In the last two weeks, we’ve taken a glimpse into the Framers’ mindset during the hot summer of 1787. We’ve studied several of our founding principles and the reasons they’re so important. Without this basic knowledge, it’s impossible to understand the intent of each passage of the Constitution.
We’ve also learned that to properly understand the Constitution, we also must study the Declaration of Independence. Lacking an understanding of the basic principles behind our founding documents is a primary reason why our government has grown to the point it has and why our civil society is in its current state of decay.
Colonel George Mason stated it this way:
“That no free government, nor the blessings of liberty can be preserved to any people but….by a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles.”
This really should be obvious, but it’s so easy to be distracted by the shiny objects of the day. That’s why focusing on foundational principles is so important. These principles are few, but they’re also timeless.
The Declaration of Independence states that we have “certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” It’s interesting to note that George Mason refused to sign the Constitution, because he didn’t believe it adequately protected individual rights.
So, let’s revisit the Bill of Rights to review some of those rights, what they mean, and how they’re misinterpreted today.
Amendment 1
“Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”
“Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...”
This phrase is widely misinterpreted to mean a “separation of Church and State.” But, that’s not what it says here or anywhere in the Constitution or the Declaration of Independence.
In its original context, this phrase was pulled from a letter Thomas Jefferson had written to the Danbury Baptists. If you read the letter in its entirety here, you can see Jefferson did not mean what we’re told today.
In fact one of the grievances in the Declaration was that King George compelled the colonists to be members of the Anglican Church. The colonists were Anglicans, Baptists, Quakers, Protestants, Lutherans, Roman Catholics, etc. This passage was meant to protect the church from the government, not the other way around.
In recent months this right has been violated through the prohibitions of church services, weddings, funerals and other religious gatherings during the COVID-19 lockdowns.
“abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.”
The Framers understood that the ability for citizens to engage in political speech without fear of retribution by the federal government was critical to individual liberty.
In totalitarian regimes, speaking against the central government can cause you to disappear. We are still mostly able to speak critically of our government, although cancel culture and shadow banning on social media have a similar silencing effect.
The role of the press was to report on the activities of the government, so that the people could hold government officials accountable. Increasingly, today’s media promote a narrative to advance an agenda instead of reporting the news.
“the right of the people peaceably to assemble.”
This particular phrase is especially relevant for today's headlines. Protesting is an historical tradition in America. We’ve seen peaceful protests associated with the Reopen Movement earlier this year and with the beginning of the civil rights protests.
Yet increasingly, those protests have been co-opted by militant factions that are certainly not protected by the 1st Amendment.
“petition the government for a redress of grievances.”
The Convention of States process is one of the ways We The People can "petition the government." As self-governing citizens, it’s our responsibility to take an active role in our government. If we do not hold our government officials accountable for their actions, the government will continue its uncontrolled, dysfunctional behavior.
To be frank, we are certainly there now.
The good news is that we have the roadmap to restore constitutional governance and civil society. The key is to understand our history, not to erase it. If we understand our founding principles, we can identify when we’ve not lived up to them and what we should aim for.
Taking the Patriot Academy’s Constitution Alive! course (held in partnership with the Convention of States Project) can help. It’s not too late to register. It will be back on Monday, September 14. Constitution Alive! is a free six-week course. It’s a fascinating journey. If you haven’t yet registered, the time to do so is now!
