Thanks be to God for the vision of our Founders! Some 246 years later, we remain the inheritors of a truly great nation thanks to the resolution of the Continental Congress that voted in favor of and then declared our American independence. We, therefore, pause this day to thank God for His benefactions and our blessed inheritance. Although some will consider our system and nation imperfect or flawed, our founding documents continue to be a model for other nations and our land remains both an inspiration and a destination because of the freedoms that we enjoy. How remarkable it is to think that we even have the freedom to debate and find faults with our existing system without the threat of persecution!
Can we be better as a nation? Of course! Improvement though does not begin in Washington DC or in Sacramento, nor does it begin in protest; it begins prayerfully and humbly in our homes.
If we want to be better as individuals, as a community (including a church community), and or as a nation, we begin in the quiet of our homes. We pray. We read Scripture. We fast. We humbly identify our shortcomings and repent. We ask the Saints to intercede and to give us the strength to persevere to similarly be holy as our Heavenly Father was, is, and forever shall be holy. Simply, betterment is an internal exercise that is founded on a relationship with God. And, if we’re successful, then like St. Seraphim of Sarov, we can trust that thousands will be saved around us.
May we also realize that the rights we enjoy as American or more correctly as human beings are only as good as the divine truths that they help us realize in our lives. Just because we have rights, this doesn’t make them inherently good; goodness begins and ends in God.
Together, let us then pray that God will inspire us to be better Orthodox Christians and stewards of this great land.
A most blessed Fourth of July!