Defining America for 250 Years
Much of the world’s history has been dominated by conquering empires. The Assyrian Empire, for example, dominated from approximately 1800 to 612 BC. Then, from 612 to 539 BC, the Babylonian Empire was dominant. 550 to 330 BC was dominated by the Persian Empire, to then be replaced by the Greek Empire (323 BC), then the Roman Empire with Caesar Augustus (starting in 27 BC) lasting until 1453 AD (fall of Constantinople).
The founding of the United States of America 250 years ago was very different. The United States was not founded to be a new empire. On the contrary, the United States of America was founded to free people from the British Empire. In order to be free, the early patriots had to “throw off” the British Government through military success. Yet, the United States was not defined by its military.
The United States was, and still is, defined by its ideas. Those ideas are summarized in our Declaration of Independence. These ideas, stated simply, are that nations and individuals “are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” And by protecting and championing these God-given rights, America has become an economic powerhouse. People have been free to own their ideas as they pursue life, liberty and happiness.
Freedom, however, comes and has survived only at a high price. It has been preserved by those who risked and gave their lives to oppose the German, Italian and Japanese empires of World War I and World War II. At this point in our history, our personal and national freedom can only be preserved by successfully opposing the Chinese Communist empire, and the would-be empire of the World Economic Forum, along with the UN. None of these believe in our Creator God and therefore our God-given right to be free. We are currently deeply engaged in opposition to their attempts to rob us of our freedoms and God-given Rights by destroying our borders, our national sovereignty and our culture.
We are the beneficiaries of America’s freedom that others have won and preserved for us. It has been preserved primarily by passing on to the generations a firm commitment to the idea that individuals and nations have a God-given right to freedom.
The questions before us now are: Do we recognize the extraordinary blessing of the American founding ideal of freedom that has been passed down to us? And are we willing to pay the necessary price to remain free?