There is so much information churning around in our brains, that we ought to be able to recite everything from birthdates to engagement stories and fairytales to speeches. And yet, we forget.
But there are things, very important things, that we MUST recall because failing to do so could mean the loss of, well, for instance, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
On this Independence Day, I invite you to pull out your old history book and remember. And if, like many of us, you’re unable to recall important things having to do with our nation’s foundation, I implore you to relearn them. Truth will set us free.
The change from what was common, you see, is that power resides with the people of the United States, not the king or anyone else. The Constitution, itself, speaks of unalienable rights – rights that cannot be taken away nor given up. The Preamble gives us the reminder that governmental representatives are the peoples’ servants, not their masters. Its very first words tell us as much:
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
Just to review: establish justice means nothing more and nothing less than just decisions based on facts rather than personal preferences; domestic tranquility is, in a phrase, peace in your home and neighborhood and streets of our nation; a common defense is providing protection on and outside our nation’s borders; general welfare doesn’t mean a blank check or socialism, but rather giving room for its citizens’ well-being; the blessings of liberty is freedom, and freedom not only for ourselves, but for our posterity – for future generations.
This 4th of July, let’s remember that we are independent and that we have a Constitution to back that up.
When I was – oh, I don’t know – maybe in 5th or 6th grade, I decided the words of a particular song were so meaningful that I would memorize them. I can still see myself upstairs in the hallway of the parsonage we lived in, going over each verse until it was in my mind to stay. One verse comes especially to mind this year:
Oh beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife; Who, more than self, their country loved, and mercy more than life! America! America! May God thy gold refine ’til all success be nobleness, and every gain divine.
Sing it with me now: America! America! God shed His grace on thee; and crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea!
Resources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yx5d3haRG7M ; constitutioncenter.org; Khan Academy; America the Beautiful words by Katharine Lee Bates in 1895 and music by Samuel A. Ward in 1910.
