At the time of the Founders, it was a common practice for ministers to preach “Election Sermons,” and it was very common for a clergyman to be invited to give a sermon before the newly-elected government officials.
Here’s a radio program from The American View that features John Lofton discussing this issue:
John Lofton is a “recovering Republican” who lives in Maryland. He once worked for George H.W. Bush and former Sen. Bob Dole at the Republican National Committee. He has been a columnist for the “Washington Times,” Editor of the “Conservative Digest” magazine and Editor of the American Conservative Union’s “Battleline” newsletter. Lofton has also been an adviser to the Presidential campaigns of Michael Peroutka and Pat Buchanan.
Election Sermons
- A Sermon Preached Before His Excellency John Hancock, Esq. Governor; His Honor Samuel Adams, Esq. Lieutenant-Governor; The Honorable the Council, Senate, and House of Representatives, of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, May 26, 1790. Being the day of General Election. By Daniel Foster, A.M. Pastor of the Church in New Braintree, MA.
- The Duty of Standing Fast in Our Spiritual and Temporal Liberties, by the Reverend Jacob Duché, M. A. Philadelphia.
- Massachusetts Election Sermon of 1778, delivered by Reverend Phillips Payson in Boston.
