Independence Day: Implementing Those Self-Evident Truths
By Pete Haug
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
Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776
For 245 years those words have moved humans throughout the world to embrace an ideal not dreamt of by those who wrote them. Most of the signatories of that declaration were landed white male slaveholders. It took 87 years for those words to begin taking hold, as Abraham Lincoln described the effect of “a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”
Lincoln acknowledged “the great task remaining before us,” but predicted “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.” Black lives, other lives, began to matter. The life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness we all are entitled to had begun to be recognized.
A working democracy
Those founding ideals established the most ambitious experiment in self-government ever attempted. Our Constitution was “the world’s first formal blueprint for a modern democracy.” Following George Washington’s two-term presidency, the system began to fray. Political parties competed. By 1800, Congress had to declare Thomas Jefferson winner in a divisive presidential election. Yet this peaceful transfer of power demonstrated that the American republic had “pioneered a successful working democracy.”
Since then, the world has taken notice. Even before the Civil War, Alexis de Tocqueville observed, “The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults.” More than a century later, Winston Churchill observed, “No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed,” he added, “it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.…”
What the world has taken notice of, however, is not a pure democracy, but technically a constitutional democratic republic. Our Constitution establishes governing principles, such as separation of executive, legislative, and judicial powers. People elect representatives to perform those functions. Legislatures create laws that adhere to constitutional principles. Practically, we call such governments “democracies,” and they’re growing. Pew Research reports that democracy has grown over the past four decades, with 57% of countries larger than 500,000 constituting democracies.
They’re even ranked by an index that describes how well they’re functioning. Although we established the first modern democracy, some nations seem to be improving the model. Certain characteristics, perhaps low voter participation or polarization, contribute to our current lower ranking. The recent upheavals we’ve endured are growing pains. Efforts are being made, both to repair our faults and, unfortunately, to exacerbate those faults. We’ve weathered internal conflicts before and emerged stronger. We’re a work in progress, adolescents striving for maturity.
A world-wide awareness
The 1800s was a time of spiritual ferment, not only in America and Europe, but elsewhere. In Persia, Baha’u’llah, founder of the Baha’i Faith, addressed “the Presidents of the Republics of the entire Americas.” He bade them administer justice, to “bind with the hands of justice the broken” and to “crush the oppressor.”
In 1912, Baha’u’llah’s son ‘Abdu’l-Baha traveled extensively throughout North America for eight months, giving unnumbered talks, often several a day, in places of worship, at universities, and in private homes. While sharing his father’s teachings, he “extolled the American continent” as “the land wherein the splendors of His [Baha’u’llah’s] Light shall be revealed, where the mysteries of His Faith shall be unveiled.”
He further “singled out the Great Republic of the West” and declared that its people were “indeed worthy of being the first to build the Tabernacle of the Most Great Peace and proclaim the oneness of mankind.” He promised that this nation was “equipped and empowered to accomplish that which will adorn the pages of history, to become the envy of the world, and be blest in both the East and the West.” Perhaps most importantly, Abdu’l-Baha’ affirmed that America “will lead all nations spiritually.” He left us this prayer:
O God! Let this American democracy become glorious in spiritual degrees even as it has aspired to material degrees, and render this just government victorious. Confirm this revered nation to upraise the standard of the oneness of humanity, to promulgate the Most Great Peace, to become thereby most glorious and praiseworthy among all the nations of the world. O God! This American nation is worthy of Thy favors and is deserving of Thy mercy. Make it precious and near to Thee through Thy bounty and bestowal.
