Given July, 2005
By Chris Fosburg
America the Great
This week we celebrated a very special birthday. The Great Nation of the United States of America is 231 years old! 2005 marked the 200th year of another special event, the birth of the Prophet, Joseph Smith Jr. In 1776 the thirteen colonies began creating the United States. In 1805, the Lord brought forth the Prophet of the last dispensation. In 1820 the Lord appeared to Joseph, in 1830 the Church of Christ was restored once more. From the birth of our nation’s Declaration of Independence it took fifty-four years to restore the gospel. Our nation did not win the battle for Independence until almost a decade after. There was no Constitution, no plan or law laid out for this innocent nation. For almost another decade the Founders struggled against each other and themselves to come up with a durable and working government. In 1812 the British attacked the young nation hoping to win her back to England. Forty years the U.S. would engage in the bloodiest war it has ever seen, the Civil War, and yet the Lord did not wait for the storms to settle. He had been preparing the world for this for 2,000 years. Now it was time, nothing could stop the work from progressing.[1] The restoration could not have taken place without the United States of America and her government[i]
I love America! I am a patriot through and through. In today’s society it is becoming more and more difficult to love this country and be a patriot. Many citizens of this nation would tell you that America is prideful. That this nation grew thanks to oppressing other peoples, that some of its’ leaders used religion as a Manifest Destiny to achieve some far out ideal. It is easy to think that way, and when you study history close up in all the different areas and from different perspectives I even makes sense.
I too wasn’t always excited about America. During my high school years I wasn’t very proud of our nation, nor did I agree with the Administration of the time. I even thought ‘what’s the use? What is the use of fighting or being in the military if it is not for our Defense? Why fight for some President’s cause, is that worth dieing for?’ Growing up has changed my view of things. I served a mission in the Philippines for two years. They have a government, it’s even similar t ours, but its not ours, it is corrupt. We may have bad men in office from time to time, our laws may be unjust, and there may be some things that we are even ashamed of as members, but this is still America. We, as citizens of this great nation need to learn that, and remember it. The opportunity that is afforded to Filipinos is twofold. One, sell all you own and move to the city where you can live in a 3x5 hut made of boxes and junk, but it has a stereo, TV, and karaoke machine, so it’s a step up. And, two, move up in status so that you can leave the Philippines and move to America. Their elections are considered one of the most dangerous days, and people who run for office do die on that die. I also lived in England, which has a much better organized government, but it still lacks the liberties, freedoms, and opportunities that America has.
What makes America so great? Elder Perry answered this question by stating:
“The United States represents the major source of human and financial resources that go into the expansion of the Lord’s work throughout the world…[ii] we joyfully look to the day when more and more nations—or the Saints within them—will have arrived at that position. But until that day comes, it is obvious that the central source of resources for the worldwide Church for the past 146 years has been America—and we think it will continue to be that way for quite some time. So we’re anxious to help America be strong and good, because the American Saints are so central to supplying the needs of others throughout the world for the present.”[2]
Elder Perry later added, “America is the cradle of the Church.” The scriptures tell us that this “land… is choice above all other lands”[3], that includes the promised land of Israel. In a heavenly vision the prophets of old were shown a man “who was separated [from America] my many waters…the Spirit of God… wrought upon him.” That same vision then shows the prophets our Founding Fathers, and “the power of the Lord was with them.”[4] This is the land where the Garden of Eden existed[5], this is the land that our Father in Heaven chose to reveal himself in a grove of trees. This is a land that shall have no king to rule over it[6], a land that has more temples than any other nation at any other time.
One of the defining points of America is her Constitution. An ensign article says the following about the document, “The writing of the Constitution was a miracle.” The article states that the reason was not because the Lord found 53 men who could pull it off. The miracle was how the document was produced, in a spirit of peace, the spirit of revelation, despite the horrid heat, their political differences, and even the fact that some of the delegates hated each other. In the end they compromised until the document was an “expression of what the Lord called ‘just and holy principles’”.[7] The Lord in a revelation to Joseph Smith declared, “I establish the Constitution of this land…by the hands of wise men[iii] whom I raised up unto this very purpose.”[8]
Pres. Benson spoke at the bicentennial celebration of our nation. At the end of his address he left us with these words:
"Have we been wise beneficiaries of the gift entrusted to us? Have we valued and protected the principles laid down by this great document? At this bicentennial celebration we must, with sadness, say that we have not been wise in keeping the trust of our Founding Fathers. For the past two centuries, those who do not prize freedom have chipped away at our Constitution until today we face a crisis of great dimensions. We are fast approaching that moment prophesied by Joseph Smith when he said: ‘Even this nation will be on the very verge of crumbling to pieces and tumbling to the ground, and when the Constitution is upon the brink of ruin, this people will be the staff upon which the nation shall lean, and they shall bear the Constitution away from the very verge of destruction.’[9]
He then left us with four things we should do:
1.We must be righteous and moral.
Live a higher law. Keep the laws of the land. Remember the government owes us nothing. “We will not seek to receive what we have not earned by our own labor.”[10]
2. We must learn the principles of the Constitution and then abide by its precepts.
Have we read the Constitution and pondered it? Are we aware of its principles? Could we defend it? Can we recognize when a law is constitutionally unsound? I believe that we all should take a political science of some sort that reviews the government of the U.S. Tamy and I heard a debated case concerning presidential pardons. We didn’t know much about it so we went home and looked it up. We cannot defend what we don’t know. It’s not enough to know a law is wrong or against our religion, you must be able to explain o a secular level why a law should be a certain way.
3. We must become involved I civic affairs.
As citizens of this republic, we cannot do our duty and be idle spectators. When Pres. Benson tells us that we must choose: good, honest, and wise people (qualified). Not only that but we should focus all our efforts to make sure that these types of people represent us. One lesson I have learned is that the most important politics are not national, but local. I mean starting with your schools, then communities and cities. If we want to change public laws and national opinion we must start in our own backyard. Remember it is “by small and simple things that great things are brought to pass.”[11]
We need to keep ourselves ‘wisely’ informed and share our feelings with others. We must attend local meetings, and help select qualified delegates who represent your feelings. Tamy and I went to a public meeting back in Spokane to help support the library that was being ‘threatened’ to close. We learned there was no immediate threat, others had hyped up this issue, heavily covered by the media. When everybody left we decided to stay for the rest of the meeting. It was extremely informative. We learned about zoning and building apartments, and also about the snowplow priorities. The meeting taught us how things get done, why they get done. It also taught us of a logical system…and patience.
I have faith that the Constitution will be saved as prophesied by Joseph Smith. It will be saved by the citizens of this nation who love and cherish freedom. It will be saved by enlightened members of this Church, men and women who will subscribe to and abide the principles of the Constitution.
[1] I tend to think that the Lord decided to give Joseph’s father a little space of time to get his life where it needed to be, in Palmyra, NY.
[2] Elder Perry, “The Church and the U.S. Bicentennial: A Conversation with Elder L. Tom Perry of the Council of the Twelve,” Ensign, Jun 1976
[i] Have you ever wondered why objects and nations are referred to as females? In Isaiah the Lord chooses to liken Israel, Zion, and Jerusalem as ‘”she’s”, as well as Babylon. Two reasons given are; Christ is the Groomsmen and Israel the bride, and women are referred to as the crowing achievement to God’s work. Using a woman as an analogy draws upon the very best of the Lord’s children or the very worst, such as Babylon.
[ii] It is very essential that America remain strong in order that the Church can continue to support the Lord’s work in all corners of the earth. To get the Saints in any nation to the point where they can stand on their own feet, so to speak, with their own leaders and supply their own financial resources, represents a long nurturing process.
[iii] What did the Lord mean by wise men? Pres. Woodruff declared “those men were the best spirits the God of heaven could find on the face of the earth…they were choice spirits…” The Founding Fathers visited him in the St. George Temple and asked why their work hadn’t been done. Remember that the next time someone tries to degrade on of these choice spirits. (Pres. Benson, “Our Divine Constitution”, Ensign, Nov 1987)
1 comments:
I LOVED this talk. It was so good. I'm glad you posted it online. I would love to hear more about your thoughts on what you're doing now. I know because we talk each day, but no one else does.
Post a Comment