Today, and throughout all
our tomorrows, we must
never forget that it is our
duty and responsibility
to acknowledge God and
to keep His name in the
forefront of our national
conscience. ‘Unless the
Lord builds the house,
they labor in vain who
build it…’
Finally, after all avenues of
reconciliation were exhausted, the
formal debate for independence
began in June with proponents
on both sides of the question
vigorously
arguing
their
positions. After three weeks and
two votes, Congress declared for
independence on July 2, 1776.
And, as we all know, two days later
on July 4, 1776, the document
boldly headlined The Unanimous
Declaration of the Thirteen United
States of America was approved.
It has been said by many that
the Declaration of Independence
is America’s great religious
document. Although it holds
no official place in our laws or form of government today, we honor its firm
foundation based on human freedom – God’s gift to man. It is He who is
acknowledged and is clearly named in the Declaration as “… Nature’s God …”
and in the key religious phrase that people are “… endowed by their Creator
with certain unalienable Rights; that among these are Life, Liberty, and the
Pursuit of Happiness…”
The delegates also appealed to the “…Supreme Judge of the world for the
rectitude of our intentions …” And, knowing full well that the Declaration
would be seen as a treasonous act by the King, they courageously sealed their
fates in the final sentence with “… a firm Reliance on the Protection of Divine
Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our
Sacred Honor.” Those well-known passages will remain forever a sacred part of
our heritage.
Today, despite assaults on our freedoms at every turn, we must always
acknowledge, as did our founding fathers, that it is God alone who governs
either through us, or in spite of us. It is He who has given us our freedom and
rationality. And, it is we who are responsible to use these gifts wisely through
the exercise of individual conscience.
It is God, through the leading of His Divine Providence, who is still with
us in our churches, in our homes, in our communities, and throughout our
great nation. He is in the fourth stanza of our national anthem, in Irving
Berlin’s God Bless America, in The Battle Hymn of the Republic, and in so many
other patriotic songs that make up the rich fabric of our national history.
491