evident” truths are not as evident today as they once were. Behind these truths, these scholars argue, lies a biblical worldview, especially the ideas of a single, rational Creator and the inherent dignity of humans as bearers of the imago Dei, the “image of God.”
Join us for The Bible and America 250: These Truths Are Not Self-Evident Lecture Series, commemorating the 250th anniversary of the United States. This thought-provoking event brings together a host of renowned scholars and historians to explore the profound influence of the Bible on America's founding principles, values, and institutions.
In this lecture, Dr. Robert George will be speaking about the Declaration of Independence and the imago Dei.
Jul 12, 2026 - Jul 12, 2026
2:00 PM - 5:00 PM EDT
Scholars Initiative Conference Room, Floor 5R
Free Admission (Event Ticket Required)
In Person Event
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Abstract
Thomas Jefferson, nearing the end of his life, was asked by Henry Lee where he got the ideas for the Declaration of Independence. He replied that the ideas were not novel, “The object of the Declaration” was, he said, “[n]ot to find out new principles, or new arguments, never before thought of, not merely to say things which had never been said before; but to place before mankind the common sense of the subject, in terms so plain and firm as to command their assent . . . . Neither aiming at originality of principle or sentiment, nor yet copied from any particular and previous writing, it was intended to be an expression of the American mind, and to give to that expression the proper tone and spirit called for by the occasion. All its authority rests then on the harmonizing sentiments of the day, whether expressed in conversation, in letters, printed essays, or in the elementary books of public right, as Aristotle, Cicero, Locke, Sidney, &c. . . .”
Notably, Jefferson did not mention the Bible and its influence. Was that because of Jefferson’s notorious rejection of orthodox Christianity or organized religion of any type? Was it an oversight? Was the influence of the Bible on “the American mind” simply so obvious—so taken for granted—as not to require explicit mention?
Whatever the explanation, there is no denying the Bible’s influence on “the American mind,” and in particular the biblical basis for the proposition at the heart of the Declaration and for which the document is most famous, namely, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.” The principle expressed in that proposition is that of the profound, inherent, and equal dignity of each and every member of the human family. While that principle is rationally defensible, its origins are not in the thought of Aristotle, Cicero, Sidney, Locke or any other ancient philosopher or Enlightenment thinker. Rather, it is in the very first chapter of the very first book of the Bible. In Genesis 1, we are told that the human being—man—though made from the mere dust of the earth—material stuff that will someday die and decay—is nevertheless fashioned in the very image and likeness of the divine Creator and Ruler of all that is.
In his Museum of the Bible presentation, Professor George will explore the meaning and significance of the imago Dei for the American experiment in republican government and morally ordered liberty.
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Schedule
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1:30 p.m. | Welcome & Check In
1:30–2:00 p.m. | Refreshments
2:00–3:00 p.m. | Lecture
3:00–3:30 p.m. | Panel Q&A
3:30–5:00 p.m. | Self-Guided Tour of the Bible in America Gallery
Lecturer
Dr. Robert P. George
Robert P. George holds Princeton’s celebrated McCormick Professorship of Jurisprudence and is director of the university’s James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions. He has served as Chairman of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom and on the US Commission on Civil Rights and the President’s Council on Bioethics. He has also served as the US member of UNESCO’s World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology. He was a Judicial Fellow at the Supreme Court of the United States, where he received the Justice Tom C. Clark Award. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Swarthmore, he holds the degrees of JD and MTS from Harvard University and the degrees of DPhil, BCL, DCL, and DLitt from Oxford University, in addition to 23 honorary doctorates. He is a recipient of the US Presidential Citizens Medal, the Honorific Medal for the Defense of Human Rights of the Republic of Poland, the Canterbury Medal of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, and Princeton University’s President’s Award for Distinguished Teaching.
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