On July 4, 1776 the Second Continental Congress enacted “The Unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America”, known since then as “The Declaration of Independence”:
When in the Course of human Events, it becomes necessary for one People to dissolve the Political Bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the Powers of the Earth, the separate and equal Station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent Respect to the opinions of Mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the Separation….
This first paragraph of the declaration officially launched a process of political separation, of revolt, of the thirteen British New World colonies from the rule of the King of Great Britain and his kingdom.
Was it reasonable? Was it justified? Was it, so to speak, legal and law abiding? The answer, of course, depended on which system and body of law one was following.
Clearly, from a British point of view, it was a matter of rebellion. On the other hand, it was celebrated and defended by the colonists (as The Declaration of Independence went on to say) as a matter of rights, justice, and liberty. The key word and concept of the declaration of the colonists was Independence, and it remains, still, as a key concept and value in the contemporary American mind and practice.
“It’s a free country, aint it?” was and still is a classic defensive comeback from someone in the U.S. who feels that they’re being pushed around, accused of a crime, or being disparaged or treated unjustly.
But, does independence mean I can say or do anything, whatever I choose? Don’t I have any responsibility for the consequences of what I say, promote, endorse, or do?
“Independence” means free from the influence, control, or determination of another or others, not depending on them.
Isn’t that, so to speak, exactly the way God made us, each of us? Isn’t that exactly what the story of the creation in Genesis teaches?
No!
Genesis is about how God made each and all of us and about how, even from the beginning, we have failed to live up to our creator’s plans and instructions.
Pure, total independence—devoid of any responsibility whatsoever for others—goes against our nature, our maker’s design, and all we hold dear.
In the words of the Pledge of Allegiance, we aspire to be “One Nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all.”
This is a goal, a work in progress, a challenge that drives us, a value that we esteem—but, being the limited and weak creatures that we are, we have to keep working at it all the time and not forgetting it. (Remember the remedy for failing: “If you don’t succeed, then try, try again!”)
Like the Declaration of Independence and the Pledge of Allegiance, the U.S. National Anthem also articulates a high ideal for the country, describing it as “the Land of the free and the home of the brave.”
Is it really the land of the free? Does every U.S. citizen consider himself/herself totally free and brave? Again, it voices a goal for the future, a work in progress, but not necessarily the current state of affairs.
It’s the U.S. aspirations that have made it so attractive to people from many lands. The U.S. and each of us still struggle to achieve our goals—it’s a work in progress; it’s come a long way but still has a long way to go!
2 July 2023