Foundations 2: Aspirations

“When in the Course of human Events,…” You probably recognize those words as the opening of The Declaration of Independence for the now United States of America. This powerful document is both familiar and superficially known. It bears thoughtful examination—thoughtful about what it meant in 1776 and what it should mean in 2026. I claim no greater expertise than each of you; I hope this encourages us all to think about it. [Learn more about it here.]

In structure, the Declaration of Independence with its lofty and familiar aspirational statements about the rights of “all Men” and the relationship between government and the governed. Then, having posited the necessity of explaining why the colonies would take the extreme action of “Separation” from the British Crown, it closes with a direct assertion of this separation and the establishment of a new Free and Independent State, closing with the also recognizable “pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”

This enumeration of at least a two dozen “Injuries and Usurpations”, therein presented as conclusions, without space for supporting evidence, quickly show that the Founders were troubled by more than just the now reflexive ‘taxation without representation.’ The injuries include interference with local governance, military presence in peacetime, restricting immigration and the expansion of lands, and on and on. Were they all accurate? I don’t know, but they were all top of mind at the time.

I began thinking about this topic before the release of the newest historical documentary from Ken Burns and Sarah Botstein, The American Revolution. If you have not seen it, I highly recommend it. It is long, but you can stream segments at your convenience.

Several strong impressions stood out to me:

--This was a very brutal war. Patriot soldiers were underpaid, underfed, ill-clothed, suffered when in combat and when in captivity, and sometimes came and went in order to sustain their families. But this was a civil war, not just a war against the colonial power of Britain. It divided families and communities. Civilians thought to be allied with the opposition (by both sides) were abused, murdered, raped, robbed, and had their homes and livelihoods destroyed.

--This was a war about land as much as about taxation. The British government wanted to keep the colonies close to the seaboard. The desire for land, which had been unobtainable for the colonists when in Europe, was one push factor for immigration to North America. They wanted to expand westward into the lands of the Indigenous peoples. Many Indigenous communities were destroyed as a part of the Revolutionary War. Manifest destiny might not yet have had a name, but it was already an attitude among many colonists.

-- The sentiments of The Declaration of Independence are inspiring, but their implementation, dramatically incomplete at the time, remain unfulfilled today. They can simultaneously uplift our spirits and mire us at ground level. Our sacred Honor today can guide us to work toward sustaining and attaining the aspirational goals of this remarkable document.

We can work to make more evident the Truths claimed therein:

• To recognize all persons as equal.

• To ensure that all can enjoy Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

• To protect the concept that the government must derive its power from the

  consent of the governed.

  
  

And we, from our vantage point 250 years on, can help to refine the understanding of

these lofty goals. The Founders were men of their era, but men willing to embrace a vision. What is our vision?