But, that changed today. I printed off a copy, and I took my time reading it, it taking me probably over 2 hours; I wanted to ensure that I understood it. I took lots of notes, mostly questions because I struggled to understand what it was saying at parts.
I found it interesting to see just how everything is set up. No wonder people hold this in such high regard; there is something to it. I did not read the Bill of Rights or any further amendments, but the core document itself, which dealt primarily with the duties and powers of the legislative, executive and judicial branches, went into impressive detail; our Founding Fathers really put a lot of thought into it!
I found a lot of meaning in the initial Preamble to the Constitution:
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
When they wrote this, this was not a self-centered wishlist. This was something they intended to be the most beneficial Constitution possible for quite a ways down the road. This is most evident in the phrase, "secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity" (emphasis added). This particular phrasing is made even more significant when we see that most of Christianity view the birth of America to have received divine intervention. I firmly believe this document (along with many other things involved in the creation of America) had God's hand involved. This is a common belief in Christianity, and it is actually an official position of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Church I belong to.
Although, such a stance is is not baseless; rather, it is quite evident when we consider other things. Most of the pilgrims emigrated primarily for freedom to worship Christ how they would, which naturally means that most raised in America would be Christian also. There is much proof that many of the Founding Fathers were Christian. There are even references to God and religion in this and other documents, two examples being, "endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights," from the Declaration of Independence, as well as the freedom of religious worship as found in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights (since they came all the way here to worship according to their conscience, it is natural they would create a statute to preserve it).
So, when writing this, the Founding Fathers had a vision that extended far beyond their own time on the Earth. They made a document, with the help of God, that was to represent how God would have His children be governed. While the Earth will end and America will not be around forever, there are eternal ideas found here.
We see just how important this was to God later on when, during the Revolutionary War, America contested none other than the world power of that time; Great Britain. There is no conceivable way that a bunch of lowly rebels could withstand the greatest empire on the planet! But God had greater things in mind, and He preserved them whenever they needed. Is this to say that God only loves America, or only values their freedom? No, but I feel that God did have a special mission in mind that could only be accomplished in America.
What are some of the blessings we enjoy as Americans? Well, I'll list a few that I personally enjoy: first, the freedom of religion. Not only do I enjoy this in a personal way, but if it were not for that, arguably the best thing to happen to America would never have even started: the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Also, the freedom of speech; there are some countries I would not even be able to talk freely the way I do here on this blog. Because of our freedom of speech, we are free to converse, to debate, to instruct, to cooperate, to imagine, to think, to pursue, to invent. Take it away, and we could not aspire for anything. I am grateful for my family, and some countries restrict the number of children one couple may have. Personally, I would not want any less than the 10 my mother and father had! We are free to pursue education, and we enjoy wealth that few others enjoy; even our "poor" usually do not go without the bare essentials.
So, as we take this special day to remember the Constitution of the United States of America, remember the blessings that came forth as a result of this great country. Then pray to God, thanking Him for everything.
God bless y'all!
Patrick
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