Happy 4th of July!
The Bible tells us "The Truth shall set you free." Those who understand this seek the truth and cherish it. To "seek" it implies that it exists apart from ourselves. It is, in some way, "objective" and doesn't depend on what we think or "feel" about it. Such a view implies that some truths are and always have been absolute. The Ten Commandments are based on this understanding.
An example of truth will cross our paths today, July 4th, the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. After a brief introductory paragraph in that world-changing document, we find this bold declaration: "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..." Those truths - which should be known to all of us Americans - stand today as they did then. Nothing has changed.
Nothing has changed because they come from our Creator - from God. Those who agreed to sign the Declaration of Independence understood this. The citizens of our country at that time also understood this. In fact, that understanding formed the basis of their decision to separate from England. They felt that their countrymen across the ocean no longer respected their liberty and their other rights that ultimately came from God. As a result, they came to the conclusion that they had to free themselves from their Mother Country, something they did not intend to do when the disputes over taxation and other incursions on their liberty first arose. But once they saw the truth of the matter, in a very real sense, the truth set them free.
Today, unfortunately, the truth that seems most self-evident is that fewer and fewer of us believe in truth. Absolute truth doesn't exist for many of us. "Relativism" has replaced it. Those who espouse relativism believe that that all knowledge and morality exist in relation to culture, society and/or historical context, and thus are not absolute. It's important that we resist this tidal wave of relativism that washes over and obscures the truth. Rather, we can and should be leading the way to a renewal of what was once a common understanding that some things are true, some false, some good, some bad. We cannot afford to be bullied by the "Dictatorship of Relativism" about which Pope Benedict warned so eloquently.
Truth has the power to move us as nothing else. This July 4th, we will treasure the truth that moved millions of our ancestors to live virtuous lives, dedicated to the welfare of their families and the common good. Today that same truth has the power to take us out of ourselves and our typical self-centered thoughts and feelings and turn our attention, to a concern for others, beginning with our own families and extending to our country, Ultimately a deep and abiding love of truth will lead us to a deep and abiding love of God.
Let's pray that this 4th of July finds us renewed and invigorated with a love of Truth as we express our love for our country. If you need a little motivation here, what could be better than the late great Ray Charles interpretation of America the Beautiful.
Here are the complete lyrics to this wonderful anthem.
An example of truth will cross our paths today, July 4th, the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. After a brief introductory paragraph in that world-changing document, we find this bold declaration: "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..." Those truths - which should be known to all of us Americans - stand today as they did then. Nothing has changed.
Nothing has changed because they come from our Creator - from God. Those who agreed to sign the Declaration of Independence understood this. The citizens of our country at that time also understood this. In fact, that understanding formed the basis of their decision to separate from England. They felt that their countrymen across the ocean no longer respected their liberty and their other rights that ultimately came from God. As a result, they came to the conclusion that they had to free themselves from their Mother Country, something they did not intend to do when the disputes over taxation and other incursions on their liberty first arose. But once they saw the truth of the matter, in a very real sense, the truth set them free.
Today, unfortunately, the truth that seems most self-evident is that fewer and fewer of us believe in truth. Absolute truth doesn't exist for many of us. "Relativism" has replaced it. Those who espouse relativism believe that that all knowledge and morality exist in relation to culture, society and/or historical context, and thus are not absolute. It's important that we resist this tidal wave of relativism that washes over and obscures the truth. Rather, we can and should be leading the way to a renewal of what was once a common understanding that some things are true, some false, some good, some bad. We cannot afford to be bullied by the "Dictatorship of Relativism" about which Pope Benedict warned so eloquently.
Truth has the power to move us as nothing else. This July 4th, we will treasure the truth that moved millions of our ancestors to live virtuous lives, dedicated to the welfare of their families and the common good. Today that same truth has the power to take us out of ourselves and our typical self-centered thoughts and feelings and turn our attention, to a concern for others, beginning with our own families and extending to our country, Ultimately a deep and abiding love of truth will lead us to a deep and abiding love of God.
Let's pray that this 4th of July finds us renewed and invigorated with a love of Truth as we express our love for our country. If you need a little motivation here, what could be better than the late great Ray Charles interpretation of America the Beautiful.
Here are the complete lyrics to this wonderful anthem.
O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
O beautiful for pilgrim feet,
Whose stern impassion’d stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev’ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!
O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev’ry gain divine!
O Beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam,
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
O beautiful for pilgrim feet,
Whose stern impassion’d stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev’ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!
O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev’ry gain divine!
O Beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam,
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
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