Editing Abraham Lincoln (section)

===Religious skepticism and providence===
{{Further|Religious views of Abraham Lincoln}}
As a young man Lincoln was a [[religious skepticism|religious skeptic]].{{sfnm|Carwardine|2003|1p=4|Wilson|1999|2p=84}} However, he was deeply familiar with the [[Bible]], quoting and praising it.{{sfn|Donald|1996|pp=48–49, 514–515}} Throughout his public career, Lincoln often quoted Scripture.{{sfn|Myers|2018|p=21}} His three most famous speeches—[[Lincoln's House Divided Speech|the House Divided Speech]], [[Gettysburg Address|the Gettysburg Address]], and [[Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address|his second inaugural]]—all contain such quotes. In the 1840s Lincoln subscribed to the [[The Doctrine of Philosophical Necessity Illustrated|Doctrine of Necessity]], a belief that the human mind was controlled by a higher power.{{sfn|Donald|1996|pp=48–49}}

After the death of his son Edward in 1850 he more frequently expressed a dependence on God.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Parrillo|first=Nicholas|year=2000|title=Lincoln's Calvinist transformation: emancipation and war|journal=Civil War History|volume=46| issue=3|pages=227–253|doi=10.1353/cwh.2000.0073}}</ref> He never joined a church, although he frequently attended [[First Presbyterian Church (Springfield, Illinois)|First Presbyterian Church]] in Springfield, Illinois, with his wife beginning in 1852.{{sfn|White|2009|p=180}} While president, Lincoln often attended services at the [[New York Avenue Presbyterian Church]] in Washington, D.C.{{sfn|Mansfield|2012|pp=125&ndash;126}} The death of his son Willie in February 1862 may have caused him to look toward religion for solace.{{sfn|Wilson|1999|pp=251–254}} Lincoln's frequent use of religious imagery and language toward the end of his life may have reflected his own personal beliefs or might have been a device to reach his audiences, who were mostly [[evangelicalism|evangelical]] Protestants.{{sfn|Carwardine|2003|pp=27–55}}