Abraham Lincoln, Lyceum Address: ". . . Let reverence for the laws
be breathed by every American mother to the lisping babe that prattles in her
lap; let it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be
written in primers, in spelling books and almanacs; let it be preached from the
pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, enforced in courts of justice. In
short, let it become the political religion of the nation. . . ."
Why Abraham Lincoln Expressed Reverence For Our Laws
Dear Citizen of our American Union in Liberty,
Abraham Lincoln, in his Lyceum address, expressed these words: "... As
the patriots of ‘76 did to the support of the Declaration of Independence, so
to the support of the Constitution and laws let every American pledge his life,
his property and his sacred honor. Let every man remember that to violate the
law is to trample on the blood of his father, and to tear the charter of his own
and his children’s liberty. Let reverence for the laws be . . . . taught in
schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; . . . . let it be preached from the
pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, enforced in courts of justice. In
short, let it become the political religion of the nation. . . ."
It is apparent that Abraham Lincoln was a patriot of our political union in
the cause of liberty.
The Declaration of Independence can be referred to as a religious document in
that it, in more than one instance, gives recognition to a belief in God as in
"Nature’s God", "Creator", and "divine
Providence".
The people who forged this Nation by way of the Declaration of Independence
did so because of two reasons, and two reasons only. They did so because, first,
their faith in God and, second, their love for freedom combined to lift them
above the chains of bondage. Their trust in God for the gift of liberty was
greater than their fear of death. And so, in the closing remarks of the
Declaration, we read these inspiring words of faith, "And for the support
of this Declaration, with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine
Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our
sacred Honor."
People such as these are our Nation’s heroes.
The heroes of our Nation are many. They are the reason our America is called
the land of the free and the home of the brave. They fought the war of the
American Revolution to keep their freedom, and it is only through the continual
vigilance of such heroes that we have freedom today.
Our Constitutional rights have been purchased and preserved for us at the
price of limb and life in many battles. What value of remembrance do we put on
the lives of those who made this sacrifice for us? Should we value their
sacrifices so little that we would be willing to give up our rights of liberty
and independence into the hands of men for a promise of peace, or of having
protection from terrorism? When the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution,
wasn’t it this truth that they realized, that no person in government can be
trusted beyond that which is allowed by the chains of Constitutional law?
In George Washington’s Farewell Address he said, "The — Constitution
— ‘till changed —,’ is sacredly obligatory upon all — But let there be
no change by usurpation; for though this, in one instance, may be the instrument
of good, it is the customary weapon by which free governments are destroyed. —"
Many hero patriots have been willing to pledge their Lives, their Fortunes,
and their sacred Honor in support of our nation’s Constitution that Abraham
Lincoln referred to as the charter of our liberty. We will have freedom only as
long as we have respect for the laws of our liberty, which means keeping our
reverence for the law inviolate even in war.
Many Americans are expressing their concern for violations of our law as seen
in such federal actions as in the Patriot Act legislation.
From the internet site of the Bill Of Rights Defense Committee at http://www.bordc.org
, we learn of growing numbers of alarmed Americans throughout our country. As
copied from this site on August 29, 2004, a total of " Four states and 343
cities and counties have passed resolutions to protect their 53,304,850
residents’ civil liberties. Hundreds more resolutions critical of the USA
PATRIOT Act are in progress."
The anti-rights politicians have no problem making excuses for why our
Constitution is no longer the right law for our nation’s modern priorities.
They tell us that these expanded federal powers are only temporary during these
times of war against terrorism.
What better way is there for an enemy to make our people willing to give up
their rights of Constitutional law than through the public fear created from the
threat of terrorism? They want us to believe that these illegal laws are no
reason for us to be concerned. However, as witnessed in public resolutions from
across our country, as read from the Bill Of Rights Defense Committee web site,
we have reasons to be concerned.
It is only in God and in the laws of our Constitution that we should owe our
allegiance to. Our freedoms were given to us by the hand of God. Our victory
over oppression and our independence from foreign control was made possible by
the hand of God. If we now turn our backs on the laws of our liberty, what help
can we expect from God’s hand.
If our Constitution needs to be repaired in order to better serve our people,
then we can use the law of the Constitution that is intended to accomplish that
needed repair. Until such an amendment is properly accomplished, the law is
binding as it stands.
We also have a problem with our national independence becoming threatened by
global dependence. The influence of international corporate capitalism speaks
with an agenda that is against the interests of American independence. Our
United States Government has entered into international trade agreements that
allow cheaper foreign made products to undercut our local manufacturing
industry. The result is, as we lose those manufacturing jobs, we become more
dependent on foreign made products.
To keep an even playing field is all the help that our industry expects from
Government. We have no problem with competition when we have a fair run, but
differences in production costs such as workers wages and environmental laws
have caused the loss of a lot of our industry. If only for the cause of our
national security and independence, we should be able to expect enough
patriotism from our law makers that they would make sure tariffs work for us to
have fair trade.
Our news and entertainment media have also become controlled too much by the
influence of the corporations. They have a bias for certain types of news as
determined by a few editors that give news and publicity that benefits the
agenda of those who own the controlling interest.
The best way for independent Americans to overcome this media bias and have a
strong voice for the interests of American patriotism is for many people to join
the same choir, so to speak, and unite through a project such as the American
Patriotism Project.
The news media corporations tend to steer away from any patriotic education
that would promote allegiance to our independence and Constitutional laws. If
"we the people" don’t accomplish the needed education ourselves,
then this nation of independence and liberty, that was blessed by the hand of
God, may become lost in the history of the past in favor of a man made United
Nations or New World Order global government.
In Defense of Liberty Confirmed in Law,
The American Patriotism Project
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