Mirroring all of the other states original
constitutions written before and at the same time by the same men who
were writing the federal constitution. If someone wants to use the
totally deceptive argument that the federal constitution "nullified" all
of the state constitutions written before it we have New Hampshire's.
Written afterwards, using the same wording and displaying the same
Christian world view that had developed over the previous centuries
since the fall of the Roman Empire in 1453 A.D. Another interesting fact
about New Hampshire's constitution is that they were actually the first
state to write one after the declaration of independence in 1776.
It was a simple document , the link is listed below, that created more
of transitionary government. Why this is being pointed out is because
the development of this constitution of 1792 could be looked at as the
result of the whole evolution of thought from independence, war and the
formation of the federal government with it's constitution and bill of
rights. As far as the purposes of these articles on the state
constittuions are concerned the document written after the whole process
of independence, war, and the forming of the federal government was far
more religious than the one written in 1776. This once more buries
the propaganda of the progressive movement in the United States that
somehow this nation was founded by secularists.
ART. IV. Among the natural rights, some are in
their very nature unalienable, because no equivalent can be given or
received for them. Of this kind are the rights of conscience.
ART. V. Every individual has a natural and
unalienable right to worship God according to the dictates of his own
conscience and reason; and no person shall be hurt, molested, or
restrained in his person, liberty, or estate for worshipping God in the
manner most agreeable to the dictates of his own conscience, or for his
religious profession, sentiments, or persuasion; provided he doth not
disturb the public peace or disturb others in their religious worship.
ART. VI. As morality and piety, rightly grounded
on evangelical principles, will give the best and greatest security to
government, and will lay in the hearts of men the strongest obligations
to due subjection; and as a knowledge of these is most likely to be
propagated through a society by the institution of the public worship of
the Deity, and of public instruction in morality and religion;
therefore, to promote those important purposes the people of this State
have a right to empower, and do hereby fully empower, the legislature to
authorize, from time to time, the several towns, parishes, bodies
corporate, or religious societies within this State, to make adequate
provisions, at their own expense, for the support and maintenance of
public protestant teachers of piety, religion, and morality.
Provided notwithstanding, That the several
towns, parishes, bodies corporate, or religious societies, shall at all
times have the exclusive right of electing their own public teachers,
and of contracting with them for their support and maintenance. And no
person, or any one particular religious sect or denomination, shall ever
be compelled to pay toward the support of the teacher or teachers of
another persuasion, sect, or denomination. And every denomination of
Christians, demeaning themselves quietly and as good subjects of the
State, shall be equally under the protection of the law; and no
subordination of any one sect or denomination to another shall ever be
established by law. And nothing herein shall be understood to affect any
former contracts made for the support of the ministry; but all such
contracts shall remain and be in the same state as if this constitution
had not been made.
ART. XXXVIII. A frequent recurrence to the
fundamental principles of the constitution, and a constant adherence to
justice, moderation, temperance, industry, frugality, and all the social
virtues, are indispensably necessary to preserve the blessings of
liberty and good government. The people ought, therefore, to have a
particular regard to all those principles in the choice of their
officers and representatives; and they have a right to require of their
lawgivers and magistrates an exact and constant observance of them in
the formation and execution of the laws necessary for the good
administration of government.
SEC. XIV. Every member of the house of
representatives shall be chosen by ballot, and for two years at least
next preceding his election shall have been an inhabitant of this State,
shall have an estate within the district which he may be chosen to
represent, of the value of one hundred pounds, one-half of which to be a
freehold, whereof he is seized in his own right; shall be at the time of
his election an inhabitant of the town, parish, or place he may be
chosen to represent; shall be of the Protestant religion, and shall
cease to represent such town, parish, or place immediately on his
ceasing to be qualified as aforesaid.
SEC. XXIX. Provided, nevertheless, That no
person shall be capable of being elected a senator who is not of the
Protestant religion, and seized of a freehold estate in his own rights
of the value of two hundred pounds, lying within the State, who is not
of the age of thirty years, and who shall not have been an inhabitant of
the State for seven years immediately preceding his election, and at the
time thereof he shall be an inhabitant of the district for which he
shall be chosen.
SEC..XLII……declared governor. And no person
shall be eligible to this office unless at the time of his election he
shall have been an inhabitant of this State for seven years next
preceding, and unless he shall be of the age of thirty years and unless
he shall at the same time have an estate of the value of five hundred
pounds,, one-half of which shall consist of a freehold in his own right
within this State, and unless he shall be of the protestant religion.
SEC. LXXXIII. Knowledge and learning generally
diffused through a community, being essential to the preservation of a
free government; and spreading the opportunities and advantages of
education through the various arts of the county being highly conducive
to promote this end, it shall be the duty of the legislatures and
magistrates, in all future periods of this government, to cherish the
interests of literature and the sciences, and all seminaries and public
schools; to encourage private and public institutions, rewards, and
immunities for the promotion of agriculture, arts, sciences, commerce,
trade, manufactures, and natural history of the country; to countenance
and inculcate the principles of humanity and general benevolence, public
and private charity, industry and economy, honesty and punctuality,
sincerity, sobriety, and all social affections and generous sentiments
among the people
The returns from the several towns and
unincorporated places being examined, and it appearing that the
foregoing Bill of Rights and Form of Government, as amended by the
convention, were approved by more than two-thirds of the qualified
voters present in town meetings. and voting upon the question. the same
are agreed on and established by the delegates of the people in
convention, and declared to be the civil constitution of the State of
New Hampshire.
To view the entire constitution follow this
hyperlink.
The
Constitution of New Hampshire 1776
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