The fact that Washington wasn’t a real Christian is really neither here nor there. It is his myth that is much more important to American history than his reality. And it is in this myth that we find language shaping perception again—exactly as we’ve been discussing here, right? From the whole "cannot tell a lie about the cherry tree" to the man’s religious beliefs, we have this kind of awe that is reserved for deities and saints built up around ol’GW. It is against some people’s national mythology (or national religion) to disparage the name of a hero—or, in some cases, to merely tell the truth about them—and they will get all up in arms about it. Quite frankly, it doesn’t make Washington any less of a national hero that he wasn’t a Christian by orthodox standards. But don’t try telling a nationalistic fundamentalist that. They might think you’re a Communist or something.
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