The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding - Our Lost Founding Archives

John Adams on “The Second Day of July…”

On this day in 1776, the Second Continental Congress adopts the resolution for independence from Great Britain. Of course, Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence on July 4th. Twelve of the thirteen colonial delegations vote unanimously, with New York abstaining.

Previously, in early June, Congress appointed a committee consisting of John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, Robert R. Livingston, and Thomas Jefferson to draft that declaration of independence. Then, the committee presented it to Congress on June 28, 1776.

Our Lost Founding will ‘unfurl’ the Declaration in Our July 4th post.

Illuminations…

The eventual second president John Adams wrote this of July 2nd, to his beloved wife Abigail:

“The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.”

He continues:

“You will think me transported with Enthusiasm but I am not. — I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost Us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. — Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means. And that Posterity will tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it, which I trust in God We shall not.” (emphasis added)

July 2, 2021/2 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Abraham Lincoln, Civil War, Presidents, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address : “Far above our poor power…”

On this day in 1863, the largest military conflict in North American history begins when Union and Confederate forces collide at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The epic battle lasted three days and Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia retreated to Virginia.

Gettysburg Address

So, below is the full text of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. This version is inscribed in the South Chamber of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.:

“Four score and seven years ago our fathers bought forth on this continent a new nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But in a larger sense we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work, which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us. That from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion. That we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain. That this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom. And that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the Earth.”

Lincoln Bible

That famous address makes clear Abraham Lincoln’s reverence for God and His Word. This is amplified by the quote that inspired Our “Lincoln Bible” t-shirt:

“In regard to this Great book, I have but to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this book. But for it we could not know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man’s welfare, here and hereafter, are to be found portrayed in it.”

July 1, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Revolution, Founding Fathers, State Constitution, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Patriot Matthew Thornton : “Duty to God, to ourselves, to Posterity”

On this day in 1803, Patriot, physician, surgeon, signer of the Declaration of Independence, Matthew Thornton dies at age 89. Thornton was also a New Hampshire delegate to the second Continental Congress. Additionally, he was the President of the five man committee that drafted the first New Hampshire constitution. In fact, New Hampshire was the first of the thirteen states to establish a constitution.

The Only Foundation

Back in 1775, as the newly elected President of the New Hampshire Provincial Congress, Matthew Thornton wrote a letter To the Inhabitants of the Colony of New Hampshire. Here are a few excerpts:

Friends and Brethren: You must all be sensible that the affairs of America have at length come to a very affecting and alarming crisis.

… Duty to God, to ourselves, to Posterity, enforced by the cries of slaughtered Innocents, have urged us to take up Arms in our Defense. … We would therefore recommend to the Colony at large to cultivate that Christian Union, Harmony and tender affection which is the only foundation upon which our invaluable privileges can rest with any security, or our public measures be pursued with the least prospect of success.

… In a word, we seriously and earnestly recommend the practice of that pure and undefiled religion which embalmed the memory of our pious ancestors, as that alone upon which we can build a solid hope and confidence in the Divine protection and favor, without whose blessing all the measures of safety we have or can propose will end in our shame and disappointment.”

June 24, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Icons, American Revolution, Benjamin Franklin, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

The Constitution: “God Governs In the Affairs of Men”

On this day in 1788, the U.S. Constitution is ratified, which currently makes it the most long-standing written constitution in the world.

The Constitution is the second of two of Our essential founding documents. The first is the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration explains the foundation of Our nation, and contains several direct references to God.

The Constitution explains how our nation is to function, and is firmly rooted in the Declaration, which explains the why. So, despite the apostate assertion that God, certainly not the God of the Bible, is not ‘in’ the Constitution, it is clear that He is indeed inherent and indispensable.

Roots of Religion

First, when the framers used the term “religion,” as in the First Amendment, they were referring to the Protestant denominations of Christianity. After all, it was the Anglican Church that was the state religion when the colonies were under British rule.

Additionally, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof….” is to prevent one of these denominations from becoming a state religion once again. It does not lend itself to pluralism or even neutrality in regards to faith, as some would pervert the meaning of the phrase “separation of church and state.” Besides, that phrase that does not appear in Our founding documents.

Also, Article I, Section 7 states: “If any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it.…” Sundays. Not Fridays (Islam). Not Saturdays (Judaism). Not any other day of the week. Sundays.

After all, the Constitution was “Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven..,”

In addition, the Year of our Lord, as in Anno Domini, as in A.D. Not C.E. (Common Era) and not A.H. (Anno Hegirae).

Franklin and the Father

Finally, regarding years, Benjamin Franklin was the elder statesman (81 years old) at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 in Philadelphia. There, he urged the Assembly toward daily prayer to seek guidance from “the Father of Lights.” In doing so, he said this:

“I have lived a long time, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth—that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid?”

His famous quote, paired with his sketch of bifocals in his personal correspondence, inspired our “Benjamin Franklin “See… God Governs” t-shirt design, as seen below. So, find yours HERE!

Benjamin Franklin bifocals

June 21, 2021/1 Comment/by Our Lost Founding

American Icons, American Revolution, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

The Great Seal of the United States : Found(ing) in Translation

On June 20, 1782, Congress adopts the Great Seal of the United States. Adoption came six years after the Continental Congress appointed the original committee to design a seal. Congress appointed the original committee just a few hours after they adopted the Declaration of Independence, on July 4, 1776.

The Obverse

E Pluribus Unum, Latin for Out of Many, One, was once a de facto motto of the United States. However, it was never codified into law. Thus, In God We Trust is the official national motto.
Our Lost Founding suggests that perhaps the two go hand in hand.

The Reverse

Signals signified

Founding Father and Patriot Charles Thomson’s “Remarks and Explanation” are the only official comments about the symbolism and the meaning of the Great Seal. Here is the portion regarding The Reverse:

“The pyramid signifies Strength and Duration: The Eye over it & the Motto allude to the many signal interpositions of providence in favour of the American cause. The date underneath is that of the Declaration of Independence and the words under it signify the beginning of the new American Æra, which commences from that date.–” (emphasis added)

“The Motto” Annuit Cœptis translates to (Providence) favors our undertakings.

Lastly, Thomson, also a Greek scholar, spent his final years working on an English translation of the Bible.

June 20, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Icons, American Revolution, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Colonel William Prescott : “Providence has placed you…”

On this day in 1775, the Battle of Bunker Hill (and Breed’s Hill) begins in Boston. Legend has it that it was during this battle that Patriot Colonel William Prescott gave soldiers this famous order: “Do not fire until you see the whites of their eyes!”
This was in order to conserve limited ammunition supplies.

“Be of one heart…”

It is with certainty, however, in August of 1774, in the wake of the Boston Tea Party and the subsequent Boston Port Bill blockading the harbor, that William Prescott wrote the people of the city this note of encouragement:

“Be not dismayed nor disheartened, in this great day of trials. We heartily sympathize with you, and are always ready to do all in our power for your support, comfort and relief; knowing that Providence has placed you where you must stand the first shock. We consider we are all embarked in (the same ship) and must sink or swim together. We think if we submit to these regulations, all is gone. Our forefathers passed the vast Atlantic, spent their blood and treasure, that they might enjoy their liberties, both civil and religious, and transmit them to their posterity. … Now if we should give them up, can our children rise up and call us blessed? … Let us all be of one heart, and stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free; and may he, of his infinite mercy grant us deliverance out of all our troubles.” (emphasis added)

Indeed, as Americans, whether we “sink or swim together” largely depends in how we collectively regard our lost founding.

June 17, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Abraham Lincoln, American Icons, Civil War, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Abraham Lincoln and “A house divided…”

On this day in 1858, senate candidate Abraham Lincoln addresses more than 1,000 delegates at the Illinois Republican Convention in Springfield. He points out the incompatibility of slavery in a nation whose Declaration of Independence states “all men are created equal.”

In doing so, Lincoln paraphrased Mark 3:25 of the New Testament: “a house divided against itself cannot stand.”

He went on: “I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved — I do not expect the house to fall — but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other.

Man’s welfare

It should come as no surprise that Lincoln would use this opportunity to invoke Scripture. As evidenced by the quote that inspired Our “Lincoln Bible” t-shirt, he clearly thought highly of “this book”:

“In regard to this Great book, I have but to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this book. But for it we could not know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man’s welfare, here and hereafter, are to be found portrayed in it.”

Find your shirt HERE.

June 16, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Revolution, Founding Fathers, George Washington, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Commander-in-chief George Washington and “Out of my power…”

On this day in 1775, the second Continental Congress unanimously selects George Washington as first Commander-in-chief of the Continental Army. Thankfully for all Americans then, and ever since, he accepted the appointment.

What follows is an excerpt of a letter he wrote to his wife, Martha, shortly thereafter; he wrote:
“[I]t was utterly out of my power to refuse this appointment without exposing my Character to such censures as would have reflected dishonour upon myself, and given pain to my friends – this, I am sure could not, and ought not be pleasing to you, & must have lessened me considerably in my own esteem. I shall rely therefore, confidently, on that Providence which has heretofore preservd, & been bountiful to me, not doubting but that I shall return safe to you in the fall…” (emphasis added)

Another acknowledgement

Of course, Washington eventually became the first president of the United States.

Finally, a sentiment similar to the letter above, from his first inaugural address, inspired Our “George Washington Invisible Hand” t-shirt design:
“No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the People of the United States.”

Though invisible, clearly he saw its guiding influence in his own life and in the birth of America.

Find your shirt, HERE.

June 15, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Revolution, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Hi! Hi! Hey! Happy Birthday to the United States Army!

Happy Birthday to the United States Army! On this day in 1775, the Second Continental Congress passes the resolution establishing the Continental Army.

Here is the text of that resolution:

Resolved, That six companies of expert riflemen [sic], be immediately raised in Pennsylvania, two in Maryland, and two in Virginia; … [and] that each company, as soon as completed [sic], shall march and join the army near Boston, to be there employed as light infantry, under the command of the chief Officer in that army.

So, this Army represented not just New England, but all 13 colonies. In addition, the United States Army became America’s first national institution.

Of course, the Congress named General George Washington Commander-in-Chief. Washington stated the following in his General Orders on July 2, 1776:

The fate of unborn Millions will now depend, under God, on the Courage and Conduct of this army—Our cruel and unrelenting Enemy leaves us no choice but a brave resistance, or the most abject submission; this is all we can expect—We have therefore to resolve to conquer or die: Our own Country’s Honor, all call upon us for a vigorous and manly exertion, and if we now shamefully fail, we shall become infamous to the whole world—Let us therefore rely upon the goodness of the Cause, and the aid of the supreme Being, in whose hands Victory is, to animate and encourage us to great and noble Actions… .”

Also, the Army Cadet song includes this stirring line:
“May God give me the compassion and judgment to lead and the gallantry in battle to win.”

Lastly, here is the third chorus of the Army Song, “The Army Goes Rolling Along”:

“Men in rags, men who froze,
Still that Army met its foes,
And the Army went rolling along.
Faith in God, then we’re right,
And we’ll fight with all our might,
As the Army keeps rolling along.”

June 14, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

American Revolution, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Unfurling Flag Day

On this day in 1777, during the American Revolution, the Continental Congress adopts the Stars and Stripes as the national flag:

“Resolved, that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field representing a new constellation.”

Flag Day

Then, on May 30th 1916, President Woodrow Wilson gave Proclamation 1335 – Flag Day:

My Fellow Countrymen:

Many circumstances have recently conspired to turn our thoughts to a critical examination of the conditions of our national life, of the influences which have seemed to threaten to divide us in interest and sympathy, of forces within and forces without that seemed likely to draw us away from the happy traditions of united purpose and action of which we have been so proud. It has therefore seemed to me fitting that I should call your attention to the approach of the anniversary of the day upon which the flag of the United States was adopted by the Congress as the emblem of the Union, and to suggest to you that it should this year and in the years to come be given special significance as a day of renewal and reminder, a day upon which we should direct our minds with a special desire of renewal to thoughts of the ideals and principles of which we have sought to make our great Government the embodiment.

I therefore suggest and request that throughout the nation and if possible in every community the fourteenth day of June be observed as FLAG DAY with special patriotic exercises, at which means shall be taken to give significant expression to our thoughtful love of America, our comprehension of the great mission of liberty and justice to which we have devoted ourselves as a people, our pride in the history and our enthusiasm for the political programme of the nation, our determination to make it greater and purer with each generation, and our resolution to demonstrate to all the world its vital union in sentiment and purpose, accepting only those as true compatriots who feel as we do the compulsion of this supreme allegiance. Let us on that day rededicate ourselves to the nation, “one and inseparable” from which every thought that is not worthy of our fathers’ first vows in independence, liberty, and right shall be excluded and in which we shall stand with united hearts, for an America which no man can corrupt, no influence draw away from its ideals, no force divide against itself,-a nation signally distinguished among all the nations of mankind for its clear, individual conception alike of its duties and its privileges, its obligations and its rights.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington this thirtieth day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and sixteen, and of the independence of the United States of America the one hundred and fortieth.”

Honor our colors

Flag Day was formally established in 1949 when President Harry S. Truman signed the Act of Congress:

WHEREAS the American flag, which has become the symbol of our freedom, was adopted by the Continental Congress on June 14, 1777; and

WHEREAS it is our custom to observe June 14 each year with ceremonies designed not only to commemorate the birth of our flag but also to rededicate ourselves to the ideals for which it stands; and

WHEREAS this beloved emblem, which flies above all our people of whatever creed or race, signalizes our respect for human rights and the protection such rights are afforded under our form of government:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, HARRY S. TRUMAN, President of the United States of America, do hereby ask that on Flag Day, June 14, 1949, the people of the Nation honor our colors by displaying them at their homes or other suitable places and by giving thanks for their privileges as citizens under this flag as well as by engaging in earnest contemplation of the obligations inherent in citizenship. I also direct the appropriate officials of the Government to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on Flag Day.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States of America to be affixed.

DONE at the City of Washington this 24th day of May in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and forty-nine, and of the Independence of the United States of America the one hundred and seventy-third.

Under God

Later, on this day in 1954, President Dwight Eisenhower signs a bill to include “Under God” in the Pledge to the Flag:

FROM THIS DAY FORWARD, the millions of our school children will daily proclaim in every city and town, every village and rural school house, the dedication of our nation and our people to the Almighty. To anyone who truly loves America, nothing could be more inspiring than to contemplate this rededication of our youth, on each school morning, to our country’s true meaning.

Especially is this meaningful as we regard today’s world. Over the globe, mankind has been cruelly torn by violence and brutality and, by the millions, deadened in mind and soul by a materialistic philosophy of life. Man everywhere is appalled by the prospect of atomic war. In this somber setting, this law and its effects today have profound meaning. In this way we are reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America’s heritage and future; in this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country’s most powerful resource, in peace or in war. (emphasis added)

Flag Display

Finally, for a primer on flag display etiquette, here is a portion of United States Code Title 4 Chapter 1 Section 6:

§ 6. Time and Occasions for Display.
(a) It is the universal custom to display the flag only from sunrise to sunset on
buildings and on stationary flagstaffs in the open. However, when a patriotic
effect is desired, the flag may be displayed 24 hours a day if properly
illuminated during the hours of darkness.

(b) The flag should be hoisted briskly and lowered ceremoniously.

(c) The flag should not be displayed on days when the weather is inclement, except
when an all-weather flag is displayed.

(d) The flag should be displayed on all days, especially on New Year’s Day,
January 1; Inauguration Day, January 20; Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, the
third Monday in January;15 Lincoln’s Birthday, February 12; Washington’s
Birthday, third Monday in February; Easter Sunday (variable); Mother’s Day,
second Sunday in May; Armed Forces Day, third Saturday in May; Memorial
Day (half-staff until noon), the last Monday in May; Flag Day, June 14;
Independence Day, July 4; Labor Day, first Monday in September; Constitution
Day, September 17; Columbus Day, second Monday in October; Navy Day,
October 27; Veterans Day, November 11; Thanksgiving Day, fourth Thursday
in November; Christmas Day, December 25; and such other days as may be
proclaimed by the President of the United States; the birthdays of States (date
of admission); and on State holidays.

June 14, 2021/2 Comments/by Our Lost Founding

Founding Documents, The Common Thread of Our Lost Founding

Dream Team Drafts “Divine” Declaration

On this day in 1776, the Continental Congress selects Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston to draft the Declaration of Independence. We know this remarkable group as the Committee of Five.

First, here is how the Declaration begins:
“When, in the Course of human Events, it becomes necessary for one People to dissolve the Political Bands which have connected them with another, and to assume, among the Powers of the Earth, the separate and equal Station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent Respect to the Opinions of Mankind requires that they should declare the Causes which impel them to the Separation.

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.”

Providence and Our Pledge

Finally, how it concludes:
“And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”

Our Constitution is our ‘how’ document and this divinely inspired Declaration is our ‘why.’

June 11, 2021/0 Comments/by Our Lost Founding