Happy Independence Day

As we stop and remember the founding of this great country, I am reminded of the small group of individuals willing to step up and make a difference. Meeting under "Liberty Trees", in private homes, in taverns and in churches, in communities criss-crossing the colonies, they discussed at length the "state of affairs" of their country. The "Spirit of Liberty" was ignited within their very souls and it became clear that they must act.

A number of people during that time were afraid- with good reason – to “take on” the greatest military power in the world. Others actually favored the crown, while still others were content to sit on the sidelines and watch to see how things played out, declaring themselves to be loyal patriots once the relatively small band of freedom fighters actually won. Mark Twain spoke the truth when he said "In the beginning of a change the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot." Those early patriots knew that they risked their “lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor”. There was no guarantee that they would be successful – indeed, all odds were against them. Many of the signers of the Declaration of Independence and their families paid a very high cost in their quest for freedom. Five signers were captured by the British. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. One lost his son serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 died during before the battle at Yorktown. Several lost their fortunes. Beyond those great men who were willing to sign their names on the dotted line, so to speak, were the many men, women and children willing to give their all for the chance to be free from tyranny and oppression.

During their day, those men we call our "Founding Fathers" were able to see the clear differences between the tyranny they lived under and the freedom they so fervently desired. I wonder if in our day we have that same clarity of vision. Thomas Paine said "The greatest tyrannies are always perpetrated in the name of the noblest causes." Well-known author C.S.Lewis echoed those sentiments when he said: "Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience."


The Constitution is our standard. It has been raised. It may seem a bit beaten and tattered, but this divinely inspired form of government still remains, as George Washington said, "The standard to which the wise and honest can repair."It sometimes seems they have all but been forgotten by the citizens of our country. Fortunately, the light of liberty has not yet been extinguished. I have been lucky enough to meet and work with some real patriots - people who have not forgotten those standards and who know that "The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt." -- John Philpot Curran, 1790. Elie Weisel said "There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest." I am "out there" as a voice. Join me, won't you? I think I can safely promise that you will not be bored. :-)