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.’
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!