[323] He was private about his position on organized religion and respected the beliefs of others.[324] He never made a clear profession of Christian beliefs.[325] Throughout his public career, Lincoln often quoted Scripture.[326] His three most famous speeches—the House Divided Speech, the Gettysburg Address, and his second inaugural—each contain direct allusions to Providence and quotes from Scripture.
In the 1840s, Lincoln subscribed to the Doctrine of Necessity, a belief that the human mind was controlled by a higher power.[327] With the death of his son Edward in 1850 he more frequently expressed a dependence on God.[328] He never joined a church, although he frequently attended First Presbyterian Church with his wife beginning in 1852.[329][m]
In the 1850s, Lincoln asserted his belief in "providence" in a general way, and rarely used the language or imagery of the evangelicals; he regarded the republicanism of the Founding Fathers with an almost religious reverence.[330] The death of his son Willie in February 1862 may have caused him to look toward religion for solace.[331] After Willie's death, he questioned the divine necessity of the war's severity. 