Patriotic Greetings!
The time has come again for the great
annual festival commemorating the Nativity and Independence of the United
States of America, and to remember once again those pivotal events that brought
our nation into existence.
They came well over a century and a half
since British people first established colonies in North America. After the French-British War concluded in
1763, tensions arose between the colonies and Britain, as the Mother Country
began imposing new laws on the colonies to deal with the mess left in the wake
of the war, which the colonists saw as restrictions of their rights.
Tensions escalated into warfare by 1775,
which pushed sentiments toward breaking away from Britain. On June 7, 1776, in a session of the
Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, Virginia delegate Richard Henry
Lee proposed the following: “Resolved.
That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and
independent states. That they are absolved
from all allegiance to the British Crown. And that all political connection between them
and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.”
After taking time to consider the
proposal, the delegates debated it on July 1, and then on July 2, the colonies
voted unanimously for independence. Then,
they turned to the work of a Declaration of Independence, explaining the
reasons for the separation, approving the document on July 4. Then, on August 2, according of most historians, it was
signed by most of its 56 signers on August 2.
What’s so meaningful for me about this
time of year is that it provides an opportunity to recall the events that
started this nation, giving perspective to the history that led up to it, and
the history that has occurred since. We
get a better understanding of who were are today as Americans as we look back
to the story of how this nation started.
And the strivings we make in our present day to realize more fully our
freedoms in this country have their origins in the days of our founding. The writings of some of the Founding Fathers
reveal that they sensed what they were doing at that time would impact millions
who were yet to be born.
While this occasion is significant for
us as people of the United States, I also feel these events are important
because they speak to the human experience throughout all the world. There is an innate desire in humans for
freedom, which despises restriction and oppression of any form.
These ideas of natural liberty were
flourishing in Europe in the 18th Century, expounded upon by the political philosophers
of the Enlightenment period. They
recognized that people have God-given rights to life and liberty. Furthermore, the government has an important
role to play in maintaining those rights, and strictly subject to that
role, so that in no way could these rights be trampled upon.
These ideas were present in the strides
made for the enhancement of the rights of people in such instances as in 1215 when
a group of English barons forced King John to sing the Magna Carta—and next
year marks 800 years since that document—as well as other reforms in English
government, such as the English Declaration of Rights.
And these ideas were certainly on the
minds of the Founding Fathers, especially Thomas Jefferson as he spent a
collection of days in June 1776 pouring over the work of drafting the
Declaration of Independence. The
Founders realized how precious these rights were, and they were determined to
defy the established authority of the King to stand up for them, to ensure their
preservation.
The Declaration of Independence is
certainly a masterpiece, full of incredible prose profoundly expressing ideas
about freedom and liberty, manifested in society and the government that serves
it. In explaining why the colonies had
come to point of independence, they speak to the equality and liberty they have
by nature as humans, and that the role of government is to preserve that
natural liberty, lest it have to be changed so that it can be held accountable
once again to its duty. The colonists
had lived under a system that had largely respected their rights and allowed them
to live in a good measure of freedom.
But the colonists had had enough after they petitioned repeatedly to
have their grievance addressed, only to be rebuffed by a government that had
usurped its authority and restricted their rights.
The events of the independence of the
United States were at a crossroads point in the history of the world. The people of the United States took a
tradition of the natural rights of people as they took their stand against
Britain, and set these ideas as the foundation of the new nation. In so doing, they gave these ideals a
profound new purpose, which echoes through the ages. It’s amazing to see the strides made for
freedom in the wake of 1776, and to see how it was caught up in efforts to enhance
the state of humanity itself. Think of
the French Revolution, the movements for independence throughout Central and
South America in the 19th century, and even in the 20th
century, as people strove against Nazism and Communism. Even the slaves yearned for freedom in this
spirit, and that same spirit continued to serve as a driving force as
African-Americans fought for the full realization of their rights during the
Civil Rights movement. And think of the many people who have served in the Armed Forces, some even dying as a result, all because they were serving for the high cause of freedom and liberty.
Indeed, the Founding Fathers set the bar
high for the new nation, and it’s something we’ve been striving after ever
since. We realize that in our imperfect,
fallen state as a human race, we take power into our own hands and use it to abuse. But the shining beacon of freedom calls us to
know better, and act accordingly. That
is why we keep striving, so that all people may more fully enjoy the rights of
“life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”, which God gives us naturally as
human beings.
Last year, in the wake of the Boston
Marathon bombing, Neil Diamond wrote an incredible song that speaks about
freedom, which I first heard when he performed it at the Capitol Fourth Concert
on the west lawn of the United State Capitol, on July 4, 2013. (You can watch the video here, but the song
doesn’t start until about a minute into the video’s running time, after the
host recognizes first responders to the bombing. You can also view the lyrics here.)
I find this song very meaningful. Striving for freedom, which is the foundation
for this nation, urges us on toward the bright light that it shines forth. That bright shining light is what has always
drawn people to the United States. They
recognize that the United States embraces freedom like no other place on Earth,
and they want that, as “America”, another of Neil Diamond’s songs, speaks to so
marvelously.
Freedom is a high and lofty goal to
attain, fundamental to our human experience.
As long as we strive for it, we can’t be easily defeated, because
freedom is something embedded deep within us as humans, that desires to surge
forth, in living a life unshackled by the bonds of tyranny, oppression, and
fear. It is God’s great gift for us to
use, that under Him, we truly flourish, as we use it to live a full life. What’s marvelous for us as Americans is that
this idea of freedom is part of our heritage—part of who we are in a very
distinct way, and furthermore, how we should conduct ourselves.
So on this great anniversary occasion,
let us give thanks for the Founding Fathers who courageously stood up for
freedom, whose work has made this nation what it is today, and renew ourselves
to the work of realizing it more fully and perfectly, so we may be a righteous
nation.
I salute the Spirit of God and the
Spirit of America,
Paul
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| Here I am at the 2013 annual July 4 ceremony at the Chicago History Museum, which I enjoy attending most of all because it includes a reading of the Declaration of Independence. |
P.S. This is my annual Patriotic Greetings note. Please feel free to share with others as we celebrate this great occasion. (Feel free to share any other posts on my blog as well.)
This is the 2nd year I've done this note in electronic version. If you wish a paper copy, please let me know to what address I can send it.
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