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For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.  ~ Galatians 5:1

The Fourth of July is America's birthday. The anniversary of the Declaration of Independence gives us a good chance to reflect on our nation's religious roots.

The best way to observe our nation's birthday is to re-read the declaration and to rededicate ourselves to the principles of our nation's founding document.

The Declaration of Independence is America's great religious document

The Declaration of Independence is the official and unequivocal affirmation by the American people of their belief and faith in God.  It affirms God's existence as a "self-evident" truth that requires no further discussion or debate. The nation created by the great Declaration is God's country. The rights it defines are God-given. The actions of its signers are God-inspired.

The Declaration of Independence proclaims God as Creator

The Declaration contains five references to God - God as supreme Lawmaker, God as Creator of all men, God as the Source of all rights, God as the world's supreme Judge, and God as our Protector on whom we can rely.

The Declaration of Independence declares that each of us is created. If we were created, we must have had a Creator. The Declaration of Independence declares that each of us is created equal. This means equally endowed with unalienable rights. It does not mean that all are born with equal capabilities, as obviously they are not. Nor does it mean that all of us can be made equal, as Communist dogma alleges. Obviously and realistically, as the modern discovery of DNA now confirms, each of God's creatures is unequal and different in every other way from every other person who has ever lived or ever will live on this earth.

The Declaration of Independence proclaims natural rights as gifts of God

The Declaration of Independence proclaims that life and liberty are the unalienable gifts of God - natural rights - which no person or government can rightfully take away. It affirms that the purpose of government is to secure our God-given unalienable individual rights, and that government derives its powers from the consent of the governed. Our Declaration reduced government from master to servant, for the first time in history.

An 1876 print of the "Declaration Committee," that drafted the Declaration of Independence -
Thomas Jefferson, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston, and John Adams.

The original declaration is maintained at the National Archives in Washington, DC.  View a snapshot of the original document, or read the text (it's not long!).

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

More than half of them suffered greatly.
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army.
One had two sons captured.
Nine fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
Eleven were merchants.
Nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated.

But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy.  He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKean was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.   He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding.  His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Rutledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters.  He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire.  The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife’s bedside as she was dying.  Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste.  For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.  A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart. 

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution.  These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians.  They were soft-spoken men of means and education.  They had security, but they valued liberty more.  They pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."

They gave us a free and independent America.  We should take a moment to silently thank these patriots for the freedom we have, and commit ourselves to protecting and defending that freedom.

God has shown us the way to the freedom and happiness we seek.  We can follow in the footsteps of God's Son.  We can live values that are good and true and teach our children to do so as well.

The Pledge of Allegiance and what it means:

I pledge means: I promise

allegiance means: my support and loyalty

to the flag means: the Stars and Stripes, the world's most recognizable symbol of democracy

of the united states of America means: fifty self-governed, free and unique states united in support of democracy, equality and justice

 

and to the republic for which it stands means: a nation in which the power rests with the people, who elect fellow countrymen to govern with their consent

 

one nation means: one country united in the pursuit of a more perfect union, dedicated to the goals of peace, security and happiness

 

under God means: acknowledging the supreme and loving presence to Whom we look for guidance

 

indivisible means: unbreakable

 

with liberty means: the right to freedom

 

and justice means: impartial, equal and fair

 

for all means: everyone

Did you know that the Liberty Bell is engraved with a verse from the Bible?
"Proclaim liberty throughout the land and to all the inhabitants thereof"
~ Leviticus 25:10

Many colonists, beginning with the Pilgrims in 1620, came to the New World to create communities where they could worship in their own way.  They headed for America to escape persecution for their religious beliefs.   Among them were Huguenots from France, Moravians from Germany, Jews from throughout Europe, and Roman Catholics from England.

In 1782, the Congress of the Confederation chose the red, white and blue colors for the Great Seal of the United States and listed their meaning as: white represents purity and innocence, red for valor and hardiness, and blue for vigilance, perseverance, and justice.  Legend has it that George Washington interpreted the elements of the flag this way: the stars were taken from the sky, the red from the British colors, and the white stripes signified the secession from the mother country. However, there is no official designation or meaning for the colors of the flag.

. . . ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.  ~ John 8:32

If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will
be a Nation gone under.  ~ President Ronald Reagan

Now more that ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their Congress.  If that body be ignorant, reckless, and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness, and corruption.  If the next centennial does not find us a great nation...it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces.  ~ James Abram Garfield

May God's blessings be upon all of us,
moving from each heart to all hearts,
uniting us like stars and stripes,
one flag, one people
many cultures, many traditions, many roots,
symbolizing that if we can live in our great diversity,
listening, working, playing, and praying together,
so too can the world.  Amen.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people chosen as his very own.  ~ Psalm 33:12

 Have a happy and safe 4th of July!