I am an American

The following post is a talk that I gave a month ago in two wards with mixed reviews. It never occured to me that this topic would not be welcomed with open hearts & minds, most of what I said is quoted directly from the Prophets. I was, and to an extent still am, disturbed by the response of primarily one ward. I am interested in your opinions. Is there anything doctrinally unsound in what I said? Is this to direct for Sacrament meeting? Are people really indifferent to the responsibilities asociated with liberty? I gave a similar talk last week in my home ward where the message was very well recieved. Anyway, For What It's Worth, here are my musings on our great Nation. Please comment, ya never know I may actually respond.

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I begin today in the 1st book of Nephi, chapter 13 verses 12-14. These verses are part of Nephi’s vision where the angel takes him to the top of a high mountain & shows him the meaning of the vision of the tree of life and much more. This is part of the more.

“And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land. And it came to pass that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went forth out of captivity, upon the many waters. And it came to pass that I beheld many multitudes of the Gentiles upon the land of promise…And I beheld the Spirit of the Lord, that it was upon the Gentiles, and they did prosper and obtain the land for their inheritance;….

Columbus, Vespucci, the Pilgrims & those that followed them came to this continent to this land under the direction & inspiration of God. In verse 16 Nephi saw that they “did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was with them.” Nephi says later (2 Nephi 1:5) that they had “obtained a land of promise, a land which is choice above all other lands” and that “the Lord hath covenanted this land unto (Nephi), and to (his) children forever,” as well as unto “all those who should be led out of other countries by the hand of the Lord.” Brother & sisters we literally live in the promised land. Jesus himself told the Nephites (3 Nephi 21:4) that God the Father in his wisdom established the gentiles in this land as a free people that his purposes might be fulfilled. Nephi’s vision continues in verses 17-19

“And I beheld that their mother Gentiles were gathered together upon the waters, and upon the land also, to battle against them. And I beheld that the power of God was with them, and also that the wrath of God was upon all those that were gathered together against them to battle. And I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles were delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations.”

The Founding generation of this Nation, These United States of America, was chosen for & directed in their cause. God said (D&C 101:77-80) that

….the laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles; That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment… And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood.

In general conference April 1898 President Wilford Woodruff testified “that those men who laid the foundation of this American government and signed the Declaration of Independence were the best spirits the God of heaven could find on the face of the earth. They were choice spirits, not wicked men. General Washington and all the men that labored for the purpose were inspired of the Lord.”

It is about these wise men & the Constitution they drafted that wish to speak today.

In the same Conference talk President Woodruff also stated that “Every one of those men that signed the Declaration of Independence , with General Washington, called upon me, as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, in the Temple at St. George, two consecutive nights, and demanded at my hands that I should go forth and attend to the ordinances of the House of God for them.”

References from his Journal of discourses, his personal journals and temple records indicate that in addition to the men specifically mentioned in this conference address there where all except 3 Presidents of the United Stated up to and including Andrew Johnson, 50 other eminent men & 70 women. Among these eminent men & women appear such famous names as Christopher Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci, Fredrick the Great, “Stonewall” Jackson, Sir Walter Scott, William Wadsworth, John Wesley & Martin Luther, Jane Austin, Charlotte Bronte, Abigail Adams, Martha Washington, Queen Marie Antoinette & her mother. Also present was Benito Juarez, liberator of Mexico & his wife Margarita. They were a diverse group, poets, actors, soldiers, preachers, kings, congressmen, artists, explorers & scientists. All were Men & Women of courage, discipline and faith. They lived their lives w/ integrity. Each of them in some way great or small impacted the founding of our country. Their influence promoted individual liberties, the freedom to think, believe & act according to our own conscience. These men & women merit our praise, admiration & our study. I encourage you to read about them, read what they wrote, follow their examples. Their lives are truly inspiring.

President Ezra Taft Benson in his booklet “The Constitution, A Heavenly Banner” begins by discussing 5 basic principles essential to an understanding of our founding documents. They are Agency, The proper role of Government, the source of human rights, people are superior to Government & that Governments should have limited powers.

Agency was the essence of the war in heaven. We chose to choose & Satan was cast down. He and his minions persist in that same war today. President Benson indicates that “one of Lucifer’s primary strategies has been to restrict our agency through the power of earthly governments.” The question remains “shall the children of God have untrammeled agency to choose the course they should follow, or shall they be coerced & forced to be obedient?”

President Benson gave an entire speech on the topic of “The Proper Role of Government”, in this booklet however he contented himself with quoting from the Doctrine & Covenants. (D&C 134:1,2,5)

“…that governments were instituted of God for the benefit of man; and that he holds men accountable for their acts in relation to them…that no government can exist in peace, except such laws are framed and held inviolate as will secure to each individual the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life…. that all men are bound to sustain and uphold the respective governments in which they reside, while protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the laws of such governments…”

In his own words “the most important single function of government is to secure the rights & freedoms of individual citizens.” Our freedoms he previously defined as our agency and he next defines our rights or at least the source thereof.

In determining the source of our rights President Benson quotes several of the founders.
Thomas Paine – “Rights are not gifts from one man to another…rights appertain to man in right of his existence…”
Frederic Bastiat - “Life, liberty & property do not exist because men made laws. On the contrary, it was the fact that life liberty & property existed beforehand that caused men to make laws in the first place.”

Rights must be either God given or granted by government, one or the other. “If we accept the premise that human rights are granted by government then we must be willing to accept the corollary that they can be denied by government.” (President Benson)Rights exist independent of mans will & cannot be denied by anyone’s whim.

Thomas Jefferson – The Declaration of Independence – “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. That to secure these rights , Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.

That last sentence is the fourth principle, People are Superior to Governments. God gave us rights and we created governments to safeguard those rights. As the creators of government we the people are the master. We have an obligation to participate in Government, to do our best to diligently seek for honest men and wise men and to uphold good men and wise men in positions of leadership & trust. (D&C 98:10) It is our responsibility to bring our government back to its pure constitutional roots.

The final principle necessary to understand the Constitution is the limited powers of government. If we as individual citizens create & authorize government to act on our behalf then reasonably Government cannot be given any power that we as individuals do not ourselves possess. I as an individual do not have the right to steal bread from my neighbors table. Likewise government cannot justly redistribute wealth nor force acts of involuntary charity. “Government is created by the People…. The creature cannot exceed the creator.” President Benson closes this section by quoting the Alabama state Constitution: “The sole object and only legitimate end of government is to protect the citizen in the enjoyment of life, liberty, and property, and when the government assumes other functions it is usurpation & oppression.”

President Benson then shares what he believes to the 5 most important provisions of the actual Constitution of the United States.

1st – The sovereignty of the people. We have already covered the concept that the people are superior to the government, that we created the government & therefore have the power.

2nd – Separation of powers. Despite the current appearance of our government the Constitution establishes 3 independent & distinct branches, the legislative or congressional to make law, the judicial to interpret the law; interpret meaning to determine weather or not a specific law is or is not constitutional, and the executive or presidential to enforce the law & act as a figure head or spokesman among the nations of the world. Each branch checking the others, thereby protecting personal liberty through a balance of power.

3rd – Limited Powers of Government. The 10th amendment clearly states that “The powers not delegated to the United States by the constitution, nor prohibited by it… are reserved to the states respectively or the people.” Quoting President Benson “the founding fathers well understood human nature and its tendency to exercise unrighteous dominion when given authority. A Constitution was therefore designed to limit government to certain enumerated functions, beyond which is tyranny.”

4th – Representation. Congress is comprised of 2 houses. The Senate where each state is represented equally and the House where representation is proportional to population. Again it is our duty to seek out the best representatives we can find. Never vote for the lesser of evils. When we do evil always wins. The only hope we have of winning is to intelligently and unashamedly vote our conscience every time. They represent us and we must hold them accountable.

5th – A moral & righteous people. John Adams – “our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” Only when we accept God as the ultimate and original law giver can we administer and interpret law without trying to wrest unintended meanings from the written word.

In essence I believe that good government boils down to the words of King Mosiah, “Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right…And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you…” (Mosiah 29:26 & 27)

Brothers and Sisters, please live righteously. Repent regularly, see the bishop when necessary. Sanctify yourselves, the Lord promises great things to those who do. In D&C 43:16 he says “Sanctify yourselves and ye shall be endowed with power”. In Ether 4:7 “in that day that they shall exercise faith in me, even as the brother of Jared did, that they may become sanctified in me, then will I manifest unto them the things which the brother of Jared saw, even to the unfolding unto them all my revelations…” in D&C 88:68 “sanctify yourselves that your minds become single to God, and the days will come that you shall see him; for he will unveil his face unto you.” And greatest of all in D&C 133:62 he commits that “unto him that repenteth and sanctifieth himself before the Lord shall be given eternal life.” I believe that the most important thing that anyone of us can do is to purify our hearts before God, Sanctify ourselves, willingly subject our desires to Gods plan for us. If we do he can and will work miracles through us.

I love this country, my country. I am an American. I firmly believe in the principles of good government that I have shared w/ you today. As messed up as things seem to be we are for now among the freest people ever to live on the planet. I thank God for the founding generation and the lives they lived which allowed our Heavenly Father to work through them to establish a new nation and a Constitution which has made possible not only the prosperity and independence that we have enjoyed for more than 200 years but more importantly fostered a society in which the true Church of Jesus Christ could be restored. For that blessing I will be eternally grateful. GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!

For What It's Worth

Ryan