Today Americans the world over will celebrate Independence Day with fireworks, parades and baseball games.
It was on this day in 1776 that the Declaration of Independence was finally approved by Congress. That Declaration famously stated, “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.”
Born out of the grievances of colonists regarding taxation and representation, the declaration has many historical influences. Some see it as the application of the thought of liberal philosophers and the enlightenment whilst other look further back to the Magna Carta.
Meanwhile, some take an even longer view looking to the Old Testament as the foundation of the declaration and there is certainly something to be said for this. The Bible teaches that humanity is created in the image of God and in the ten commandments and the wider law we can see that this has implications for the way we should order society.
As the Old Testament prophets warned, however, any nation that claims to have God on their side is likely to be on shaky ground and that applies as much to the divine right of kings as it does to the pursuit of happiness.
In amongst all of these influences, however, we can all join with Americans today as we pray that God might bless America.
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