“We have no government armed with power capable of
contending with human passions unbridled by morality and
religion. Our constitution was made only for a moral and
religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of
any other.”
“The moment the idea is admitted into society, that property is
not as sacred as the laws of God, and that there is not a force
of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny
commence. If “Thou shalt not covet,” and “Thou shalt not
steal,” were not commandments of Heaven, they must be made
inviolable precepts in every society, before it can be civilized or
made free.”
John Quincy Adams (Sixth President of the United States):
“The law given from Sinai was a civil and municipal as well
as a moral and religious code; it contained many statutes …
of universal application—laws essential to the existence of
men in society, and most of which have been enacted by every
nation which ever professed any code of laws.”
“There are three points of doctrine the belief of which forms the
foundation of all morality. The first is the existence of God; the
second is the immortality of the human soul; and the third is
a future state of rewards and punishments. Suppose it possible
for a man to disbelieve either of these three articles of faith and
that man will have no conscience, he will have no other law
than that of the tiger or the shark. The laws of man may bind
him in chains or may put him to death, but they never can
make him wise, virtuous, or happy.”
Samuel Adams (Signer of the Declaration of Independence):
“Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure
the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are
universally corrupt.”
These quotes and many more may be found at Wallbuilders.
com and other reputable sites.
Legislative trends today
A quick look at our culture and the laws being passed to
support it is shocking. The illustrated concerns of early
American statesmen have proven to be prophetic! But that
said, the system they established is still largely intact and can
be used for good—if we will.
Think about it for a minute. Our legislative system is
designed to ensure the will of the people. So how is it that
same-sex marriage has become the law of the land? How is
it that our schools have become laboratories of experimen-
“Culture is always a direct reflection of
the moral condition of the people.”
tation in sexuality, and legislation is now being formed to
ensure that teenage boys who decide they want to be girls
have the right to shower with your daughter in the public
school locker room (case in Illinois)? The opposite is also
true (case in Virginia). The answer is really quite simple.
A small but vocal contingent of the population began a
relentless campaign to move the boundary of the freedoms
of others in order to extend their own. This is the essential
pattern of every moral and cultural movement in America.
PBS published an interesting timeline of the “gay” struggle
(1924-2011). 1 It is quite informative. Legislative action
has only escalated since the completion of this documen-
tary. However, the latest research still states that the actual
number of Americans living this lifestyle is at or below 4%! 2
The ongoing struggle over the culture of life and abor-
tion has a similar story. A minority population moved the
boundary of where its rights begin and where those of
others, especially the unborn, end. This reality adds clarity
to the statement attributed to Edmund Burke, which says,
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good
men to do nothing.”
But let’s look at the other side of the moral spectrum.
There you find noble struggles including those for the civil
rights of ethnic minorities (13th, 14th, 15th amendments
to the Constitution), women’s suffrage (19th amendment),
school choice, and many other significant ideas. There we
find the same process to be true. When ideas are pursued
and people (no matter how few at the beginning) rally to
them, culture begins to change, and legislation always
follows. So we conclude that our American system is not
faulty, only the will and moral character of citizens who are
content to let evil triumph.
Positive legislative trends—especially in the realm
of education
There are positive trends in legislation related to education.
Almost all are directly tied to the state of public education in
this country. I will mention only two, but both are significant.
1. Legislation supporting homeschools
Homeschooling is the fastest growing education movement
in America today. A few short years ago, people who chose
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