It was brought to my attention by my good friend, Jerry Hogan, that I changed one letter in a word from the Declaration of Independence in the prayer I presented at the Right to Life Banquet. That historic document proclaims we have been endowed by our Creator with "unalienable" and not "inalienable" rights. An "unalienable" right cannot be transferred. You cannot transfer your life to someone else - or your liberty or pursuit of happiness given to you by God.
This is the great miracle of the "new world order" our founding fathers established. Government does not give these gifts to its citizens. John Adams argued for this "u" when the Declaration was being written because he wanted to place emphasis on this Divine Providence. He later wrote in the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780, "All men are born free and equal, and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights." There are certain acts that are criminal because they break these unalienable rights. Slavery is wrong because God created all men equal, giving us the right of liberty. Abortion is a heinous crime against the Maker because life is taken away from an innocent child. The myth of evolution is a curse upon a people because it refuses to thank the One who has fashioned our universe. The greed we have recently seen in our society is a crime because it is stealing from another's pursuit of happiness.
We, as Americans, need to understand that rights are given to us by God and that government may only rule with the consent of "We the People." The "u" is important because the Eternal One has given these gifts to "you" and me.
The dangerous plea of today is that we need "change," which translates into Washington taking care of all our problems. Our founding fathers stressed the importance of limited government, personal responsibility and religious freedom as the means of survival for our republic. America will only continue to exist as we look to the One who has given us life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Democracy is only possible as we manage ourselves and not expect government to be our all in all but look to God as our foundation.
Thanks, Jerry, for pointing out my error. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for our unalienable rights.
