God and the Republic

American Thinker ^ | December 25, 2010 | Ron Hunnicutt

[neverdem]

Progressives delight in proclaiming that God is not mentioned in the Constitution.  But the Declaration of Independence does mention our Creator in the first two paragraphs along with the last.  Our Declaration is the why of what our Founding Fathers did.  The Constitution is the how.  The Declaration is the foundation, and the Constitution is the structure or framework of our government.  The Declaration is act one, and the Constitution is act two.  Both acts make for a viable construct.  Leave one or the other out, and the whole becomes incoherent.

What is the purpose of the Constitution?  To set up a government that acknowledges our equality in God's eyes (and yes, the equality stops right there, except for the idea that all men should have equality before the law in a courtroom) and allows us to exercise our "unalienable rights," among other things.  The Declaration states our independence from tyranny, and so the obvious need for the Constitution is at hand.

If progressives wish to discount our Declaration or discount God's presence in the Declaration, then the purpose of our very existence as a nation becomes somewhat confused.  The Founders created a constitutional republic, but why?  For what purpose?  The Declaration gives the why and purpose.  A part of the Founders' justification for declaring independence was that King George III "broke covenant" with the colonists for many reasons, and "covenant" is a sober biblical concept.

Just so that we are clear about all of these matters, most Christians do not advocate a theocracy, although progressives delight in announcing otherwise.  It's just that the liberal construct of "separation of church and state" has mutated into state-enforced atheism.  The First Amendment says, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof[.]"  It is about Congress!  Not the people!  It does not say that Christians cannot influence or be involved in government.  It does not say that God has to be removed from anything government has its tentacles in.  It does not say that the ACLU can remove a Christian symbol at will or with the threat of litigation.  Progressives have used the ruse of "separation of church and state," which is not in the Constitution, to rabidly attack everything Christian.  Christians should have as much influence in our culture and on our government as anyone else.  Behind every law is some sort of value, and the source of that value is vital.

Now, here is another item of galactic importance in our Declaration.  Here is what it says: that men are "endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights[.]"  Those rights, "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," are from God Himself, not from governments or government leaders.  So the Declaration is a most vital statement by the Founders.  The importance of this cannot be overemphasized.  To an atheist leader like Stalin, Lenin, Mao or Hitler, people have no God-given rights at all.

So now we are at a vital point: most of the time, when someone removes God from an equation, the result is confusion, dysfunction, and incoherency.  Liberalism does this routinely and with reckless abandon.  It is incoherent to suggest that abortion does not snuff out a life.  It is incoherent to suggest that there is virtue in deficit spending.  It is incoherent to suggest that there is no God, and Hitler just died and that's the end of it.

But for most progressives, that incoherence is preferable to the difficulty of having God in the equation.  If God is in the equation, then maybe He has something to say about how I live and what I do.  He might very well have some sort of claim on my very existence.

The Founding Fathers were an enlightened bunch, and they afforded God his proper place.  In the beginning...

[neverdem]

The Declaration of Independence: A Transcription

It has four references to God: once in each of the first two paragraphs and twice in the last paragraph.

[Jim Robinson]

Amen. God bless America, pass the ammunition.

[achilles2000]

The Constitution does refer to Christ at the end with the explicit dating “In the year of our Lord...” Note the cap, and they meant it.

[Pollster1]

The Constitution does refer to Christ at the end with the explicit dating “In the year of our Lord...” Note the cap, and they meant it.

It must have been nice, even with a frightful war, to have lived in the days when America's leaders meant what they said and the American people mostly admired that quality. You can see why progressives want to forget the Declaration though. Besides that "God" word that gets in the way of us bowing to earthly leaders, there's another phrase that worries them:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government . . .

[Jacquerie]

To an atheist leader like Stalin, Lenin, Mao or Hitler, people have no God-given rights at all.

Both the Wise Latina and the Bull Kagan in their Senate hearings denied any applicability whatsoever of the 9th Amendment.

Where God's Law is not supreme, not superior to the law of men, oppression and tyranny are inevitable.

[ALPAPilot]

In the year of our Lord...” Note the cap, and they meant it.

I like the "our" too. It's not just "the Lord", it is OUR Lord. And so that it isn't written off as a formality, they added the unique: and of the Independence of the United States of America the Twelfth.

[reefdiver]

The Liberal, or Progressive is at work doing much the same as Lucifer did. Remove God from any equation. Will not serve! The best and brightest said just prior to Michael kicking his ass out of Heaven. Well looking back at any of the attempts of this work and you will only find destruction, isolation, ridicule, sadness, and again and again a new embrace of OUR LORD.
They have a free will, They and I will be called to an accounting of our lives. Eternity is a long time, Being ashamed of saying Christmas and other stupid things like Nina Totenberg just did are not things I want to carry in my pocket when I meet Our Lord.

[Cheetahcat]

The Constitution is laid out like the Holy Bible.

[goldstategop]

America is premised on the notion our rights come from God and not from the hand of the state. Our belief in freedom, individual conscience, moral responsibility and limited government come from the view that we are created by God in His image to be the stewards of the earth. We were not meant to remake it for evil but to preserve it for good. And without all this - America is simply not America. I think my country is good as it was. I never seek for it to be perfected in the image of those who hate it. I love the America that fears God and in which in His Name, its people are the rightful and true master of their own house.

[azhenfud]

If Totenberg was so worried over the Defense Dept and spending she had to apologize for a Christmas party, then Public TV is one area the budget could be cut without having any pain incurred....

[davetex]

Mr. Robinson, Merry Christmas to you and your family. Thank you for this wonderful place where like minded folks can gather. And next time you’re in Texas, you have a standing invitation to be my guest at our local private shooting range.

God Bless you Sir.

[TheCause]

Too Late to Apologize: A Declaration

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZfRaWAtBVg

[Lauren BaRecall]

Obviously, there are still too many people fornicating, aborting, using drugs, etc., to be preoccupied with the principles on which your statement (which is right on the mark) rests. As far as they're concerned, there is no connection between the result of the blessings of God, which is the authentic America, and the steady loss of those blessings illustrated by the general direction in which America has been turning.

As far as they're concerned, they can't conceive of ever losing their liberty. They assume that the smart phones, easy sex, and discretionary income, etc., will continue unabated independent of the evil unleashed in this country by their immoral actions and thoughtlessness concerning God.

[Lauren BaRecall]

IMO, that’s why libs are trying their best to change the dating from 2010 AD (Anno Domini - Year of Our Lord) to 2010 CE (Common Era). “Christian Era” is palmed off as an alternative to “Common Era,” but this is Western Civilization, dammit! When a Muslim comes to NYC, he has to change his watch according to Eastern Time, and the use of “AD” is no different a situation.

The Principle of When In Rome. Period.

[neverdem]

Actually, Huck, It's Palin Who Gets It

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In the gay marriage debate, stop playing the hate card

Some noteworthy articles about politics, foreign or military affairs, IMHO, FReepmail me if you want on or off my list.

[neverdem]

Amen. God bless America, pass the ammunition.

You guys have created an excellent forum for passing the ideological ammunition.

[Gene Eric]

Christianity and the Constitution are inseparable. It matters not what others say.

[LetMarch]

Thanks for your post! The kind of separation these so called “Progressives” teach is regressive!

I was in a bank about 19 years ago, I was in it only about twice a month. If I didn’t offer Christian tracts to those that waited on me, some would ask for them.

Once, I was waited on by a very stern, unhappy looking young woman; I asked her,”Do you enjoy the literature I leave?” She snapped; “You leave them every time you come in here!” I said; “Oh! most everyone always tells me they are a blessing to them.”

She snapped back; “This is a place of business!” I said; “I know young lady,I’ve been doing business with this bank way before you were born. Nevertheless, I will try not to offend you.”

If I remember correctly, that is about the time P.C. (political correctness became the rage) They were looking for an excuse to smother and stiffle the message of truth through our Lord Jesus Christ.

We must remember: “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.” (Psalm 9:17)

And in Psalm 33:12; “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.”

“Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.” (Proverbs 14:34)

[StonyBurk]

This day after Christmas I have been blessed by some of the best posts and responses I’ve seen in some time. Cant help but wonder if on my part at least, it isn’t relative to the fact that Obama is off on some vacation or whatever— and Congress has gone home -There is No news from the American Sodom to distract and stir the pot.

[Terry Mross]

If it was written today and one atheist objected to the word “our”, it would be taken out.