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Post 24: The Reformation’s Two Pillars: Luther, Knox, and the Making of American Liberty

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

7 min.

A Single Reformation, Two Distinct Callings

The Protestant Reformation was not the achievement of one man or one nation. It was a spiritual upheaval that reshaped the Western world, carried forward by a chorus of reformers whose voices rose from different lands but harmonized around a single conviction: God alone is Lord of the conscience.

Among these reformers, two figures stand as towering pillars—Martin Luther, the German monk who ignited the movement, and John Knox, the Scottish pastor who transformed its theology into a political vision that would echo across the Atlantic and into the American founding.

Though they never met, Luther and Knox form a single narrative arc. Luther shattered the spiritual monopoly of medieval Christendom; Knox carried the implications of that freedom into the realm of civil government. Together, they helped shape the moral and political imagination of a people who would one day declare their independence and build a constitutional republic.

Martin Luther: The Theological Earthquake

Martin Luther stands at the headwaters of the Reformation. His posting of the Ninety-Five Theses in 1517 was not merely an academic protest–it was a spiritual earthquake. His insistence that salvation comes by grace through faith, and that scripture stands above all ecclesiastical authority, broke the medieval assumption that truth flowed downward from pope to people. Instead, he proclaimed that every believer stands equal before God, with direct access to his word.

This recovery of the primacy of scripture and the liberty of conscience did more than reform the church. It planted the seeds of a new political order. At an age when dissent was branded heresy and power hid behind sacred robes, Luther dared to speak aloud what others only whispered. He saw salvation sold like merchandise—“the soul flies out of purgatory as soon as the money rattles in the chest”—and knew that something sacred had been lost.

Luther stepped forward not as a destroyer, but as a believer seeking truth. He did not set out to create a political revolution, but his theological assertions made one possible. When his hammer struck the church door at Wittenberg, the echo traveled across Europe and awakened a world long resigned to silence.

Grace, Scripture, and the Liberty of Conscience

Luther proclaimed that salvation was not a commodity but a gift—grace freely given, received by faith alone. He insisted that scripture, not hierarchy, was the final authority. He translated the Bible so that every soul, not just the educated elite, could hear God’s voice in their own tongue. In doing so, he restored the ancient Christian conviction that all believers stand as priests before God, not merely the ordained few. When summoned before princes, bishops, and emperors, he refused to betray his conscience. “My conscience is captive to the Word of God.”

Excommunication could not silence him. Threats could not bend him. He burned the decree meant to break him and walked forward unafraid.

The Cultural Earthquake

Luther’s defiance weakened the grip of ecclesiastical power and opened the door to a new world—one in which ordinary people could read, think, question, and worship without fear. His challenge to indulgences exposed the danger of unrestrained religious authority and confronted a system that enriched both pope and emperor at the expense of the faithful. His insistence on scripture as the supreme authority helped ignite a cultural transformation that elevated literacy, personal responsibility, and the dignity of individual conscience.

Paul, James, and the Restoration of Balance

Luther’s emphasis on grace alone was a needed corrective to the abuses of his age, but it also created a theological imbalance. Paul taught that salvation is a gift of grace; James taught that faith without works is dead. Together, they form a complete doctrine: faith as the root, works as the fruit. Luther recovered Paul’s voice with power, but the voice of James remained muted in the Protestant world that followed.

Latter‑day Saints do not believe salvation is earned. We believe salvation is possible only through the grace of Christ, and that works—acts of obedience, covenant keeping, and discipleship—are the natural expression of a heart changed by him: “We know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.” In LDS theology, works do not replace grace; they reveal it.

Christ’s Example: A Call to Action

Jesus did not teach passive belief. He healed—and commanded his disciples to heal. He served—and commanded his disciples to go and do likewise. He forgave—and commanded, “Go, and sin no more.” We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel. To dismiss works is to dismiss the very pattern of Christ’s life.

The Priesthood of All Believers and the Restoration

Luther’s doctrine of the priesthood of all believers meant that every Christian possesses direct access to God. No priest, bishop, or pope stands between the believer and Christ. This resonates deeply with LDS teachings: Christ is the sole Mediator. Revelation can be personal. Leadership exists for order, not spiritual hierarchy.

Where the Restoration expands Luther’s insight is in its understanding of priesthood authority and divine potential. The priesthood is not concentrated in a clerical elite but shared widely among Latter-Day Saint boys and men, received by the laying on of hands. The priesthood of God empowers service rather than elevating status.

Luther’s Place in the Larger Story

Luther did not see the full balance in his lifetime. His mission was different. He was raised up to challenge corruption, to break the chains of ecclesiastical absolutism, and to restore the primacy of scripture and conscience. His work was essential—but not final. It was one step in a much longer journey toward the restitution of all things.

John Knox: The Reformer Who Turned Theology into Liberty

A generation later, John Knox (1514-1572) emerged as the Reformation’s most forceful advocate for political freedom. Deeply influenced by Luther, he absorbed the German Reformer’s theology but applied it to a different battlefield. Where Luther confronted the papacy, Knox confronted monarchs—most famously Mary Tudor and Mary, Queen of Scots.

Knox believed that rulers were not divine, nor were they the ultimate arbiters of law. He taught that nations exist under covenant with God, and that rulers who violate God’s moral law forfeit their legitimacy. This conviction produced a political theology that justified resistance to tyranny and elevated the people—under God—as guardians of their own liberty.

Knox’s Presbyterian model of church governance—built on elected elders and representative assemblies—offered a living example of constitutional order. It was governance by covenant, not hierarchy; by consent, not decree.

Knox transformed Reformation theology into a political philosophy of ordered liberty, one that would profoundly shape Scotland and, through Scotland, the American colonies.

From Wittenberg to Edinburgh to Philadelphia: A Spiritual Lineage

The influence of Luther and Knox did not remain confined to Europe. It crossed the Atlantic through the Scots‑Irish migration. Hundreds of thousands of Presbyterian settlers brought with them a political culture shaped by Knox’s teachings—one that prized liberty, distrusted centralized authority, and believed government must be accountable to both God and the people.

British officials recognized this influence. During the American Revolution, some referred to the conflict as “a Presbyterian rebellion.” The charge was not entirely wrong. Presbyterian ministers preached resistance from their pulpits, Presbyterian communities formed the backbone of frontier militias, and Presbyterian political thought helped justify the colonies’ break with Britain. The very structure of American constitutionalism—its checks and balances, representative assemblies, and written covenants—bears the imprint of Scottish Presbyterianism. The American Founders drew from many sources, but the Scottish Reformation provided a moral and institutional framework that made self-government both imaginable and achievable.

The Scottish Influence on American Education

One of the most overlooked but profound Scottish contributions to America was in the realm of education. Shaped by Knox’s insistence that every person should read the scriptures, the Scottish Reformation produced one of the earliest systems of universal public education in the Western world. At a time when education was largely reserved for elites, his 1560 First Book of Discipline called for a school in every parish. This educational culture crossed the Atlantic.

In the colonies, especially in the mid-Atlantic and the South, Presbyterian settlers founded schools and colleges—Princeton, Hampden‑Sydney, Davidson, and others—rooted in classical learning, moral philosophy, and civic responsibility. Scottish Enlightenment thinkers such as Francis Hutcheson and Thomas Reid shaped the intellectual formation of the Founders. John Witherspoon, the Scottish‑born president of Princeton, taught 12 congressional representatives and one future president and vice-president (James Madison and Aaron Burr). He also signed the Declaration of Independence.

The Reformation’s Legacy in the American Founding

When the Founders declared independence and drafted the Constitution, they drew from many sources. But beneath classical republicanism, English common law, and Enlightenment philosophy lay the bedrock of the Reformation.

From Luther came the sanctity of conscience and the dignity of the individual. From Knox came the accountability of rulers and the legitimacy of resistance. From Scotland came a culture of education, moral philosophy, and civic duty that shaped the minds of America’s early leaders. The result was a nation built on the belief that liberty is both a gift and a responsibility, that government must be limited, and that the people—under God—are sovereign.

Conclusion: A Legacy Worth Remembering

To understand the American founding, one must look not only to Philadelphia in 1787 but to Wittenberg in 1517 and Edinburgh in 1560. Luther lit the flame of spiritual liberty. Knox carried that flame into the realm of political life. And America, shaped by Scottish immigrants and Presbyterian institutions, built a constitutional order in its light.

Their stories are not separate. They are chapters in a single narrative—a story of truth, conscience, courage, and the enduring belief that a free people must be a morally grounded and educated people. Imbibing the philosophy of John Witherspoon while he studied at Princeton, James Madison would later write, “A well instructed people alone can be permanently a free people.” This is the Reformation’s gift to the modern world, and its imprint on America remains one of the most profound and underappreciated influences in the nation’s founding.

John Calvin and the Architecture of a Reformed World

Martin Luther broke the chains of ecclesiastical absolutism. John Knox carried the torch of liberty into the political realm. But another towering figure—John Calvin—would take the Reformation in a new direction, shaping not only theology but the very architecture of Western society.

Calvin’s Geneva became a laboratory of ordered liberty, covenantal community, and disciplined discipleship. His ideas on law, vocation, governance, and the sovereignty of God would ripple outward into France, the Netherlands, Scotland, England, and ultimately America. Luther was the spark. Knox was the flame. And Calvin was the architect.

His story comes next.

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Post 23 THE AGE OF RENAISSANCE

5 min.

When the World Began to Awaken

For centuries, Europe drifted through a long night of stagnation. Political and ecclesiastical authorities enforced orthodoxy more fiercely than they nurtured truth. The abuses of the Inquisition nearly disgraced the very church it claimed to defend. Yet as this darkness began to lose momentum, something remarkable stirred. Minds opened, creativity reawakened, and the dignity of the individual soul resurfaced. This rebirth—known as the Renaissance—marked a decisive turning point in humanity’s journey toward liberty, learning, and spiritual restoration.

A New Confidence in Human Reason

The Renaissance was not rebellion; it was rediscovery. After generations of restricted access to knowledge, Europeans reclaimed the God‑given ability to think, learn, and discern truth. Scholars immersed themselves in ancient Greek and Roman texts. Artists explored the beauty of God’s creation through realism and perspective. Scientists questioned long‑held assumptions about the natural world. This awakening restored confidence in the individual mind and laid the foundation for later movements that would champion conscience, liberty, and personal faith.

Scripture and the Rise of Personal Conscience

As learning expanded, so did the desire for scripture in one’s own language. Gutenberg’s printing press multiplied the Bible, but the Renaissance multiplied the hunger to understand it. This environment produced figures like William Tyndale—classically trained, fluent in ancient languages, and driven by the conviction that every soul deserved direct access to God’s word. His English translation of the Bible reshaped the English‑speaking world.

The World Opens Westward

The Renaissance expanded not only the mind but the map. Advances in mathematics, navigation, and shipbuilding made oceanic exploration possible. Into this world stepped Christopher Columbus, who believed he was part of a providential plan—opening a hemisphere where liberty could take root and where God’s future work could unfold.

The Fall of Constantinople and the Spread of Learning

The fall of Constantinople in 1453 accelerated the awakening. Eastern scholars fled to Italy with precious manuscripts and a tradition of Greek scholarship. Humanism emphasized truth, virtue, and the dignity of man, inspiring confidence in the capacity of human thought to understand the natural world and to seek God through reason as well as revelation.

Art as a Window into God’s Creation

Renaissance art responded to unfolding mathematical principles of balance, harmony, and perspective. It became a branch of knowledge in its own right—revealing divine truths through depictions of God, his creations, and mankind’s place in the universe. Works such as Leonardo’s Last Supper and Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel frescoes expressed human dignity with unprecedented power.

Political Transformations and the End of Old Orders

The failure of the Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Empire to provide a stable, unifying framework spurred political change. City‑states, national monarchies, and emerging national languages rose to counter the influence of Rome. Feudal structures weakened. New political identities took shape. The Renaissance paved the way for the Reformation, which would challenge ecclesiastical authority even more directly and expand the sphere of individual conscience.

The Descendants of Joseph: A Parallel Story on the American Continent

The beginning of colonization in America is a bittersweet story that contains powerful lessons for mankind. Many of these lessons are taught in the Book of Mormon, which explains the origin and destiny of some of America’s early inhabitants, predicts the clash of two civilizations, and outlines the pattern Americans must follow to avoid a similar fate.

For millions who accept the Book of Mormon as sacred history, the story of the American continent forms a crucial parallel to the Renaissance unfolding in Europe. According to that record, many early inhabitants of the Americas descended from Lehi, a descendant of Manasseh, son of Joseph who was sold into Egypt. As such, they are a part of the lost Ten Tribes. Their story began in 600 BC when they left Jerusalem and soon thereafter sailed to the Promised Land (the American continent).

Within a few years of their arrival, two great people were established, whose key role, as foretold by the Hebrew prophet Ezekiel, was to write a record that would join with the record of Judah unto the confounding of false doctrines. Written by a succession of prophets, this record conveys knowledge of their ancestors, reveals the Lord’s covenants to their descendants, and restores plain and previous things that have been lost form the Bible. It is called the Book of Mormon.

In 34 AD as recorded in Jerusalem, Christ said, “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one- fold and one shepherd.” In fulfillment of these words, the resurrected Christ visited America, taught his gospel, and established his church. So powerful was this experience that the people were all converted unto the Lord. They lived for two hundred years with “no contentions and disputations among them.”

Eventually, there was a great division among the people. However, they did not dwindle in unbelief, but they willfully rebelled against the teachings they had received, a condition which led to the gradual destruction of one group by the other.

The surviving group, lacking the coherency of the previous order, broke into tribes and carved out territories. As prophesied, these groups warred among themselves and were scattered, driven, and nearly destroyed through disease and conquest.

Far from the myth of ruthless savages, the native peoples encountered by the French and English in the early seventeenth century were fairly advanced tribes whose members enjoyed many rights and freedoms, whose rulers depended upon the acquiescence of their people in order to continue their rule. In direct contrast to the divine right of kings’ stranglehold on Europe, many native Americans were practicing common consent.

As the early settlers passed along their observations of these democratic organizations to their former homelands, the minds of European philosophers were influenced and enlarged. In turn, these philosophers furnished much of the intellectual base for the American and French revolutions, profoundly affecting world history.

After the resurrected Christ visited them, these people lived in unity, peace, and righteousness, an enlightened society blessed by the gospel. But eventually, as the record states, they willfully rebelled against the truth they once embraced. Their decline was not due to ignorance but to rejection, and their scattering, warfare, and suffering were consequences long foretold.

Together, the Bible and the Book of Mormon stand as three witnesses of Jesus Christ. These records are given because God loves his children and wants them to remain on the straight and narrow path, avoiding the destruction that follows rebellion and disobedience.

We are fortunate to have this account—not only for what it teaches about the early inhabitants of America, but because it stands as a warning voice. It shows, in sobering clarity, how a once‑enlightened people fell when they turned away from Jesus Christ and his teachings, and why their scattered condition invites modern readers to consider the consequences of rejecting divine truth.

Yet the Book of Mormon also promises that a remnant would be preserved. Many Native American peoples, though battered by disease, conquest, and displacement, retained a deep love of freedom.

Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce captured their feelings in these words, “You might as well expect the rivers to run backward as that any man who was born free should be contented to be penned up and denied liberty. Let me be a free man–free to travel, free to stop, free to work, free to trade where I choose. Free to think and act and talk for myself.” According to prophecy, many descendants of the biblical Joseph will yet assist in preparing the world for Christ’s Second Coming and in building a culture rooted in the inspired founding documents of the United States.

A Divine Preparation for What Came Next

Seen through the lens of faith, the Renaissance was not merely a cultural flowering but a deliberate stage in God’s long preparation of the world. Gutenberg broke the chains on knowledge. The Renaissance awakened the human mind. Tyndale gave the English‑speaking world the Bible. Columbus opened a hemisphere where freedom could grow. The descendants of Joseph preserved a record and a legacy that would influence the birth of a nation. Each step expanded human agency and moved the world closer to freedom of expression, belief, and the Restoration.

Conclusion

From the Bible came the idea of the inherent worth of every soul. From its teachings came moral law and moral conduct, the English legal tradition, the Declaration of Independence, and the U.S. Constitution. From the Renaissance came the courage to question, to learn, and to seek truth. From the descendants of Joseph came a sacred record and a legacy of governing. And from the Reformation and Enlightenment would come the spirit of personal responsibility and free examination.

The Renaissance was the moment when humanity began to look outward, upward, and inward all at once, preparing the world for further enlightenment, for the spread of freedom, for the restitution of all things, and for the unfolding of God’s purposes in the latter days.

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Post 22 THE INVENTION OF PRINTING

5 min.

Providential Orchestration and the Founding of the American Nation

Silencing the English Bible

When the church sought to lock scripture behind Latin, the Archbishop of Canterbury declared:

The Moment Knowledge Broke Free

The invention of the Gutenberg press shattered the old world’s monopoly on knowledge. For centuries, religious and political authorities controlled scripture, education, and ideas—deciding who could read, what could be read, and in what language. Gutenberg’s movable‑type press broke that control forever, igniting a revolution in human freedom.

Gutenberg’s press emerged at the dawn of a cultural awakening later called the Renaissance—a moment when God quietly stirred human curiosity, creativity, and learning. But printing did more than reflect that awakening; it accelerated it.

THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF JOHANNES GUTENBERG

Born in the late 1300s, Johannes Gutenberg began as a craftsman cutting gems and making mirrors. Yet his ambition reached far beyond trade work. He envisioned a way to reproduce religious manuscripts with mechanical precision and beauty—making the written word accessible to ordinary people, rather than a privileged elite.

After years of painstaking experimentation, he created a movable‑type printing system that would alter the course of civilization. But his breakthrough came at a personal cost. A financial backer, impatient for quick profits, sued him and won. Gutenberg lost his workshop, his equipment, and even the type for his Bible. By every earthly measure, he was ruined. And yet, the work was done.

The Gutenberg Bible—a majestic three‑volume Latin text—had already been printed. Forty copies survive today. Its creation marked the beginning of a new world.

Church authorities understood the danger. “We must root out printing, or printing will root out us,” they warned. Laws were passed. Translators were condemned. Ordinary believers were executed simply for reading scripture in their own language. But the tide had turned. The printed word could not be contained. This was the moment when knowledge broke free—and once free, it could never be put back into its chains. The genie could not be put back into the bottle.

Printing as the Turning Point of Human Progress

Looking back, it becomes clear that Gutenberg’s invention was not an isolated event. It was part of a larger divine pattern—a long preparation for liberty, conscience, and the reemergence of lost truths. The Renaissance, the rise of literacy, the spread of ideas, the hunger for scripture, the courage of martyrs, and eventually the opening of a new hemisphere—all moved mankind toward greater agency and spiritual light.

Rather than force history forward, God prepared it. He opened doors at the right moments and let courageous individuals walk through them. Gutenberg was one of those great and noble souls.

Gutenberg’s press did more than print pages. It accelerated human progress, expanded freedom, weakened oppressive monopolies, and helped create a world where truth could circulate freely—where the Bible could be read, where ideas could be tested, where the consent of the governed could be established, and where the “restitution of all things” could finally take root. In the grand story of God’s work among the nations, the invention of printing stands as one of the clearest turning points: a moment when heaven quietly advanced the cause of human liberty.

How the Bible Transformed the World Through Print

The printing press changed the world, but it was the Bible that gave the press its explosive power. Scripture was the first great text to be multiplied, debated, translated, and carried across borders. And because the Bible demanded literacy, conscience, and personal engagement, it became the engine of a cultural, political, and spiritual transformation.

The Bible Fueled a Literacy Revolution

Printed scripture required readers. As people learned to read the Bible, they also learned to read everything else—science, philosophy, law, and classical texts. This surge in literacy helped ignite the Renaissance, the development of languages, the Scientific Revolution, the Age of Exploration, and the Ages of Reformation and Enlightenment. Ideas that once moved at the pace of caravans now traveled at the speed of ink. Europe became a laboratory of discovery.

The Bible Gave Birth to Personal Freedom

When individuals could read scripture for themselves, they no longer relied solely on clergy for interpretation. This shift nurtured the belief that every person has the right to think, choose, and worship freely. These principles later shaped democratic movements and the founding ideals of the United States. Freedom of religion grew from the freedom to read.

The Bible Transformed Global Faith

As scripture became accessible in local languages, missionary work accelerated, Protestant movements spread, and the idea of a personal relationship with God—unmediated by institutions—took root worldwide. The printed Bible democratized faith and reshaped nations.

The Bible Inspired Courageous Seekers of Truth

Ordinary people risked imprisonment, exile, or death simply to read or hear God’s word. In 1519, seven believers in Coventry—including a mother—were burned alive for teaching their children the Lord’s Prayer in English. Their sacrifices prepared the cultural soil for later spiritual awakenings and, ultimately, the Restoration of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Printing empowered people to pursue truth despite danger.

The Bible Brought a Universal Mission to America

The Bible’s arrival on America’s shores carried with it a profound respect for human history—stories such as the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt and the life of Jesus, often called the greatest story ever told. Accompanying the account of the Savior’s ministry was the introduction into the American culture of the Two Great Commandments: Love God and love your neighbor and the Golden Rule.

Also within these early narratives stands the Savior’s defining charge: “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” What makes the Restoration extraordinary is that this fledgling movement—small, fragile, and barely beginning—accepted that commission as its central purpose. Joseph Smith taught that proclaiming the gospel was our “greatest and most important duty,” further declaring that the “standard of truth has been erected” and would go forth until it has penetrated every continent and reached every people.

Equally remarkable is how the rise of the American nation made such a mission possible. Born with constitutional protections for religious liberty and emerging as a powerful global presence, America provided the freedom, stability, and reach necessary for this divine mandate to advance. Under restored priesthood authority—and under the shelter of American freedom and influence—the work began to move outward almost immediately. Nearly 200 years later, that bold vision continues to unfold across the world, fulfilling the Savior’s commission of two thousand years ago and the prophecy spoken at the very dawn of the Restoration. From these has grown a uniquely American sense of purpose—an outward‑looking, world‑embracing effort to protect and extend freedom while sharing what believers see as the fullness of the gospel with all mankind.

Perhaps John Adams said it best: “One great advantage of the Christian religion is that it brings the great principles of the law of nature and nations—Love your neighbor as yourself, and do to others as you would that others should do to you—to the knowledge, belief, and veneration of the whole people. No other institution for education, no kind of political discipline, could diffuse this kind of necessary information, so universally among all ranks and descriptions of citizens.”

The Divine Arc of History

The invention of the printing press did more than reproduce words on a page. It opened the door to liberty, knowledge, and spiritual awakening. It paved the way for constitutional government and the Restoration. In the larger context of God’s marvelous work and a wonder, the invention of printing and the spread of literacy stand as examples of God’s quiet, deliberate shaping of human history.

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The Early Reformers

John Wycliffe (1330-1384)

The Early Reformers: Preparing a World Ready for Renewal

The rise of constitutional liberty and religious reform were not sudden events. They gathered strength through centuries of struggle. Each step forward came because someone dared to confront unchecked power and insist that truth must answer to God, not to institutions. Among these early voices, John Wycliffe stands as a turning point—a mind and conscience that helped redirect the course of Western civilization.

Foundations of Freedom

The Magna Carta cracked open the door to accountable government, placing the first limits on absolute authority. In the generations that followed, reformers widened that opening. They challenged monarchs who claimed divine right and church leaders who claimed infallibility. Their courage laid the groundwork for the advancement of civil and religious liberties and ultimately the restoration of divine authority.

John Wycliffe: A Voice That Refused to Bow

Born in 1330 and shaped by the scholarship of Oxford, Wycliffe saw clearly what many feared to say: the church of his day had drifted far from the simple, apostolic pattern of the New Testament. Immersed in scripture, he rejected doctrines without biblical foundation, challenged the pope’s supremacy over kings, condemned clerical corruption, and insisted that no earthly power could stand above the word of God.

Wycliffe’s loyalty was not to tradition but to truth. That quiet, disciplined conviction made him dangerous to the most powerful institution on earth. Yet he would not retreat. His courage became a spark that helped ignite the long arc of reform.

Scripture for the People

Wycliffe believed that every soul deserved direct access to God’s word. Over twelve intense months beginning in 1380, he translated the Bible from Latin into English—an act the church had forbidden for centuries. By placing scripture into the hands of ordinary people, he shifted spiritual authority from institution to individual. It was revolutionary. It was defiant. And it changed everything.

Opposition and Suppression

Rome struck back. Wycliffe was condemned, his writings banned, his followers scattered. Protected for a time by Oxford, he continued to teach until a stroke ended his life on December 31, 1384. But death could not silence what he had set in motion.

Jan Hus: Conscience in the Fire

Jan Hus, born in 1369, took Wycliffe’s torch and carried it into the heart of Europe. A brilliant preacher shaped by Wycliffe’s writings, he called the church back to humility, purity, and scripture. He condemned indulgences, rejected papal infallibility, and exposed the entanglement of church and political power.

For this, Hus was excommunicated, his chapel destroyed, and an order given that he must personally answer for his beliefs. Offered safety if he would recant, he refused: “Do not force me to what I cannot do without contradicting my conscience.” On July 6, 1415, he was burned at the stake—singing as the flames rose.

His death did not extinguish his message. It amplified it.

A Legacy That Could Not Be Contained

Wycliffe and Hus prepared the world for a seismic shift. Their courage emboldened the reformers who followed—Luther, Zwingli, Calvin—and helped awaken a world long held captive by unchallenged authority. They proved that one voice, anchored in truth, can redirect the destiny of nations.

The Turning of the Age

The story does not end here. A new age was about to break open, driven by three extraordinary men—Gutenberg, Columbus, and Tyndale. Through the printing press, the mariner’s compass, and a freshly translated Bible, ideas would travel farther and faster than any power could restrain. These forces would open new worlds—geographical, intellectual, and spiritual—shaking the foundations of traditional Christendom and propelling humanity into an era of discovery, reform, and awakening.

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19 — THE DIVINE RIGHT OF KINGS

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

6 min.

A Partnership Forged in Power

For a thousand years, Europe lived under a single commanding assumption: authority was sacred because authority was shared. Kings ruled bodies, the church ruled souls, and together they forged a world where obedience was not merely civic duty but a religious mandate. In this fusion of throne and altar, dissent became treason against both heaven and earth.

As medieval society matured, monarchy and church discovered how mutually profitable their alliance could be. Kings commanded armies but lacked legitimacy. Popes commanded souls but lacked enforcement. Their partnership solved both problems.

However, cooperation soon hardened into doctrine: God ruled through kings, and kings ruled through the church. To resist one was to resist both. Authority became holy, hierarchy unquestionable, and conscience had nowhere to hide.

By the thirteenth century, papal power reached its zenith. The Roman pontiff claimed to stand as the Vicar of the Almighty, supreme judge over kings and kingdoms. Monarchs eagerly embraced the belief that their crowns were bestowed not by the people but by God himself.

From this alliance emerged the political theology that would become the divine right of kings: kings ruled by divine appointment; their authority was absolute; and obedience was an act of faith. In such a world, faith became a tool of governance and governance a tool of faith. Rebellion was not merely a crime; it was a sin. A system forged in power became sanctified as divine will.

When Church and State Become One

The consequences of this alignment were profound. The church defined orthodoxy. The state enforced it. Together they regulated thought, prescribed worship, criminalized dissent, and subordinated conscience to authority.

Through this arrangement, the same forces that produced the Inquisition — fear of disorder, hunger for control, and the belief that unity required coercion — produced a political order in which kings wielded sacred power and the church wielded political power. The human soul was caught in the gears of both.

Heresy became anything outside the boundaries of acceptable belief. God grew abstract and distant. Free will yielded to ecclesiastical control. The seeds of theocracy were sown — and they dominated the Western world for centuries.

By defining heresy as anything outside of acceptable belief and behavior as determined by the church, the church would greatly limit the spiritual quest of ordinary people. To ensure conformance with an ever-changing orthodoxy, the state would become the arm of power. Warped by speculative thinking, God lost his corporeal form, and free will yielded to the iron yoke of man-made ecclesiasticism. Thus, were sown the seeds of theocracy–the combining of church and state, and the divine right of kings–both of which would be undone by the American Revolution and the subsequent events of the Restoration.

The Long Road to Liberty

Yet beneath this immense structure of power, discontent smoldered. Reformers challenged corruption. Philosophers challenged absolutism. Scientists challenged dogma. Ordinary believers challenged coercion.

Slowly, painfully, the conviction grew that when church and state become one, both faith and freedom are corrupted. This conviction crossed the Atlantic. The immigrants who carried the Bible into the New World also carried a longing for liberty. In a land unburdened by centuries of tradition, a new people dared to separate what Europe had fused.

They declared that governments derive their just powers not from divine right, but from the consent of the governed. They insisted that conscience belonged not to kings or popes, but to every human soul. They enshrined this principle in the First Amendment, ensuring that religious hierarchy and civil government would never again be bound together by law.

The American Founding did not merely reject a political doctrine. It overturned a millennium of assumptions about authority. It broke the chain that bound conscience to coercion — and in doing so, prepared the world for something far greater.

Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, Discovery, Colonization, Independence, and Restoration

For centuries, the medieval church constrained the spiritual quest of ordinary people. Orthodoxy was enforced by the state. God was filtered through speculative theology. Human agency yielded to man‑made doctrine.

Had the divine right of kings endured, so too would the religious systems it empowered — systems that suppressed inquiry, punished dissent, and defined God through abstraction rather than revelation. But the Founders shattered that world. By opening a realm where conscience could breathe, they opened a realm where God could speak anew. Into that world stepped Joseph Smith Jr.

God Revealed Anew

Revealing a personal God, Joseph Smith declared that “if you were to see him today, you would see him like a man in form,” a God who feels sorrow, rejoices with gladness, weeps real tears, and has interest in all his children; a God whos majesty does not exist at the expense of the dignity of mankind. Having also declared that “the Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s,” the Prophet was not only willing to defy conventional thinking by challenging the traditional definition of God–which is supported by neither scriptures nor logic–he was willing to advance a truth that would overrule philosophy, outrank science, and confront falsehood. With those words, he did more than challenge centuries of philosophical speculation. He restored a truth scripture had always whispered: man was created in the likeness and image of God.

As the Prophet of the Restoration, Joseph Smith rose against the two great tyrannies that darken the mind of man: the tyranny of false doctrine and the tyranny of inherited tradition. Through inspired Founders, the Lord broke the political chains that bound a young nation; through the Restoration, he broke the spiritual chains that bound his children. Whenever God prepares to pour out greater light upon the earth, he first enlarges the freedom of his people, that they may receive truth with willing hearts.

A Divine Sequence

Seen together, the pattern becomes unmistakable: the divine right of kings fused church and state, suppressing conscience and revelation. The American Revolution shattered that union, creating a world where liberty could flourish. The Restoration entered that world revealing truths that could not have survived under the old order.

Political liberty cleared the path for religious liberty. The Founders built a nation ready to receive God’s prophets. And God, in his divine wisdom, prepared the world for the truths of the Restoration long before it came.

A New Principle is Born

When the American Founders declared independence, they rejected the entire medieval system in a single stroke: “Governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.” No pope. No king. No divine right. Only conscience, reason, and the inherent dignity of the human soul.

The First Amendment completed the revolution: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” For the first time in centuries, religious and secular power were separated — not to weaken faith and belief, but to protect them.

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18 GROWING DISCONTENT

The Continuous Preparation of a World for Freedom, Inquiry, and the Restoration of Lost Truths.

6 min.

Darkness, and the Birth of the Inquisition

Rather than moving in straight lines, history advances through struggle, resistance, and the gradual awakening of the human spirit. The story of Western civilization—from the tightening grip of medieval orthodoxy to the birth of scientific inquiry, from the rise of dissent to the founding of a nation built on liberty—was not a random sequence of events. It was a pattern. A progression. A long preparation.

For centuries, institutions sought to control belief, suppress inquiry, and define truth by decree. Yet even in the darkest periods, forces were at work that could not be contained: the courage of reformers, the curiosity of scholars, the conscience of ordinary people who sensed that the world they inhabited no longer fit the truths they were discovering. These movements, scattered across time and place, formed a rising arc of freedom that would eventually reshape the world.

For those who discern a larger design in history, this arc bears the quiet marks of Providence. Not through sudden miracles or dramatic interventions, but through the natural unfolding of human understanding—through the bravery of individuals who refused to silence what they knew, and through societies gradually learning to value conscience over coercion. It is within this long preparation that the American founding and the Restoration would find their place.

A Church Under Siege

By the eleventh century, the Western church stood at a crossroads. The Crusades had awakened a militant spirit—one that cloaked political ambition in the raiment of holy purpose. What began as an effort to reclaim sacred lands hardened into the belief that faith could be enforced, and dissent punished as treason against God.

Simony, corruption, and the selling of indulgences eroded trust. Reformers pleaded for purity, but their voices were treated as threats. Fearing fragmentation, the church tightened its grip.

Heresy as Revolution

In a world where church and state were inseparably bound, a challenge to doctrine became a challenge to the social order itself. Monarchs feared unrest. Bishops feared loss of authority. Ordinary people feared chaos. Heresy—once a theological concern—became a political crime.

When fines, exile, and confiscation failed to silence dissent, harsher measures followed: branding, imprisonment, and finally, death. Repression breeds resistance; the human soul was never designed to live in chains.

The Inquisition: Bureaucratizing Fear

In 1215, recognizing that sermons and swords were insufficient, Pope Innocent III created the Holy Office of the Inquisition. Its mandate was absolute. Its methods were secret. Its reach was limitless.

Rumor became evidence. Silence became guilt. Torture became “clarification.” Altar and throne worked in tandem, extinguishing dissent in the name of unity.

The War Against Thought

As the early modern era unfolded, the Inquisition’s shadow stretched into the emerging disciplines of science and natural philosophy. Copernicus—cautious and devout—delayed publication of his heliocentric model. Fierce opposition arose as the ecclesiastical hierarchy recognized that a reordering of the cosmos threatened a parallel reordering of institutional power.

Nearly two centuries later, Galileo faced the same entrenched resistance. Armed with empirical observation, he was compelled in 1633 to recant before the tribunal, forced to deny what his instruments had made unmistakable.

The assertions of both men challenged the intellectual scaffolding of religious and political authority. The opposition they encountered was not merely theological; it was institutional and psychological.

The Awakening of the Human Mind

The courage of Copernicus and Galileo helped inaugurate a shift in which evidence, observation, and reason gradually displaced inherited dogma. This transformation expanded the very idea of intellectual freedom.

Viewed across centuries, these developments form a discernible trajectory: human understanding expands, fear recedes, and the capacity to receive new truth steadily grows. Providence moves quietly, through conscience, curiosity, and the courage of those who refuse to silence what they know. Through such natural means, the world was being readied for the restoration of truths long obscured.

Seeds of Protest and the Long Road to Freedom

By defining heresy as anything outside the boundaries of acceptable belief, the church narrowed the spiritual quest of ordinary people. The state became the arm of ecclesiastical power. Warped by speculative theology, God lost his corporeal form, and free will yielded to the iron yoke of man‑made doctrine.

Yet repression breeds resistance. From the Waldensians to the Lollards, from Wycliffe to Hus, from Luther to the Enlightenment philosophers, a single conviction grew: the human mind and the human soul must be free.

Centuries of struggle carried that conviction across the Atlantic, where a new people would attempt something unprecedented—a society where conscience could not be chained.

Growing Discontent: A World Outgrowing Its Chains

As intellectual freedom widened, people sensed that the world they inhabited no longer fit the truths they were discovering. This was not rebellion for its own sake, but the quiet dissatisfaction that arises when conscience awakens and courage is summoned to the fore.

These pressures accumulated until old systems could no longer withstand them. Political structures demanding obedience without representation faced resistance. Religious institutions insisting on uniformity without inquiry were challenged. Social hierarchies restricting opportunity confronted individuals who sensed that human worth was not determined by birth.

For those who discern a larger pattern, this was preparation. Providence, which had expanded human understanding, was steadily enlarging human aspiration.

Toward the American Founding and the Restoration

This rising discontent was not decay but awakening. It was the early stirring of a world preparing for transformation—a world in which change, though fiercely opposed on many fronts, would appear not as an anomaly but as the natural next step in a centuries‑long progression toward greater freedom, greater light, and greater truth. America’s emergence and the Restoration’s unfolding were not aberrations. They were the culmination in a world that had been prepared.

This is why American independence, the rule of law, religious liberty, religious pluralism, and the battles waged by Joseph Smith on behalf of the newly revealed truths of the Restoration were ultimately won, despite the opposition they faced. The world had been made ready—intellectually, morally, and spiritually—for the reemergence of truths long lost.

Conclusion

Seen from a distance, the centuries leading to the American founding and the Restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ reveal a coherent trajectory: the liberation of the human mind, the awakening of conscience, and the steady erosion and ultimate elimination of systems that sought to control both. What began as isolated acts of courage became the foundation of a new world—a world capable of receiving truths long obscured. A world that was being prepared, step by step, for the return of light.

The long night would pass. The dawn would come. And with it, a people would finally be ready to rise.

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Blog: http://www.americasgrand.design

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POST: FINDING HARMONY THROUGH MUSIC: AN INTERLUDE

6 min.

The Power of Music

Each of us, at one time or another, face trials, sadness, and adversity. These experiences are not signs of weakness or abandonment but part of the universal refining fire that shapes us into something higher and holier. Words of comfort and encouragement matter because they remind us that we are not alone in our struggle. When we lift one another, we rise together. Seen through an eternal lens, our hardships become sacred classrooms — places where faith deepens, compassion expands, and the divine hand molds us for greater purpose. I offer the following reflections in this spirit.

Yesterday, a young father who has recently lost a young child to death stood before us in our testimony meeting and, with great tenderness and emotion, said: “If there is one thing I wish I could tell every person in the world, it is this: you are a child of God, a unique, beautiful creation. There is no one else like you, and God loves you.”

In a season filled with celebrity speeches, country music star Eric Church touched on similar themes as he broke down what he called “the six strings of life.” Introducing his theme, he said:

“Six strings. When all six are in tune, the chords they make can stop a conversation cold, carry a broken person through the worst night of their life, or make a room full of strangers feel for three minutes like they’ve known each other forever. But if even one is off, the whole chord unravels. Not gradually, not politely. The moment you strike it, you know.” That is the power of music.

String 1: The Low E string — Faith as Foundation

The low E is the thickest, heaviest string that buttresses everything else. Your faith is the low E of your life. The thing that sits at the very bottom of you. “The people who tend to their faith in ordinary seasons do not come undone in extraordinary ones.” Faith provides a foundation when everything else in life may be in crisis. Tend to your faith, not just when you’re broken, but when you’re whole.

String 2: The A string — Nurturing Your Connection to Family

This is the string that makes you feel like you’re not alone. “Devote time to family, even if your family is not making demands on you because they think you are so busy with your life. Do not take them up on it. Call your people. Not where there’s new, not when there’s nothing. Show up when it costs you something. Let them see you when things are hard.”

String 3: The D string — Finding the Heart of Your Life in a Partner or Spouse

The D string is located in the heart of the guitar, and Church likened it to a spouse or partner. “The person you choose is the most important decision you will ever make outside of your faith. They will either amplify every other string you’re playing or slowly pull the whole instrument into an out-of-tune mess.”

He also gave advice on what to look for: “Find your best friend. Someone you want to talk to at the end of a long day. Look for shared values over shared interest. The right partner is the string that makes the whole chord ring fuller and warmer and truer than anything you could ever play alone. Choose them wisely and then love them fiercely.”

String 4: The G string — Resilience After Failure

“The world has more than enough people standing at the edge of their own potential, waiting for a permission slip that was never going to arrive.” Want the thing. Say it out loud. Build toward it with everything you have. And when you fail — and you will fail — Hemingway wrote it plainly, right in the sternum: “The world breaks everyone. Afterward, the best of us is stronger at the broken places.” Get back up. Tune the string. Keep playing.

String 5: The B string — Choosing Local Community Over Digital Life

Choose in-person local connections over digital ones, where there is “the temptation to perform for everyone and be known to no one.” Resist this. Plant yourself somewhere. Put down roots with the full intention of growing there. Learn the actual names — not usernames — of the people around you.

Volunteer as a coach or work on community projects. “Generosity is not something you do after you make it. It’s how you make it. And if you get lost — and at some point, I promise you, you will — you have a place you belong now.”

String 6: The High E string — Retaining What Makes You Unique

Avoid the “relentless, curated” comparisons to the lives of others on social media. Retain your individuality amid the temptation to follow trends or mimic others online. “Do not let them touch your string. You were made uniquely, wonderfully, distinctly. There’s a sound only you can make. A voice that has never existed before you and will never exist again. A contribution only you can bring. A way of seeing that belongs to only you. The world does not need another cover song. It needs an original.”

He concluded by noting the six strings will be out of tune at times in life, which is not “failure” or “weakness” but an “inevitable” part of life. “Take your six strings, make it worth something worth hearing and play your song.”

Reflection

In the end, every string of our lives — faith, family, love, resilience, community, and individuality — finds its true harmony in Jesus Christ. He is the Master Musician who has walked the path of sorrow, borne the weight of grief, and descended below all things so he can lift us above them. Because he has suffered perfectly, he knows how to comfort us personally. No trial is wasted in his hands; no heartbreak is unseen; no adversity is beyond his ability to transform. When life feels out of tune, he is the One who can gently retune our souls and restore our strength. As we trust him, follow him, and let his compassion, mercy, and grace steady our trembling hands, we discover that even our broken notes can become part of a far greater song — one filled with hope, purpose, and eternal promise. May these reflections lift your heart, strengthen your faith, and remind you that with Christ, your song is never over.

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Post 17 The Magna Carta: A Turning Point in Mankind’s Long March Toward Freedom

3 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

Prepared by History — Orchestrated by Heaven

Throughout the Dark Ages and long after, theocracies and autocracies resisted change. To protect their power, they labeled outsiders as infidels to be conquered and insiders as heretics to be silenced. This pattern continues even today: entrenched power always fears liberty.

Because America’s Founders sought to extend the widest liberty and greatest freedom ever known, we have every reason to celebrate the divine wisdom and human courage that produced one of history’s great turning points: The Magna Carta.

1215: When England Reached a Breaking Point

King John’s abuses—crushing taxes, arbitrary arrests, broken promises—pushed the nation to the edge. A group of determined nobles finally stood up and forced the king to accept limits on his power. Their agreement declared the king is bound by the law; nobles and landholders must receive trial by jury; property cannot be seized without lawful judgment.

This moment became a foundational pillar for the future Bill of Rights and a key step in the long turning of the political tide toward liberty.

Why the Magna Carta Was Needed

Culturally, Europe was emerging from the Dark Ages. Learning, literacy, and law had decayed. People longed for stability and fairness.

Politically, King John violated the very foundations of feudal society. His rule was unpredictable and oppressive.

Socially, trade was expanding, towns were rising, and ordinary people needed consistent laws to thrive.

Religiously, the Roman Church held immense power. John’s conflict with Pope Innocent III destabilized the kingdom and emboldened resistance.

All these pressures converged into a single moment—creating the perfect environment for a breakthrough.

What the Magna Carta Did

The Magna Carta was not a modern constitution. It wasn’t written for the masses. But it planted seeds that would grow for centuries: the king is under the law; no man can be imprisoned without due process; property cannot be seized without lawful judgment; and certain taxes require consent (an early form of representation).

These protections began with nobles but eventually expanded to all English citizens.

Shifting the Course of Civilization

The Magna Carta became the foundation for:

  • The Petition of Right (1628)
  • The Habeas Corpus Act (1679)
  • The English Bill of Rights (1689)

By the time English settlers came to America, they carried these principles with them. The Founders saw themselves as heirs of a tradition that began at Runnymede.

The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights all echo the same truth: government exists to protect God‑given rights—not to grant them.

A Divine Thread Running Through History

For people of faith, the Magna Carta is one chapter in a much larger story: God was breaking the grip of arbitrary power; he was reawakening the idea that rulers are accountable to a higher law; he was preparing the world for the Reformation and the spread of scripture; he was laying the groundwork for constitutional government and religious liberty; he was setting the stage for the American experiment in freedom. For non‑believers, it stands as a powerful example of human courage and the natural evolution of justice.

Either way, it marks a turning point—a moment when brave individuals stood up to tyranny and changed the world.

The Magna Carta as a Reminder

In our time, the Magna Carta reminds us that freedom is fragile; that liberty requires courage; that rights must be defended in every generation; and that the march toward justice is long, but it bends toward freedom when people stand firm. Whether you see the Magna Carta as divine design or the natural unfolding of human progress, it was a spark, a seed, a beginning.

And its legacy lives on in every person who refuses to bow to arbitrary power.

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Post 16 THE GREAT APOSTASY

5 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

For two thousand years, Christians have looked to Jesus Christ as the author and finisher of their faith. Yet the Christianity we know today — in all its beauty, diversity, and devotion — is not identical to the Christianity of the New Testament. Something changed. Something was lost. And for centuries, believers have wrestled with the consequences.

This is not a criticism of sincere Christians or the churches they love. It is a sober recognition shared by historians, theologians, and thoughtful seekers across traditions: the early Christian church did not remain intact after the deaths of the apostles. The record of scripture, the testimony of history, and the witness of countless reformers all point to a long, gradual, and often painful falling away.

Understanding this story matters — not to diminish anyone’s faith, but to illuminate the path that eventually led to protest, then reform, and ultimately to restoration. It is a story of human agency and divine patience, of truth preserved and truth obscured, of courageous men and women who sensed that something essential had slipped away.

And it invites every honest seeker — scholar and average Joe and Jane alike — to consider a simple but profound question: If Christ built his Church on revelation, what happens when revelation stops?

The answer shaped the history of Christianity. It shaped the Reformation and Enlightenment. And it prepared the world for something more.

Scripture in Transition: Loss of Clarity and Covenant

In the centuries that followed, many plain and precious truths were altered or obscured. Scholars across denominations acknowledge both accidental scribal errors and intentional changes introduced into biblical manuscripts. Joseph Smith summarized the situation simply: “I believe the Bible as it ought to be, as it came from the pen of the original writers.”

The ancient covenant people — the Jews — had preserved the sacred record with remarkable devotion. But once the record passed into other hands, essential covenants and doctrines were modified. Some changes were deliberate, designed to “blind the eyes and harden the hearts” of generations.

As this altered Bible spread through Europe and eventually to America, sincere seekers often sensed that something vital had been lost.

A Hellenized Christianity: When Philosophy Replaced Revelation

With prophetic leadership gone, early Christians turned to the intellectual systems of the Greco‑Roman world. Greek philosophy — brilliant, influential, and deeply respected — gradually replaced revealed doctrine. Councils and creeds became the arbiters of truth. This fusion of theology and philosophy recast God as immaterial and passionless, refined Christ’s nature through metaphysical debate, subordinated human agency to abstract dogma, and enforced belief through the union of church and state.

Scholars across backgrounds have noted how dramatically this shift reshaped Christianity. LDS scholar Noel B. Reynolds observed that without the infusion of Greek thought, “the Christian movement would have dwindled into an insignificant folk religion.” In other words, philosophy kept Christianity alive — but it also changed it.

Historian Will Durant famously wrote, “Christianity did not destroy paganism; it adopted it. The Greek mind, dying, came to a transmigrated life in the theology and liturgy of the Church.” And historian William Manchester echoed this conclusion, noting that Christianity was “infiltrated, and to a considerable extent subverted, by the paganism it was supposed to destroy.”

These scholars — none of them Latter‑day Saints — describe the same historical reality: as revelation faded, philosophy filled the vacuum. Christianity became intellectually sophisticated, culturally dominant, and spiritually sincere, yet increasingly distant from the simple, embodied, covenant‑based faith found in the New Testament.

This is not an accusation. It is a historical observation shared by believers and non‑believers alike. And it helps explain why, centuries later, ordinary Christians began to sense that something essential had been lost — something no council or creed could restore.

The Rock of the Church: Revelation, Not Peter

A central misunderstanding in Christian history concerns the foundation of Christ’s Church. Many sincere believers have assumed that authority rests on Peter himself — that Christ built his Church on a man, and that institutional power flows through an unbroken line of successors beginning with him. But the New Testament presents a different picture.

When Jesus declared, “Upon this rock I will build my church,” He was responding to Peter’s Spirit‑given witness: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Christ immediately clarified the source of that insight: “Flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.” The “rock” was not Peter. The “rock” was revelation. Christ is the head of the Church. Revelation is the foundation of the Church. Apostles — including Peter — serve under Christ, not in place of him.

Peter was a remarkable leader, the chief apostle, and a powerful witness of the risen Lord. But the idea that all Christian authority permanently derives from him — and only him — is a later development, shaped by centuries of institutional consolidation, political necessity, and theological interpretation. The earliest Christians did not teach that Peter held monarchical authority over the entire Church. They taught that God guided his people through living revelation, given to apostles and prophets. When that revelation ceased, the Church did not lose Peter — it lost the voice of God that had guided Peter.

This distinction matters. It explains why the early Church fractured after the apostles died. It explains why councils and creeds replaced revelation. It explains why reformers protested corruption but could not restore authority. And it explains why a Restoration — not merely reform — was ultimately required.

Doctrinal Shifts That Marked the Apostasy

As divine authority faded, essential doctrines and ordinances were changed. Baptism shifted from covenantal immersion to infant baptism, severing the ordinance from agency. The sacrament became defined by metaphysical theories like transubstantiation. Creeds and confessions replaced continuing revelation. Priesthood authority was replaced by ecclesiastical hierarchy.

These changes produced growing discontent among believers who sensed that the Christianity they inherited differed from the Christianity of the New Testament.

A Dark Age — But Not Total Darkness

Though the era is often called the Dark Ages, it was not devoid of goodness. Many righteous men and women sought God, preserved fragments of truth, and kept faith alive as best they could. Their prayers were heard. Their sacrifices mattered.

But protest was not enough. Reform was not enough. A Restoration was needed.

Why Restoration Was the Only Path Forward

The Restoration did not arise in a vacuum. It emerged in a world shaped by centuries of doctrinal drift; the courage of Reformers; the spread of scripture; the rise of civil and religious liberties; and the American experiment in freedom of conscience. Only in such an environment could institutional power be challenged and overcome. Had these conditions not existed, the message brought forth by a young prophet named Joseph Smith would have been destroyed in its infancy.

When Joseph Smith entered the Sacred Grove on a beautiful spring morning in upstate New York, in 1820, as a fourteen-year-old boy, he carried the question of centuries: which church should he join? When he left, he had not only been told that he should join none of them, for they were all wrong, but because he had seen and conversed with God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, he knew more about the true nature and character of God than all the councils and creeds had ever defined.

The First Vision and the information and experiences that followed restored truths long obscured: God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ are glorified, embodied and separate beings; priesthood authority was restored by heavenly messengers; covenants and ordinances returned in their original form; revelation resumed through living prophets; the fullness of the gospel was brought back to earth.

A Humble Conclusion for All Seekers

The Great Apostasy is not a weapon to wield against other Christians. It is a lens through which history becomes clearer. It explains why the early Church fractured after the apostles died. It explains why philosophy replaced revelation, why creeds replaced prophets, and why reformers risked their lives to challenge the institutions of their day. But protest could only point backward. Reform could only repair fragments. Only restoration could rebuild what had been lost.

The Restoration is not an indictment of the past — it is God’s answer to it. It is the fulfillment of ancient prophecy, the return of apostolic authority, the reopening of the heavens, and the reaffirmation that Christ still leads his Church through ongoing revelation. For the scholar, it offers coherence. For the believer, it offers continuity. For the seeker, it offers hope. For all of us, it offers Christ — not as an abstract idea shaped by councils, but as a living, embodied, resurrected Lord who speaks again.

The story of apostasy, protest, reform, and restoration is ultimately the story of God’s unwavering commitment to his children. He did not abandon the world to darkness. He prepared it for dawn.

And the light has returned.

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Post 14 A STORY IN WAITING

5 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

History as a Single, Unfolding Story

History is not a collection of disconnected ages. It is a collection of dispensations. It is a single, unfolding story — a long preparation for liberty, faith, and spiritual renewal. Rome built the framework. America inherited the promise. The Restoration fulfilled the purpose.

Rome gave the world something it had never seen before: a civilization built on law, citizenship, and ordered liberty. It taught that law must stand above rulers, rights must be protected, power must be restrained, and citizens must be virtuous. Rome’s republic was not perfect, but it was foundational. Its rise showed what builds a free society. Its fall showed what destroys one. And its legacy — its roads, its language, its legal order — prepared the world for a spiritual revolution that would reshape history.

Christianity: The Moral Revolution

Into the Roman world came a new message — not of conquest, but of redemption. The gospel spread on Roman roads, in Roman cities, under Roman law. The early Church preserved scripture, carried learning through the dark centuries, and helped shape the moral imagination of the West. Even in its later corruption and division, the church kept alive the memory of Christ, the dignity of the human soul, and the belief that truth matters. Providence used Rome to prepare the world for Christianity — and used Christianity to prepare the world for something more.

America: The Rebirth of Ordered Liberty

When the Founders gathered in Philadelphia, they drew from the deep wells of history: Hebraic wisdom, Greek philosophy, Christian moral order, Roman law and citizenship, British common law, Enlightenment arguments for natural rights and consent. They believed that liberty required virtue. They believed that rights came from God, not government. They believed that a republic must be built on law, not passion.

In other words, America was not an accident. It was the convergence of the Hebrew Law of the prophets, Greece’s reason, Jerusalem’s moral law, Rome’s order, and England’s constitutional tradition. What emerged was a nation prepared by centuries of struggle and thought. These are the fruits of Western civilization in all its complexity.

J. Reuben Clark—born in 1871 in Grantsville, Utah, rising from modest beginnings to become an eminent attorney, diplomat, and counselor in the highest governing body of the LDS Church—brought uncommon intellectual rigor and spiritual conviction to every sphere he touched. His career spanned the US State Department, where he drafted the landmark Clark Memorandum on the Monroe Doctrine, to the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where he served under three presidents for seventeen consecutive years. His legal scholarship, diplomatic experience, and deep spiritual insight give extraordinary weight to his reflections on the American Founding.

Speaking of the Founders, Clark wrote:

“The framers were deeply read in the facts of history; they were learned in the forms and practices and systems of governments of the world, past and present; they were, in matters political, equally at home in Rome, in Athens, in Paris, and in London; they had a long, varied, and intense experience in the work of governing their various colonies.”

Clark’s tribute is not casual praise. It is the considered judgment of a man who understood government at the highest levels and who recognized, with spiritual clarity, the magnitude of what the Founders accomplished. He saw them as prepared—intellectually, morally, and providentially—for the task of establishing a system of ordered liberty. Their work did not emerge from impulse or upheaval but from disciplined study, lived experience, and devotion to principle.

Under a spiritual framework, Clark viewed the Founders as part of a long, divinely guided procession of prophets, poets, philosophers, theologians, scholars, reformers, and other inspired minds who prepared the world for the revolutionary idea of individual freedom. Their achievements were not isolated flashes of brilliance but the culmination of centuries of inspired effort to elevate humanity and restrain injustice.

Thus, the Declaration of Independence stands not as a spontaneous manifesto but as a prudent, proto‑constitutional document—rational in tone, grounded in history, and shaped by ideas refined over years. In Clark’s view, its deliberate character contrasts sharply with the radicalism of the French Revolution. The Declaration marked the beginning of a carefully constructed constitutional order, not the eruption of a momentary passion.

By placing the Founders within both historical and spiritual preparation, Clark honored them as men uniquely fitted for their divine assignment. And because he himself was a scholar, statesman, and spiritual leader of rare stature, his praise magnifies rather than merely echoes their greatness.

The Restoration: The Fulfillment of the Long Preparation

By the early 19th century, the world had finally reached a moment of literacy, preserved scripture, stable government, religious freedom, global communication, and moral expectation. The Restoration required all of these. And none of them would have existed without the long arc of Hebrew, Greek, Christian, Roman, and English influences.

The Restoration was not an isolated event. The Lord had been preparing for his latter-day work many years in advance. Over centuries, with meticulous preparation and precise timing, he created the conditions of freedom essential to the coming forth of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was the culmination of a story that had been unfolding since antiquity.

The Thread That Connects Them All

Rome taught the world that law must govern power. Christianity taught the world that love must govern life. America taught the world that freedom must be grounded in virtue. The Restoration teaches the world that truth has not ceased. These are not separate stories. They are chapters of one divine narrative. A narrative that continues today.

We stand at the intersection of civilizations and centuries. We have inherited law, vision, order, and light. The question now is not whether God has prepared the world. He has. The question is whether we will live worthy of the world he prepared.

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Post 13 Opening the Heart: An Invitation to Consider the Book of Mormon

15 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

The Stick of Joseph

Join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. –Ezekiel 37:17

Across faith traditions, one truth is shared: the human spirit awakens most fully when it is open. Whether we come from Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, or any other spiritual path, we know that insight often arrives when we allow ourselves to see with more than the eyes and listen with more than the ears.

The Book of Mormon sits at an interesting crossroads in this landscape. For some, it is familiar; for others, it is entirely new. Many have heard opinions about it—positive or negative—long before they have ever held it in their hands. Yet sacred texts, whatever their origin, reveal their meaning only to those willing to encounter them directly. The Book of Mormon invites that kind of encounter.

Not because it demands belief, and not because it seeks to replace what one already holds sacred. Rather, it offers itself as an additional witness of God’s dealings with humanity—one that can enrich, not diminish, the spiritual truths people already cherish.

There are historical questions worth exploring, and there are ancient prophecies—such as Ezekiel’s vision of the “stick of Judah” and the “stick of Joseph”—that many see as pointing toward the Book of Mormon’s emergence. But the deepest evidence of any sacred text is not archaeological. It is experiential. It is what happens inside a person when they read with a willing heart. Spiritual truth is recognized not only by the mind but by the soul.

Yet one of the quiet obstacles to spiritual discovery is pre‑judgment—the assumption that we already know what a book contains, or that its message could not possibly speak to us. Prejudice in this sense is not hostility; it is simply the habit of closing a door before we have looked inside.

But when we set aside inherited assumptions, even briefly, something remarkable can happen. We begin to see possibilities we did not know were there. We find that God has spoken to more of his children, in more places, and in more ways, than we previously imagined. And we discover that truth is not threatened by honest inquiry—it is illuminated by it.

So, this is the invitation: read the Book of Mormon—not to replace what you know, but to enrich it. Not to abandon your faith, but to deepen it. Not to surrender your traditions, but to let God surprise you with more. If the book is what it claims to be, it deserves to be approached with openness. If it is not, that will become clear in the reading. Either way, the experience will be your own—unfiltered, unborrowed, and free from the weight of others’ assumptions. In every faith, the heart that seeks truth is honored. And truth, wherever it comes from, welcomes every sincere seeker.

An Invitation to Read with Openness

Many people approach questions of faith, scripture, and history with sincere intentions. Yet all of us—no matter our background—carry assumptions that shape how we see the world. Those assumptions can be helpful, but they can also quietly limit what we are willing to consider.

The Book of Mormon is a good example. Some readers approach it only through the lens of physical evidence, expecting it to prove itself by the standards of modern scholarship. Others dismiss it without reading it at all, assuming they already know what it contains. But the book itself invites a different kind of engagement—one that blends historical curiosity with spiritual openness.

There is evidence worth examining. There are ancient patterns, linguistic features, and even multiple biblical passages. But the purpose of the Book of Mormon was never to win an academic debate. Its purpose is to speak to the heart. Spiritual truth is not confirmed in laboratories, and sacred texts rarely fit neatly into the categories scholars create for them.

This is where the challenge of prejudice enters—not in the sense of hostility, but in the quieter sense of pre‑judgment. Prejudice can be as simple as deciding a book is unworthy of attention because it is unfamiliar, because it comes from a tradition not our own, because one has been warned away from it. When we hold tightly to inherited assumptions, we may unintentionally close the door on insights that could enrich us. A consequence of prejudice is that it shuts out truth. The prejudiced and obstinate man does not so much hold opinions as his opinions hold him. Prejudice is tyranny over the mind of man.

History shows that new ideas—especially spiritual ones—often meet resistance simply because they are new. Tradition can be comforting, but it can also become a filter that blocks possibilities we have never allowed ourselves to explore. When we rely solely on the opinions of others and the power of traditions, we risk letting their assumptions become our own.

But something remarkable happens when we set aside pre‑judgment, even briefly. When we allow ourselves to read a text on its own terms. When we let its message speak before we decide what to think of it. That simple act of openness is often the beginning of understanding.

The invitation, then, is not to accept the Book of Mormon blindly, nor to suspend healthy skepticism. The invitation is simply this: Read it. Consider it. Let it speak for itself.

From the Introduction: “The Book of Mormon is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the Bible. It is a record of God’s dealings with the ancient inhabitants of the Americas and contains, as does the Bible, the fulness of the everlasting gospel.”

If the Book of Mormon is what it claims to be, it deserves to be approached with an open mind. If it is not, that will become clear in the reading. Either way, the decision will be your own—not inherited, not borrowed, not shaped by the prejudices of others. Truth has nothing to fear from honest inquiry. And honest inquiry begins with the willingness to look.

Ezekiel’s Prophecy and the Union of Two Sacred Records

The Old Testament prophet Ezekiel foresaw a day when the “stick of Judah” and the “stick of Joseph” would become one in God’s hand—a unified witness of his dealings with his children. Today, the Bible and the Book of Mormon stand together as the fulfillment of that prophecy. Their combined testimony invites thoughtful seekers to rediscover God’s voice with clarity and reverence.

Why a Restoration Became Necessary

Across centuries, Christian doctrine was shaped—and sometimes distorted—by philosophical traditions, political pressures, and ecclesiastical debates. Greek thinkers, Roman councils, Eastern scholars, and later Protestant reformers all contributed to a landscape where essential truths were obscured or lost.

The Restoration was God’s answer to this long‑standing spiritual fragmentation. Through Joseph Smith, truths once clouded by centuries of interpretation and polemics were restored in their purity and power.

The Book of Mormon: A Clarifying, Restoring Witness

Because it is a record that did not go through the same processes of translation and polemics as the Bible, the Book of Mormon is a record that restores “plain and precious” truths direct from the Source and presents the doctrine of Christ with unmistakable clarity. It does not take away from or diminish the Bible in any way; it magnifies it. Together, these two sacred records testify of Jesus Christ—his divinity, his atoning sacrifice, and his central role in God’s plan for humanity. Its message is devotional, instructive, and intellectually compelling:

  • God speaks today.
  • Christ is the Eternal God.
  • Salvation comes through grace after we have done all we can do.
  • Truth can be known through revelation.

A Divine Invitation to Seek, Ponder, and Know

The Book of Mormon extends a personal invitation: read, ponder, and ask God if it is true. This is not a call for blind acceptance but for thoughtful, prayerful examination. Those who seek with real intent receive a spiritual witness of:

  • the divinity of Jesus Christ,
  • the prophetic calling of Joseph Smith,
  • and the divine origin of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‑day Saints.

Revelation becomes personal. Faith becomes anchored. Knowledge and understanding increase.

Guidance for a Disciple’s Daily Life

Book of Mormon teachings are practical, penetrating, and transformative. From its pages we are counseled on how to:

  • raise and guide children.
  • treat others with justice and mercy.
  • discern truth from deception.
  • withstand spiritual opposition.
  • build Zion in our homes and communities.

It is a lifetime companion—one that shapes character, strengthens conviction, and unifies the heart and mind.

A Choice Land With a Divine Destiny

The Book of Mormon declares that America is “a choice land above all other lands,” a land preserved for a righteous purpose. God’s hand has guided this nation from its earliest beginnings. Leaders such as Gordon B. Hinckley, Thomas Jefferson, and Margaret Thatcher have recognized the moral and spiritual foundations upon which America was built—and warned of the dangers of abandoning them.

It teaches that this land will prosper only insofar as its people honor “the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ.” Its message is not political—it is spiritual, moral, and deeply relevant to the challenges facing our nation today.

A Call to Thoughtful, Reverent Examination

The Book of Mormon invites every sincere reader to approach it with both mind and spirit—scholarly curiosity and devotional humility. It asks us to consider its message carefully, to weigh its testimony, and to seek confirmation from the only perfect source of truth: God Himself.

Three Testaments, One Redeemer

Ultimately, the Bible and the Book of Mormon stand together as unified witnesses of Jesus Christ. They testify that he lives, that he leads his people, and that he continues to guide nations and individuals who turn to him. In a world of uncertainty, their combined voice offers clarity, peace, and divine direction.

In support of Ezekiel’s prophecy regarding the stick of Judah, there is the philosophical account which contributed to ethics and helped preserve Christianity during the reigns of Constantine and the Holy Roman Empire. The three influential figures in this development were Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato. Over time, influences from various scholars led to changes in Christian doctrines.

With the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the Renaissance received a major boost when many Eastern scholars fled to Italy bringing with them important books, manuscripts, and a tradition of Greek scholarship. As the new spirit spread north across Europe, the revival of classical learning and wisdom was a welcome change. Emphasizing truth and the dignity of man, humanism as it came to be known, inspired a host of lofty concepts.

In summary, these historical narratives from Greek, Muslim, and Roman traditions (and later Protestant) frequently aimed to change or influence Christianity. In their attempts to make religious beliefs and traditions more popular, acceptable, and universal, ecclesiastical leaders significantly altered many of the doctrines and practices of the Primitive Church. 

After centuries of analysis and debate on biblical translation, Joseph Smith, resulting from the 1820 appearance of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, was able to describe the true nature and character of God which was far different than the descriptions of the Nicene Creed and later councils which had taken hold across the Christian world. Complimenting what he learned through that sacred experience, the newly translated stick of Joseph clarifies and restores many plain and precious truths that had either been lost or omitted from the Bible. However, even though he translated the historical record through the wisdom and power of God, his work faced fierce resistance from the American Protestant establishment, receiving no notable endorsements.

In 1776, in an example that survived deep into American culture and demonstrated how fortunate our country was to have courageous individuals willing to make a stand in favor of religious belief and expression, the Virginia Assembly defined heresy as the denial of the Trinity as defined in the 4th century Nicene Creed, or denial of the divine authority of the scriptures (the Holy Bible). At that time in America, these were capital offenses still punishable by imprisonment or worse. Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, wanted all such laws swept away that could be enforced against what someone believed.

In what he described as “the severest trial of his life,” Jefferson argued against such laws, advocating for their removal to prevent enforcement against individuals’ beliefs. He pursued this action even though he doubted whether the times would support an execution for heresy.

Even so, the odds of passage of the Virginia Resolution were long. By 1776, eight of the original thirteen colonies were following European tradition and had made a particular faith their official religion. In addition, there were powerful voices on both side of the argument. While he was opposed to the oppressive laws that demanded uniformity of religious opinion, what Jefferson objected to most was the preferred status and special privileges that had combined to make the clergy “an artificial aristocracy and enabled them to exercise an unwarranted degree of authority.” The Statute was enacted in 1786.

Keeping in mind that Thomas Jefferson lived during a time when the divine right of kings and the combining of church and state were prevalent across Europe and their influence was being felt in America, his determination to change this is remarkable. His own words are inscribed in the Jefferson Memorial in Washington DC :

“I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.” –Thomas Jefferson

He further elaborated,

“The clergy, by getting themselves established by law and engrafted into the machine of government, have been a very formidable engine against the civil and religious right of man. In every country and in every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty. He is always in alliance with the despot, abetting his abuses in return for protection of his own. History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden people maintaining a free government.” –Thomas Jefferson

Joining with James Madison and other wise men who had been raised up by the Lord for this very purpose, Jefferson’s fight for complete separation of church and state and religious liberty was enshrined into the US Constitution as the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” –First Amendment

Without this and the other work of the wise men who were raised up by God unto this very purpose, God’s work could not have gone forth as he intended. In all likelihood, the truths restored by Joseph Smith would have been snuffed out in their infancy: we would not know the true nature of God; there would have been no Book of Mormon; no restoration of the authority of the priesthood; no missionary work; no temple work; no Restored Church. But the Lord had a much different outcome in mind, so he brought Christianity to the New World and raised up the Founding Fathers in preparation for the Prophet of the Restoration.

In other words, desiring to bless his children across the globe, God raised up wise men and created a nation where religious truth could be restored and would be safeguarded from those seeking to control or deny its expression. Knowing that the very survival of freedom would depend on it, he inspired the Founders to create a political, social, and cultural atmosphere where the true nature and character of God could be restored; where the Book of Mormon could be translated and printed; where priesthood power could be returned to the earth; where missionary and temple work could go forward; where the Primitive Church could be restored; and where established religion would become the guardian and the conscience of the people, the teacher of moral values, the defender of belief in the Almighty, and the bridge between God and man.

Once established in a free land, God Almighty and Jesus Christ could begin the process of sharing the Greatest Story Ever Told with the World. Furthermore, the Restored Church and its members could begin to fulfill the words that Jesus spoke long ago: “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.”

Because the Lord raised up wise men unto this very purpose, and because these men accomplished their assigned tasks: we know the true nature and character of God; we have the Book of Mormon and the truths it restores; the power of the priesthood has been returned to the earth; missionary and temple work are going forward; and the Primitive Church has been restored.

What is the Book of Mormon and What is its Purpose in the Modern Day

As a companion volume of scripture with the Bible, the Book of Mormon instructs individuals to acknowledge their weakness, confess their sins, and surrender their lives to God. This guidance helps people address challenges, establish priorities, and find meaning in life. Consistent with biblical themes, the Book of Mormon asserts that life’s purposes are best understood through seeking spiritual counsel and striving to follow divine direction.

Filled with redemptive theology, the Book of Mormon has been called “the most correct of any book on earth.” This is because it affirms that peace in this world and eternal life in the world to come can be enjoyed only in and through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. With its undiluted and penetrating message, it focuses repeatedly upon man’s utter inability to forgive, cleanse, resurrect, or save himself. It places the Savior center stage and testifies of the infinite and eternal scope of his atoning sacrifice.

Ezra Taft Benson

Our opportunity and challenge is not just to read and study the Book of Mormon but to live it and accept and apply its doctrines and philosophy. From its pages, paraphrased through the words Ezra Taft Benson, we learn how to better raise our children; how to deal justly and mercifully with others; how to bear testimony; how to teach and preach in such a manner that people cannot go away unaffected; how to detect the enemies of Christ; how to withstand those who seek to destroy our faith; how to discern and expose secret combinations that seek to eliminate freedom from the face of the earth and destroy the works of God; how to deal properly with persecution and those who oppose the Church; and how to establish Zion. In summary, our study of the Book of Mormon should be a lifetime pursuit. The power within its teachings will provide spiritual and intellectual unity throughout our entire lives.

Gordon B. Hinckley

In support of my overall goal of explaining how and why Christianity came to America, I offer these words of Gordon B. Hinckley, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for 13 years, who, in 1988, declared, “We who believe in the Book of Mormon accept these great words: ‘Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ.’ . . . An acknowledgement of the Almighty and a return to the teachings of God will do more than all else to keep our ship of state on a steady course as she sails into the third century of nationhood. Here is the answer to the conflicts that beset us. Here is the answer to the evils of pornography, abortion, drugs, and the squandering of our resources on evil pursuits. Here is the answer to the great epidemic of litigation which consumes time, saps our financial strength, and shackles our entrepreneurial spirit. Here is the answer to tawdry politics which place selfish interest above the common good . . . Trust is what makes a government work, and a lack of trust is one reason for the serious problems we are experiencing.”

Thomas Jefferson

Taking its place by teaching in clearer, plainer, and in more expansive ways, and by restoring lost truths, the Book of Mormon is the keystone to recovery following years of apostasy. Recognizing that many points of Christ’s doctrine hinged on the definitions of scholastics and interpretations by ecclesiastics, that many truths had been corrupted, and even lost, Thomas Jefferson observed the terrible state of confusion in which Christianity was mired: “The religion-builders have so distorted and deformed the doctrines of Jesus, so muffled them in mysticisms, fancies and falsehoods, have caricatured them into forms so monstrous and inconceivable as to shock reasonable thinkers. . . . Happy in the prospect of a restoration of primitive Christianity, I must leave to younger athletes to encounter and lop off the false branches which have been engrafted into it by the mythologists of the middle and modern ages.”

Margaret Thatcher

In 1996, Lady Margaret Thatcher, former Prime Minister of Great Britain, visited Utah where she spoke of the goodness and strength of America, which was settled by people from the British Isles who, she said, came with the English Bible and the English common law. Those early settlers from the British Isles were Christian people who came with the Judeo-Christian concepts of right and wrong, of truth and error, which they derived from reading that Bible. They were people who looked to God for strength and inspiration and expressed their gratitude to him for every blessing.

Lady Thatcher said, “You use the name of Deity in the Declaration of independence and in the Constitution of the United States, and yet you cannot use it in the schoolroom.” This is symptomatic of the secularizing of America. Reverence for the Almighty, gratitude for his blessings, pleadings for his guidance, are increasingly being dropped from our public discourse.

As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of our founding as a nation, I hope we will reflect on and again brace the values that built our country.

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Post 12 A RECORD BORN BEYOND THE REACH OF SCHOLARS AND THEOLOGIANS

6 min.

A Second Witness

It is no coincidence that the Book of Mormon’s origins trace back to the very age when Greek influence was rising and the foundations of later Christian thought were being laid. In that same era, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel—prophets standing at the crossroads of Israelite faith and encroaching Hellenistic culture—spoke of a future record, a companion to the Bible, preserved for a distant day. Long before creeds, councils, or philosophical reinterpretations, God was already preparing a second witness that would one day restore the fullness of Christ’s gospel.

The Book of Mormon entered the world in a way unlike any other sacred text. It was written by ancient prophets on metal plates, hidden away for centuries, and brought forth by the gift and power of God — not shaped by councils, committees, or philosophical refinements.

While other traditions passed through the hands of scholars who debated, harmonized, and sometimes altered doctrine to fit prevailing thought, this record remained untouched. It waited for the hour God appointed, preserved beyond the reach of human revision.

Three Great Narratives That Shaped — and Complicated — Christian Memory

1. The Philosophical Narrative: Creeds Born of Empire

When Christianity entered the world of Constantine, it encountered the towering influences of Greek and Roman philosophy. The creeds that followed sought unity, yet they reframed essential doctrines through metaphysical categories foreign to the teachings of Christ and his apostles.

The true nature of God was defined in theological language and expressed in the mystery of the Trinity which its proponents stated will never be understood by the human mind. The doctrine of mankind’s premortal life, which was also taught and understood by early Christians, was likewise allowed to wither away. In addition, ordinances such as baptism and the sacrament (communion) shifted from living covenants into symbolic rituals. Traditions multiplied. Meanings blurred. “Christianity did not destroy paganism; it adopted it” (Will Durant). Truth became mingled with the philosophies of men as plain and precious things were lost.

2. The Eastern Narrative: Scholars Who Carried Knowledge into the Renaissance

Centuries later, as the Byzantine world fractured, Muslim scholars working in Arabic and Persian intellectual traditions fled westward, carrying with them preserved manuscripts and ancient learning. Their arrival in Italy helped ignite the Renaissance, shaping the foundations of Western civilization.

Yet even this intellectual rebirth — brilliant as it was — did not restore the fullness of Christ’s original gospel. It revived art, science, and philosophy, but not the covenants, doctrines, authority, and central leadership of the Primitive Church that had been lost.

3. The Nephite Narrative: Prophets Preserved by Heaven

Far from the Mediterranean world, another story unfolded — one untouched by philosophical schools, imperial politics, tradition, or scholasticism. The Book of Mormon records a succession of prophets and kings, struggling, repenting, teaching, and recording their dealings with God across a thousand years.

Their writings survived wars, migrations, apostasy, reformation, and revival. They were sealed up by divine command, protected from the very forces that reshaped traditional Christianity.

This narrative was not one of obscuring truth, but of preserving it.

The Grand Paradox: Three Currents That Buried Truth — and One Record God Preserved

Across three great historical currents — the philosophical, the imperial, and the scholarly, — Christianity was influenced, reframed, debated, and sometimes diluted. Not maliciously, but inevitably, human hands altered meanings, shifted doctrines, and introduced traditions that obscured the original gospel.

The Bible, passing through these currents, sometimes became difficult to interpret, its clarity clouded by centuries of translation, commentary, and doctrinal conflict.

God knew this would happen. And so, long before Constantine and the councils of Nicaea, long before the Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, and discovery of America, long before the rise and fall of empires, he set in motion a plan to safeguard a second witness. A record untouched by creeds. A record unaltered by councils. A record unshaped by philosophical schools or political powers. A record that would speak plainly.

A Translation Unfiltered by Human Agenda

When the time came, the record did not emerge through universities or seminaries. It was not weighed, edited, or approved by religious authorities. Instead, a young, untrained farm boy — chosen by God — was entrusted with its translation.

By divine means, not academic method, the ancient record spoke. Its voice is astonishingly direct — a prophetic clarity unsoftened by centuries of doctrinal negotiation.

A Witness That Stands Apart — and Why Some Resist It

Because the Book of Mormon came forth without the input or validation of scholars and theologians, many have rejected it. Its independence from these traditions is precisely what makes some uneasy. Yet that independence is the very reason it was needed. It restores clarity on doctrines long debated:

  • The importance, meaning, and method of baptism.
  • An understanding of the ordinance of the sacrament.
  • The need for a Church that bears the name of Jesus Christ, that operates under his authority, and that teaches the doctrines he has established.
  • The reality of the Resurrection.

It testifies that Jesus Christ appeared to the people of the Americas in a resurrected body of flesh and bones, teaching them directly, resolving controversies, and reaffirming his gospel in unmistakable terms. Millions who have read it and taken its promise to heart, recognize in its pages the restoration of truths once lost through centuries of translation, interpretation, and human alteration.

A Testament Preserved by Providence

The Book of Mormon is not merely another ancient text. It is the culmination of a thousand‑year divine strategy to safeguard the fullness of Christ’s gospel until the world was ready to receive it again. It is a testament that God foresaw the confusions of history. It is evidence that he still speaks. And it is a witness — clear, unaltered, and unadorned — that Jesus Christ lives, reigns, and ministers still.

Continuing the Narrative of Providential Orchestration in the American Founding

The ministry of Jesus Christ stands at the center of all sacred history — the hinge upon which eternity turns, offering redemption to all who would hear his voice. When he rose from the tomb, he shattered every boundary of human expectation. His triumph over death became the foundation of Christian faith, the promise that life continues, that hope endures, and that God’s purposes cannot be frustrated.

Yet his ministry did not end in Jerusalem. Nor was his voice silenced by the passing of centuries. The same Christ who taught in Galilee would reveal himself to “other sheep” in the New World, reaffirming his doctrine and extending his covenant to all nations.

The Book of Mormon preserves that sacred continuation — a record of his resurrected ministry among the people of the Americas, where he taught plainly, established his Church, and declared anew truths that would one day be obscured in the Old World. In this way, the two great witnesses — the Bible and the Book of Mormon — stand together as twin testaments of the living Christ, united in purpose, divine in origin, and essential for a world seeking truth.

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Post 11 — The Greek Legacy in the Story of America

4 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

How Athens Helped Prepare a Nation for Liberty

Excerpt: Greek reason, refined through centuries and guided by Providence, helped prepare the intellectual foundations of the American Republic.

Across the long arc of history that prepared the way for America’s founding, ancient Greece stands as a radiant—yet incomplete—chapter. Its thinkers lit the lamp of reason, inquiry, and ordered thought, a light that would later illuminate the American mind and shape the constitutional vision of the Founders.

Greece did not give the world moral law—that gift came from the Hebrew prophets and Jerusalem—but it gave the disciplined habits of thought that made liberty intelligible. Providence used both.

The Lawgiver and the Philosophers

Solon, the Athenian lawgiver, taught that a commonwealth survives only through righteous order and balanced power. His reforms planted the idea that no single class or faction should dominate the state.

Socrates summoned the conscience to examine itself. Plato sought justice beyond the passions of the moment. Aristotle clarified the laws of community, virtue, and constitutional restraint.

Together, they offered the world the disciplines of philosophy, science, art, and civic reflection—intellectual foundations that echoed through Rome, the Renaissance, and the Enlightenment, eventually helping to shape the minds of America’s Founders.

Greece’s Brilliance—and Its Limits

Yet Greece also revealed the limits of human wisdom unaided by a higher moral law. Its city‑states, dazzling in culture and achievement, faltered through rivalry, pride, and the absence of the transcendent guidance Israel received from Jehovah. Without that anchor, Greek politics often dissolved into faction and collapse.

And the same brilliance that enriched the world also introduced philosophical shadows. When Greek metaphysics later merged with Christian doctrine—especially under Constantine—the simplicity of biblical revelation became entangled in abstract categories and jargon foreign to the Hebrew mind.

Through the loss of plain and precious things from the emerging Bible and the rise of inherited traditions, scholasticism, and the combining of church and state, a cultural, social, and religious climate of spiritual darkness emerged and covered the land. It was from this combination that the Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, founding of America, and promised Restoration would eventually unfold.

The Restoration and the Greek Shadow

By the time Joseph Smith entered the scene as a fourteen-year-old boy, in 1820, the Platonic model was so deeply entrenched that his declaration—that God possesses a corporeal body of flesh and bones, and that the Father and the Son are separate and distinct beings—stood in direct contradiction to every major Christian creed of his day.

The biblical witness of an embodied, personal God had faded beneath layers of philosophical interpretation and tradition. Joseph Smith acknowledged that the creeds preserved fragments of genuine truth, yet he rejected the constraints they inherited from Hellenistic metaphysics. To him, this philosophical departure from revealed doctrine was nothing less than the spirit of apostasy— “the mainspring of all corruption.”

And yet, in a profound irony, the very intellectual tradition that once obscured revealed truth also helped set in motion the conditions that made the rise of America and a restitution of all things essential.

Providence and the Founding of America

The founding of the United States was not merely a political event but a divinely orchestrated turning point. The gradual establishment of civil and religious liberties, the protection of conscience, speech, and assembly, and the flourishing of religious pluralism created the precise environment wherein freedom could flourish, and the truths of the Restoration could take root.

America’s creation was a central instrument in God’s plan—prepared long in advance—so that the gospel could be restored in its fullness and carried across the earth under the protection of American power.

Classical Wisdom and the American Constitution

The Founders drew from Athens the light of reason and the foundation of Western philosophy and civilization, but they did not repeat its political instability. Instead, they wove together:

  • Greek intellect — inquiry, balance, civic virtue.
  • Hebrew moral depth — law grounded in transcendent righteousness.
  • Roman practicality — mixed government and republican order.

From these threads emerged our founding documents built on classical wisdom refined by Providence, seeking both liberty and virtue, both wisdom and righteousness. Across this vast landscape of ideas, Providence was not silent.

In Short

Building upon Hebraic wisdom, Solon planted the seed of reason. Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle cultivated it. Jerusalem would give it soul and humanity. Rome would preserve it. Paris would expand its reach. London would refine it. The Founders would shape it into a durable constitutional system—each contribution guided by Providence.

Reflection:

Greece offered brilliance but not completion. As this series continues, we will trace how Providence joined insight, morality, and history together, preparing a nation that would be called upon to unite liberty and justice with enduring virtue.

The story continues.

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Post 10 God’s Divine Plan: Influential Figures in History

5 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

Nature knows no pause in progress and development and attaches her curse on all inaction. –Goethe

The Arc of History as Evidence of Design

When you zoom out far enough, history stops looking random. Patterns emerge. Progress clusters. Breakthroughs arrive exactly when humanity needs them most. It is as if the story of the world has been nudged forward—not forced, not micromanaged, but guided with a steady, intentional hand. And once you see that pattern, it becomes hard to unsee.

Prophets and Philosophers as Bearers of Universal Insight

Across cultures that never met, moral teachers and leaders appeared with strikingly similar messages. Moses, Jesus, Mohammed, Confucius, Avesta, Gandi, the Buddha—each offered frameworks that elevated human dignity and expanded moral imagination. Meanwhile, there is a long and diverse list of contributors to the best of human thought and action, from Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle that made Athens into the birthplace of Western philosophy and democracy, to the wisdom of Mahabharata, Lord Mahavira, Hillel, Omar Khayyam, and a host of others. Also rising in their appointed hour, Eve, Ruth, Elizabeth, Mary, and Martha were quiet beacons of faith whose courage and compassion still kindle light in every generation. Coupled with the morality and values rooted in the scriptural stories and teachings of faith traditions, each and all of these have made essential and valuable contributions to humanity. Different languages, different continents, the same core truths. That kind of convergence does not happen by accident.

Contributions such as these come together to give individuals and societies enduring values, virtues, and wisdom. Portraying them honestly and respectfully, in the spirit of American pluralism, does not privilege one faith tradition over another, or belief over nonbelief. Nor is benchmarking faith and ethics as important contributors to government and social policy an imposition of religion on society, government, or the world. Because they strengthen the social fabric of societies, we need to turn things around through a restoration of public sentiment in favor of personal morality and order through the invigorating process of reintroducing classical literature, morality tales, scriptural accounts, and civic virtue into the modern culture.

Liberators, Founders, and Reformers in the March of Human Freedom

Then come the liberators—the people who went beyond talk and the sharing of ideas about human dignity, and shaped entire societies around it. DaVinci, Michelangelo, Columbus, Galileo, Copernicus, Shakespeare, each opened new worlds. Wycliffe, Tyndale, Guttenberg, Luther, and Henry VIII ushered in the age of true knowledge.

From the vision of Enlightenment thinkers such as Locke, Montesquieu, Newton, Kant, and Voltaire, to the sacred beauty of the great composers like Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, and Handel, each fulfilled a divine gift foreordained for their moment in history. Likewise, Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Franklin, and their associates built a political system grounded in rights rather than rulers. While Wilberforce and Lincoln dismantled slavery against staggering odds. These weren’t isolated sparks. They were part of a chain reaction, each breakthrough building on the last, pushing humanity toward greater freedom.

The Renaissance of the Human Mind and Spirit

The Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment didn’t just “happen.” They arrived in sequence, each preparing the ground for the next. First came the explosion of creativity and curiosity. Then the challenge to corrupt institutions. Then the rise of scientific reasoning, invention, and individual rights. The printing press, the mariner’s compass, translation, nation-states, and new languages; it was as if humanity was being prepared—step by step—for a world where truth could expand and spread freely across the globe.

Industry, Innovation, and the Global Stage of Progress

The industrial era accelerated everything. Stephenson, Vanderbilt, Carnegie, Rockefeller, Rothschild, Nobel, Morgan, Gould, Bell—whatever you think of them personally, their innovations connected the world. Railroads, steel, oil, dynamite, finance, electricity, telecommunication… suddenly ideas could travel farther and faster than ever before. Humanity wasn’t just progressing; it was synchronizing.

A World Prepared for Restoration

Put all of this together and a pattern emerges. Civil and religious liberties. Scientific advancement. Global communication. Expanding human rights. These developments didn’t just improve life—they created the exact conditions needed for new ideas, new movements, and new spiritual awakenings to take root. The American founding, with its constitutional protections and freedom of conscience, was the capstone. It created a rare environment where religious restoration and religious pluralism could openly flourish. Foreseen by Isaiah, as it continued to unfold, this providential orchestration of events that paved the way for the American Founding and the Restoration of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, was defined by the Lord as “a marvelous work and a wonder.”

The Birth of a Prophet and the Unfolding of a Kingdom

Into that environment came Joseph Smith in 1805. Whether one views him through a spiritual or historical lens, the timing is remarkable. The world had been, and would continue to be, prepared—intellectually, politically, culturally, socially, technologically—for a movement that would spread globally within generations, described by the Old Testament prophet Dan as a stone cut out of the mountain without hands, which shall never be destroyed. That kind of alignment is difficult to chalk up to coincidence.

The Symphony of Noble and Great Souls

Look across the centuries and you see a procession of individuals—prophets, philosophers, founders, reformers, scientists, artists, men and women of faith, inventors, adventurers, innovators—each contributing exactly what their moment required. Different gifts, different missions, but a unified direction. It feels less like chaos and more like choreography; each having been sent forth to magnify the roles they had been given.

Purpose Written Across the Centuries

When you take the long view, the logic is hard to ignore. Humanity’s progress is not random. From agrarian to industrial, from industrial to informational, from informational to millennial, it is directional and intentional. It moves toward greater freedom, greater knowledge, greater moral awareness, and greater spiritual possibility. Its purpose is to make the entire world aware of the greatest story ever told. Its ultimate aim is to circumscribe truth into one great whole. You don’t have to abandon reason or tradition to see design here. In fact, reason demands that we at least consider it.

Because when history consistently bends toward human flourishing—across continents, cultures, and centuries—it raises a simple, unavoidable question:

Is this really just chance… or is it evidence of a grand design at work?

Our Opportunity and Challenge

Every generation needs thinkers who illuminate enduring moral principles and sound economic wisdom. When we, as parents and leaders, stand together in advocating remembrance, education, and industry, we pass on the values that unlock human potential. By teaching service and respect, by honoring those who came before, we empower the rising generation to build a more principled and prosperous future.

http://www.americasgranddesign.com

blog: americasgrand.design

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Post America 250: A 10‑Minute Script You Can Read

Independence Hall with American flag and people walking in front
Visitors walk around the historic Independence Hall on a clear day

Opening 1 min.

Hi girls and Boys! Today we’re celebrating America 250 — 250 years of our country. We’re going to talk about something super important: freedom. What it took to get it, what it takes to keep it, and what YOU can do to honor our country.

⭐ Step 1 — A New World and a Big Idea (2 min.)

Ask: “Do you like choosing things for yourself? Imagine not being able to choose what you believe.”

A long time ago in Europe, people didn’t get to choose what to believe and how to worship God. The king and a small group of people decided for everyone. But then something amazing happened — the printing press was invented, and the Bible was printed in many languages. Individuals and families could now read and learn things for themselves.

What was in the Bible? (The teachings of Jesus and the other prophets.)

People began to dream of a place where they could pray, worship, and live their faith freely. That dream led them to look across the ocean.

⭐ Step 2 — Pilgrims & Puritans: Courage to Start Fresh (2 min.)

The Pilgrims and Puritans were brave families who sailed to a new land because faith mattered so much to them. The trip was dangerous. The winters were freezing. But they believed freedom was worth it.

They built schools so kids could read the Bible. They made agreements about how to live together fairly. They planted the first seeds of freedom in America.

Ask: “Would you be brave enough to cross the ocean in a tiny wooden ship?”

⭐ Step 3 — The Founding Fathers Protect Freedom (2 min.)

Many years later, the colonies grew into towns and cities. People wanted to govern themselves. The Founding Fathers studied history, the Bible, and ideas about human rights.

They created a new nation where no king could tell people what to believe. The First Amendment protects freedom of religion, speech, and conscience. That means in America, everyone can worship — or not — and no one can force you to believe something.”

Ask: “Why is it important that everyone gets to choose what they believe?”

⭐ Step 4 — Keeping Freedom Alive Today (1 min.)

Freedom doesn’t stay alive by accident. It takes people who are honest, kind, brave, and responsible. It takes citizens who learn the truth, help others, and stand up for what’s right.

Ask: “What happens if people only care about their own freedom and not anyone else’s?”

⭐ Step 5 — What YOU Can Do (2 min.)

You don’t have to be a grown‑up to make a difference. You can:

  • Learn about history
  • Be kind and fair
  • Serve others
  • Show gratitude to veterans and helpers
  • Be brave when something is wrong
  • Love your country by celebrating it and taking care of your community

Small girls and boys can make a big impact.”

Ask: “What are some things you can do this month to show love for your country?”

⭐ Closing (30 sec.)

America didn’t become free by accident, and it won’t stay free by accident. It takes brave people, grateful hearts, and kids like you who choose to do what’s right.

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Post 10 MEDITATIONS ON ORIGIN, FREEDOM, AND THE HUMAN JOURNEY

13 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

How Premortal Existence Affects Mortal Life

Why I Believe

From a small community of Galilean fishermen to a movement that conquered the Roman Empire and ultimately the rest of the world, the powerful words of Christ, and about Christ, continue to have mature, profound, and undeniable impact. What is it that has made them so irresistible through two millennia? The answer is in the back story; that which took place before the human family began to inhabit planet earth.

We do not realize how much everything we have in this life springs from our premortal existence. Before our names were spoken, before our hearts first beat, something in us already longed for goodness. We sense it still–a quiet pull toward light, a memory we cannot quite place. It is the echo of a life before this one, a whisper that we are more than dust and chance.

Mysteriously, with few exceptions, most cultures and religions in the Western world generally reject the idea of a premortal life of man and the principle of eternal progression. Despite the many inspired references to a pre-earth life, most of modern Christianity reject such notions.

By AD 543, even though there were those who spoke of Old Testament figures being “chosen by God because of merits acquired before this life” the teachings on pre-mortality had been declared heresy in the Roman Church and allowed to wither away. From this date on, the doctrine of man’s premortal state and relationship to God was viewed as heretical and unfounded in scripture.

Continuing today, with far-reaching consequences that affect millions, modern Christendom rejects the notion of a prior existence. Though the spiritual and theological examination of the life before and its impact on mortality have been institutionally silenced, substantial numbers feel strongly that we existed before our present life on earth.

Wrote Macel Proust, a modern French novelist, “Everything in our life happens as though we entered upon it with a load of obligations contracted in a previous existence.” The “larger consciousness” or “larger self” is the spirit of man which was schooled and enlarged upon in a premortal realm and subsequently influences the psychological and intellectual traits of the mortal person.

Employing spiritual terms, Joseph Smith characterized this “consciousness” as “that which was from the beginning,” the premortal teachings we received for the intended purpose of understanding the reasons for our physical creation. These teachings centered on our potential to become like our Heavenly Father, an exalted being with a body of flesh and bones. That man may become perfect as God is and dwell in his presence has stirred great controversy. Yet, it is at the heart of the expression: “My sheep hear my voice.”

With learning at its core, life introduces us to divine knowledge. Flowing from that knowledge we know that the adversary is no idle spirit, but a vagrant, whose motive, cause, and main intention is to ruin man. Following are three reasons why the devil is determined to make us miserable and ensnare us in sin and selfishness:

  • First, he will never have a physical body. Consequently, he will use his influence to encourage each of us to misuse and desecrate our bodies.
  • Second, he will never marry. As a result, he will do everything in his power to destroy the institution of marriage.
  • Third, he will never have children. Through promotion of the philosophies of men, such as abortion–a horrific, inhumane act that produces a calloused and desensitized society–he will author movements of fraud and deception against God’s purpose of multiplying and replenishing the earth.

As we become absorbed in achieving eternal goals from the perspective of the life before, life becomes more abundant. To the Preacher in Ecclesiastes, the formula is straightforward: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”

Expressed in the theology of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the doctrine of foreordination. “Before we came to Earth, we were given certain assignments. While we do not now remember the particulars, this does not alter the glorious reality of what we once agreed to” (Kimball). Man was in the beginning with God. We were not created or made ex nihilo (out of nothing). We are eternal and have always existed.

Stated by Santanya, “Life is hardly respectable if it has not generous task, no duties or affections that constitute a necessity of existence.” In one example, a modern-day prophet links premortal life with the preservation of liberty: “I reverence the Constitution of the United States as a sacred document. I testify that the God of heaven sent some of his choicest spirits to lay the foundation of this government, and he has sent other choice spirits–even you who read my words–to preserve it” (Benson).

Published on 22 January 2013 by Canada Free Press, Protestant Mike Jensen wrote an article entitled “Smart Mormons.” He wrote, “Mormons believe that all humans lived a life before mortality. This is where Mormon theology is so intriguing. The greatest of all battles, the war in heaven, was fought over liberty, or as they call it, ‘free agency.’ The battle for liberty is not unique to this life; it is the core battle of the ages. It is a fundamental, eternal concern. God intends for humans to be free and make their own choices and live with the consequences of those choices. The Fathers of this country said essentially the same thing in the Declaration of Independence: ‘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.’ My study has not only given me newfound respect for religion, but it has also made me evaluate my own attitude towards liberty. The fact that I’m here says that I was on God’s side in the war in heaven.”

A long lesson in humility, every man’s life is a plan of God. Your life is your own, and it will be what you have to take into eternity. “Be such a man, and live such a life, that if every man were such as you, and every life a life like yours, this earth would be God’s Paradise” (Phillip Brooks).

Why Origins Matter

Every culture has asked the same questions: Where did we come from? Why are we here? What is the purpose of life? Many religious traditions, ancient philosophers, and modern seekers have shared a striking intuition: human life did not begin at birth. Whether expressed through Plato’s “recollection,” Wordsworth’s “sleep and forgetting,” or the universal ache for meaning, the idea persists that our story began long before we opened our eyes on earth. Hence, the more we learn about the life before, the more we can weigh and consider to what end this life is given to each of us.

A Conflict Older Than History

First and foremost, a knowledge of the life before gives us perspective. For example, in recent decades, we have traveled far into the freedom-destroying and soul-destroying land of socialism. Why is this the case?

Here is the answer according to David O. McKay, a religious scholar and former President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: “There are two great forces in the world more potent than ever before, each force more determined to achieve success, more active in planning, and on the one side, scheming, than ever before. These two great forces are hate and love.

“Hate had its origin in our preexistent state where Satan was determined to destroy the free agency of man and to supplant God. In the spirit of hate, as is manifest today in the world, the very existence of God is denied, the free agency of man is taken from him, and the power of the state supplanted. Thus, the history of the world with all its contention and strife is largely an account of man’s effort to free himself from bondage and usurpation. Force rules in the world today.” Understanding this conflict gives context to everything that follows–our freedoms, our struggles, our moral choices, and the deeper sense that life is a journey of becoming.

In the beginning, we lived with God as his spirit children. Governed by order, we knew and worshipped him as the Father of Lights. Sensing his exalted state, and aware that certain things could only be experienced and learned in a temporal world, we expressed our aspiration to become like him. Granting our desire, the Lord presented a plan which allowed us to transition from premortal to mortal to afterlife, wherein we could progress and return to his presence. Fundamental to this plan, we would be placed in mortality to pursue divinely ordained possibilities, centering on receiving a physical body, acting according to our wills and pleasures as we choose between good and evil, gaining experience, and being subject to infirmities and physical death.

Eager for the progression of his children, yet with the foreknowledge that his commandments would be ignored, his laws violated, and that some of his offspring would be lost as a result of disobedience and rebellion once we left his presence, God created this world for us. His purpose was to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

Established on the eternal principles of agency and consent of the governed, the unfolding events were not without controversy. “The contention in heaven was–Jesus said there would be certain souls that would not be saved; and the devil said he would save them all, and laid his plans before the grand council, who gave their vote in favor of Jesus Christ. So, the devil rose up in rebellion against God [in what is known as the war in heaven]” (Joseph Smith).

As penalty for attempting to destroy man’s agency and usurp God’s power, Lucifer and his followers were cast down to earth, where he became Satan, even the devil, the author of all sin, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto the voice of God. With inspired pathos, Isaiah lamented, “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will be like the Most High.”

In our preexistent state we lived in an atmosphere of agency and accountability. However, there were, as there are on earth, varying levels of intelligence, obedience, and understanding. We were free to act for ourselves, to think for ourselves, and to receive the truth or rebel against it.

During this period, Jehovah was chosen and ordained to be the Savior and Redeemer of the human race. “At the first organization in heaven we were all present, and saw the Savior chosen and appointed and the plan of salvation made, and we sanctioned it” (Joseph Smith). Filled with wonder and amazement at what was being done on our behalf, our reaction was breathtaking: “. . . the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy” (Job).

Following this series of events, subsequent councils were held to organize, prepare, and further instruct the future inhabitants of earth, on the law of God, the role of mortality, and the plan of salvation. From among our ranks, noble and great souls were chosen to advance truth. Among them were those who would become prophets, poets, philosophers, theologians, scholars, reformers, inventors, innovators, defenders of freedom, and military leaders, as well as other gifted and talented visionaries and luminaries.

Known in the premortal world as Jehovah, Christ would teach the gospel to Adam and make known his truths to Abraham and the prophets, including Moses on Mt. Sinai. He would be the inspirer of the ancient philosophers, Pagan or Israelite, as well as the great characters of modern times. Columbus, in discovery; Washington, in the struggle for freedom; Gibbon in history; Adam Smith in economic principles; Lincoln, in emancipation and union; Bacon, in philosophy; Franklin in statesmanship and diplomacy; Stephenson, in steam; Watts, in song; Handel, Beethoven, Bach, and Mozart in worship through music; Adams, Jefferson, and Madison in constitutional law; Edison, in electricity, and Augustine, Aquinas, and Joseph Smith, in theology and religion, found in him the source of their wisdom and the marvelous truths which they advocated. Likewise, Tyndale, Guttenberg, Luther, Melanchthon, Blackstone, Calvin, Williams, Penn, and others were inspired in thoughts, words, and actions, to accomplish what they did for the amelioration of injustice, the advancement of the human race, and the revolutionary idea of individual freedom.

Addressing the role of those who would be called upon to lead and inspire in mortality, Roman statesman and philosopher Cicero wrote, “There is, I know not how, in the minds of men, a certain presage, as it were, of a future existence, and this takes the deepest root, and is most discoverable, in the greatest geniuses and most exalted souls.” Such truths caused David to exclaim, “When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man that thou art mindful of him” (Psalms)?

Providing additional evidence of our pre-mortal existence, Jeremiah quoted the Lord, “Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” Provided in God’s way, an evolving moral code has been established through these and many other historical figures. Fully aware that this world was being created for our development and progress, we vowed to make the story of the human family a series of ascending developments.

Mortality as Apprenticeship

It has been said that “everyone is possessed with an irresistible desire to know his relationship with the Infinite” (McKay). The reality of a premortal existence is a curative for the yearnings expressed in music, poetry, and literature, such as, “You’re a stranger here” (Snow), “Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting” (Wordsworth), and these words from Plato: “Your favorite doctrine, Socrates, that knowledge is simply recollection, if true, also necessarily implies a previous time in which we have learned that which we now recollect. But this would be impossible unless our soul had been in some place before existing in the form of man; here then is another proof of the soul’s immortality.”

Such feelings are shared by many, including the belief that man has spiritual roots which reach far back beyond this existence. Proclaimed Rousseau, “Not all the subtleties of metaphysics can make me doubt a moment of the immortality of the soul, and of a beneficent providence. I feel it. I believe it. I desire it. I hope it and will defend it to my last breath.” Declared by Herman Hesse, “We all share the same origin; . . . all of us come in at the same door.” We are brothers and sisters, literal spirit children of an Eternal Father.

Further supporting belief in the immortality of the soul of man, the main character in Alex Haley’s Roots learns of the premortal existence and the life beyond mortality from his father, Osmoro, upon the death of his beloved grandmother.

“He said that three groups of people lived in every village,” explained Haley. “First were those you could see–walking around, eating, sleeping, and working. Second were the ancestors, who Grandma Yaisa had now joined.

“‘And the third people–who are they?’ asked Kunta. ‘The third people,’ said Osmoro, ‘are those waiting to be born.'”

This sentiment was also held by Edmund Burke, the Father of Conservatism, who wrote of the formation of society’s social contract: “It is a partnership between those who are living, those who are dead and those who are to be born. Each contract of each particular state is but a clause in the great primeval contract of eternal society, connecting the visible and invisible world.”

In 1776, as he championed American independence in a letter to a friend, John Adams showed why he was considered the colossus of independence. “Objects of the most stupendous magnitude, measures in which the lives and liberties of millions, born and unborn are most essentially interested, are now before us. We are in the very midst of revolution, the most complete, unexpected, and remarkable of any in the history of the world.” We came here to learn, to choose, to love, to struggle, to grow, to build pathways for those who would follow. We came to build families, communities, and nations that honor the divine spark within us.

The Memory That Awakens Us

Some truths only need to be remembered. The life before is one of them. It stirs quiet moments. It whispers in our longing for goodness. It reminds us that we are more than we appear. It reminds us that we once rejoiced at the chance to come here and become who we are meant to be.

Biblical teachings and much of classical literature undergird the logic of man’s preexistence. The American founding–imperfect yet extraordinary–drew upon principles older than the Enlightenment. Its architects believed that rights such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness were not inventions, but inheritances. They saw freedom as something woven into the human spirit itself. Whether one views this through a religious lens or a philosophical one, the idea is the same: human beings are meant to be free, and societies flourish when they honor that truth.

Concerned with posterity and future generations, the Founding Fathers, with prescient wisdom, declared the right to life as the most fundamental human right, the universal birthright of the human family. It was their conviction that each life was to have its beginning, its growth, and its end. The right to life unlocks the door to freedom and progression for those who were to follow.

In Kirtland, Ohio, in 1835, Joseph Smith linked societal peace with the protection of life: “We believe that no government can exist in peace, except such laws are framed and held inviolate as will secure to each individual the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life” (Doctrine and Covenants).

The Human Longing for More

Flowing from our experience in that environment, human mortality has been designed as a team effort. We need not pretend to a divine commission and a sacred destiny. America is part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled. The whole world needs such enlightenment.

If we are to survive as a nation and as a Church, to progress, we must counter the evil forces in the world with the guarantees of the Bill of Rights that are set up by our Constitution. There is nothing more important than the First Amendment, because behind all that lies in our lives and all that we do in our lives is freedom of conscience and expression, our religion, our worship, our belief and faith in God.

Fortunately, as noted by National Geographic (2023), “For one-third of all people around the globe–and roughly two-thirds of Americans–Christian values continue to be relevant today.” Springing from commitments we made in the life before, we have a tremendous responsibility to serve as a beacon of hope to people all across the globe. As Americans, we must stand for and teach principles of liberty and righteousness.

This is why I believe.

website: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

blog: americasgrand.desig

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Post 8 — Act III: Life Beyond Death

“The nearer I approach the end the plainer I hear around me the immortal symphonies of the world which invites me. When I go down to the grave I can say like many others, ‘I have finished my day’s work.’ But I cannot say, ‘I have finished my life’s work.’ My day’s work will begin again the next morning. The tomb is not a blind alley; it is an open thoroughfare. It closes on the twilight; it opens on the dawn. My work is only beginning.” —Victor Hugo

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

5 min.

The Destiny of the Soul and the Fulfillment of God’s Design

Death is not the end of the human story. It is the doorway to the next act—a continuation of life, identity, and purpose. The soul that lived before birth and learned through mortality now moves forward into a realm where the consequences of choice, the mercy and grace of Christ, and the justice of God converge. This final act completes the eternal framework that gives meaning to liberty, dignity, and the moral order of the world.

Death as Transition, Not Conclusion

For many ancient cultures, death was a mystery. For the Greeks, it was a shadowy realm. For the Hebrews, it was a place of waiting. For early Christians, it was a passage into the presence of God. The Restoration later clarified what these traditions only glimpsed: death is a transition, not a termination. The soul continues. Identity endures. Agency persists. Relationships and experiences matter. Progression remains possible. Act III is the fulfillment of the divine plan that began long before mortality, defined in God’s words: “This is my work and my glory–to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”

The Reality of Resurrection

Central to Act III is the doctrine of resurrection—the reuniting of body and spirit in a perfected, immortal form. This truth, taught by prophets and affirmed by Christ himself, reveals the dignity of the human body and the eternal nature of the human soul.

Resurrection means:

  • death is temporary
  • injustice is not final
  • suffering is not wasted
  • the body is sacred
  • the soul is destined for glory

This doctrine elevates the entire human story. It affirms that God’s purposes extend beyond the grave and that mortality is only one chapter in an eternal narrative.

Judgment, Mercy, and the Perfect Balance

Act III is also the realm of judgment—not as a moment of fear, but as a moment of truth. Judgment is the divine affirmation of agency. It is the recognition of who we have become through our choices. But judgment is not merely justice. It is justice balanced by mercy. It is accountability softened by grace. It is truth illuminated by the Atonement of Christ.

In Act III, the soul encounters:

  • the perfect justice of God
  • the infinite mercy of Christ
  • the full consequences of agency
  • the healing power of repentance
  • the eternal possibilities of redemption

This balance is the moral foundation of the universe.

The Continuation of Growth

One of the most profound truths restored in our time is that growth does not end at death. Eternal beings continue to learn, progress, and refine their character. Heaven is not static. It is dynamic. It is alive with purpose. Act III is not a resting place. It is a realm of becoming.

This understanding gives meaning to every choice in mortality. It reveals why liberty matters—not only for civic life but for eternal life. Freedom is the condition under which souls grow, both here and hereafter.

The Restoration and the Fulfillment of Act III

The Restoration restored clarity to doctrines that had faded over centuries:

  • the nature of the soul
  • the purpose of mortality
  • the reality of resurrection
  • the plan of salvation
  • the eternal destiny of families
  • the continuation of agency beyond death

These truths do not replace the historical narrative of liberty; they illuminate it. They reveal why human dignity is sacred, why moral law is universal, and why freedom is essential to God’s purposes.

Act III completes the eternal framework that makes the American Founding intelligible. A free people must understand who they are, why they are here, and where they are going.

Why Act III Matters for the American Story

A nation that understands the eternal destiny of the soul understands the sacredness of liberty. The Founders believed that human beings are accountable to God and that governments must respect the moral agency of the individual.

Act III affirms:

  • the eternal worth of every person
  • the moral consequences of choice
  • the divine purposes underpinning the Creation, the Fall, and the Atonement
  • the essential role of freedom
  • the reality of accountability
  • the hope of redemption

These truths elevate the American experiment from a political project to a moral one.

Before We Return to the Great Cities

Before we return to the ancient corridors of Athens and Jerusalem, the imperial roads of Rome, and the far‑reaching influence of Paris and London, the story itself asks us to pause. History is not shaped by civilizations alone but by the souls who rise within them — luminous figures who appear like constellations at appointed hours. Across deserts and kingdoms, across continents and centuries, God has stirred hearts, awakened courage, and breathed vision into men and women whose lives became turning points for the world. Their stories remind us that Providence is never provincial; it moves freely among all peoples, gathering every culture into the great harmony of his design.

First and foremost, among these luminous figures is Jesus the Christ, to Whom these words pay tribute:

There is a green hill far away,
Without a city wall.
Where the dear Lord was crucified,
Who died to save us all.

We may not know, we cannot tell,
What pains he had to bear.
But we believe it was for us,
He hung and suffered there.

There was no other good enough,
To pay the price of sin.
He only could unlock the gate,
Of heav’n and let us in.

A Final Reflection

In the light of eternity’s promise, I find comfort in the assurance that death does not end our story—it deepens it. Through Jesus Christ, the “Resurrection and the Life,” the grave becomes a passage, a pause. His risen voice echoes through every valley of grief, whispering that those we love are not gone, only gone ahead. And in that sacred truth, reunion becomes more than a wish—it becomes a promised hope, anchored in the God who cannot lie. For believers, this promise steadies the trembling heart; for those still seeking, still wondering, still aching, may this hope be a gentle invitation—an opening of the soul to the possibility that love is stronger than death, and that the One who conquered the tomb extends his hands to all. With the same conviction Victor Hugo expressed—that what we call death is but the turning of a page—I trust the Author of Life to gather every chapter, every tear, every separation into a final scene of joy. May this assurance comfort us in our losses, lift us in our trials, and draw every willing heart toward the glorious reunion that awaits beyond the veil, where Christ stands ready to welcome us home.

website: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

blog: americasgrand.design

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Post 7 — Act II: Life in Mortality

Children in white dresses holding hands ascending a glowing path through clouds

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

The Purpose, Struggle, and Beauty of Earthly Life

Act I shows who we were before life begins. Act II starts the moment we step into the world. As choices and consequences appear, we feel the pull to grow, to test ourselves, to become. We enjoy gaining experience. We begin to sense the weight and wonder of agency. And slowly, gratitude rises — for life itself, for the freedom to direct that life.

While Act I reveals who we are. Act II reveals why we are here. Mortality isn’t an interruption of life but the next chapter of it — a chapter designed with purpose, challenge, and possibility. This is the proving ground of the soul, where agency becomes action, where character is forged, where the war in heaven plays out in real time, and where we begin to learn to walk by faith. Here we discover the meaning of liberty, the necessity of law, and the divine logic behind a world where freedom and responsibility walk side by side.

The Gift and Burden of Agency

In the premortal realm, we chose God’s plan—a plan centered on agency, revealed in the abstract. Mortality is where that choice becomes real. Here, agency is no longer theoretical; it is lived. It is tested. It is refined.

Agency in mortality means:

  • choosing between good and evil
  • learning from consequences
  • shaping character through decisions
  • gaining wisdom as we accumulate true knowledge
  • discovering truth through experience
  • becoming accountable for our stewardship

This is why liberty matters. A world without opposition would be a world without growth. A world without choice would be a world without becoming.

The Founders sensed this truth instinctively. They believed that freedom was not merely a political arrangement but a moral necessity—an environment in which human beings could rise to their divine potential.

The Purpose of Mortality

Mortality is the Lord’s university, a school of the soul. Its curriculum is demanding, but its purpose is glorious. Here we learn:

  • courage through adversity
  • compassion through suffering
  • humility through limitation
  • wisdom through experience
  • faith through uncertainty

These lessons cannot be learned in any other way. Mortality is the only classroom where eternal beings can acquire mortal virtues. This is why God does not shield us from difficulty. This is why he strengthens us through trial, adversity, opposition, and success.

The Reality of Opposition

A world of agency requires a world of opposition. Without darkness, light cannot be chosen. Without sorrow, joy cannot be understood. Without temptation, virtue cannot be formed. Lehi taught that “there must needs be opposition in all things.” This is not a flaw in the plan—it is the plan.

Opposition is the catalyst of growth. It is the condition under which souls become strong. The Founders understood this principle in civic terms. They believed that liberty requires virtue, that virtue requires struggle. A free people must learn to govern themselves, restrain their passions, and rise above selfishness. Mortality teaches these lessons one decision at a time.

Providence in the Midst of Mortality

Providence does not remove hardship; it redeems it. It does not eliminate agency; it elevates it. It does not prevent suffering; it transforms it. Just as God prepared nations for liberty, he prepares individuals for eternity. The same divine pattern—order, purpose, progression—governs both.

In mortality, Providence works through:

  • conscience
  • scripture
  • family
  • community
  • inspired leaders
  • personal revelation
  • the quiet whisperings of the Spirit

These influences guide us through the complexity of mortal life, shaping us into beings capable of eternal joy.

The Restoration and the Meaning of Mortality

The Restoration restores not only doctrines but perspective. It reveals that mortality is not a random test but a purposeful stage in an eternal plan. It is a probationary state, the time for men and women to prepare to meet God. It further clarifies:

  • why agency is sacred
  • why families matter
  • why covenants elevate
  • why truth liberates
  • why Christ stands at the center of the human story

This restored understanding deepens our appreciation for liberty. A free society honors the divine purpose of mortal life. A tyrannical society frustrates it. Thus, the Restoration and the American Founding—though distinct—both affirm the dignity and destiny of the human soul.

Why Act II Matters for the American Story

A people who understands the purpose of mortality are capable of understanding the purpose of freedom. The Founders believed that liberty was essential for the development of virtue, and virtue was essential for the survival of liberty.

Mortality teaches:

  • self‑government
  • choice and accountability
  • moral responsibility
  • the value of conscience
  • the necessity of law
  • peace through strength

These are the very principles upon which the American experiment was built. Freedom is not merely a political arrangement. It is the environment in which eternal beings fulfill their mortal purpose.

Moving to Act III: Life Beyond Death

While Act II reveals why we are here, Act III reveals where we are going. Death isn’t the end of the story — it’s the doorway to the next act. In Post 8, we’ll explore the destiny of the soul, the meaning of resurrection, and the eternal significance of the choices we make in mortality. This final act completes the interlude and prepares us to return to the sweeping historical narrative of Christianity, Rome, London, and the Providential preparation for America and the Restoration. But before we rejoin that story, the next post will widen our view of God’s plan by drawing on the insights of other influential voices who help illuminate it.

In the end, mortality is not the destination. It is preparation — a time to learn, to choose, to become. But the story of the soul continues beyond the veil. To understand the full arc of human purpose, we have to look beyond this life to the promises, possibilities, and progression that await. From the purposes of mortality, we now turn to life after life.

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Post 6 Act 1: THE LIFE BEFORE

Council of Heaven with formed spirits

4 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

Beginning the Human Story: Our Premortal Identity

Every great story begins before the first scene. The story of the West is no different. Before Sinai, before nations rose, before the rise and fall of empires, there is a deeper truth about the human person — a truth older than history itself.

The Hebraic worldview insists that human beings are not accidents of matter or products of power. We are not random outcomes of biology or playthings of fate. We are souls with purpose, known and loved by God before we were born, prepared for a purpose far greater than we understood. This is where the Western story truly begins.

We Existed Before We Were Born

In the restored gospel, premortal life is not a metaphor–it is reality. We lived as spirit sons and daughters of God. We learned. We grew. We chose. We prepared. We were not blank slates waiting to be written upon. We were eternal beings with identity, agency, and divine potential.

This truth changes everything:

  • Our worth is not earned–it is inherent.
  • Our purpose is not accidental–it is intentional.
  • Our life is not random–it is part of a divine plan.

This single idea — that personhood is sacred and given — is the foundation of everything that follows in Western civilization:

  • the belief in human rights
  • the insistence on moral accountability
  • the rejection of tyranny
  • the dignity of the individual
  • the possibility of freedom

Human beings are sacred. Freedom is not a luxury. It is a calling.

The Soul Before Society

Modern culture often treats the human person as a blank slate, a bundle of desires, or a unit of production. But the Hebraic imagination sees something far deeper: a soul with eternal worth. Because the soul is real:

  • morality is not a social invention
  • justice is not a matter of preference
  • truth is not a cultural construct
  • freedom is not merely political
  • life has meaning beyond survival

A society that believes this will shape its laws, institutions, and culture differently than one that does not.

The Grand Council and the Choice That Defines Us

In that premortal realm, God presented his plan–a path that would allow us to become like him. That plan required:

  • A mortal body
  • A world of choice
  • A Redeemer
  • A Way Back

We accepted that plan. We chose it freely. We embraced the risks because we understood the promise. Mortality was not a punishment. It was an opportunity–The next step in our eternal progression.

The Eternal Identity of the Human Family

Because we lived before we were born:

  • Every person is our spiritual sibling.
  • Every life has divine worth.
  • Every soul carries eternal potential.
  • Every human story begins in glory, not dust.

This is the foundation of human dignity. This is the root of moral equality. This is the spiritual truth that undergirds the Western idea of rights. Before we were citizens of nations, we were citizens of heaven.

Why This Matters for America

America’s founding generation did not begin with a theory of government. They began with a theory of the human person. They believed:

  • that dignity is prior to government
  • that rights flow from the Creator
  • that conscience cannot be coerced
  • that liberty requires inward self‑government

These ideas did not come from the Enlightenment alone. They came from a much older source — the Hebraic vision of the human soul.

The First Freedoms

Because we were known by God before we were born, freedom is not simply the absence of restraint. It is the space in which each human soul can answer its purpose. This is why the West speaks of:

  • freedom of conscience
  • freedom of worship
  • freedom of thought
  • freedom of speech

These freedoms are not political conveniences. They are spiritual necessities.

The Beginning of the Story

Act I is the foundation of everything:

  • Why law matters
  • Why liberty matters
  • Why justice matters
  • Why America matters

Before there was a nation, there was a person. Before there were founding documents, there was a soul. Before there was history, there was intention. That intention — the divine purpose behind human life — is the root from which the entire Western tradition grows.

Looking Ahead to Act II

Act I shows who we are before life begins. Act II starts when we step into the world. As choices and consequences appear, we feel the pull to grow and prove ourselves. We enjoy gaining experience. And we become grateful — for life, and for the freedom to live it with purpose.

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Post 5 Hebraic Roots: Revealed Law and Ordered Liberty

5 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

Where Order Begins

If order is the first need of all, then the first question is simple: Where does order come from?

Before the West learned to reason, it learned to listen. Before it built institutions, it received commandments. Before it sought truth through inquiry, it received truth through revelation.

The Western story does not begin in Athens or Rome. It begins at Sinai.

Revelation Before Philosophy

The Hebraic tradition introduced something radically new into human history:

  • Law that stands above rulers
  • Morality that is revealed, not invented
  • Human dignity that is inherent, not granted
  • Authority accountable to a higher moral order

This was not a human achievement. It was a divine gift.

At Sinai, the West received a moral law, a covenantal identity, a vision of justice, and the foundation for liberty. Civilization rests on what a people hold to be morally binding. Without shared duties, public life dissolves into suspicion and predation.

John Adams spoke for many early Americans when he wrote of “a supreme, intelligent, wise, almighty sovereign of the universe,” calling this belief “the great essential principles of all morality, and consequently of all civilization.”

Moses and the Birth of Moral Order

No figure stands taller in the story of the West than Moses. He is the hinge between heaven and earth — the man who ascended the mountain and returned with law; who transformed a wandering people into a covenant nation; who taught that freedom without law collapses into chaos, and law without morality becomes tyranny.

Moses knew the high civilization of Egypt — its learning, its statecraft, its religious imagination. Yet the order he described was not borrowed from Egypt. It answered perennial human longings no empire had ever satisfied. It was more than the political order of his age; it was a moral order that spoke to the human condition.

That is why it has endured.

Every society that values the rule of law, the dignity of the individual, the accountability of rulers, and the protection of the weak is living in the long shadow of Sinai.

Law as the Foundation of Liberty

The law given at Sinai was not merely a list of rules. It was a moral architecture — a framework that ordered society while honoring the dignity of the individual. It taught that:

  • Life is sacred
  • Truth is binding
  • Justice is impartial
  • Authority is accountable
  • The poor and the stranger must be protected

This was not the law of empire. It was the law of covenant.

The Moral Person Before the Political Person

The Hebraic tradition introduced the idea that every human being:

  • Is created in the likeness and image of God
  • Possesses inherent worth
  • Is morally accountable
  • Has agency
  • Has divine purpose

Before the West spoke of rights, it spoke of responsibilities. Before it spoke of freedom, it spoke of covenant. Before it spoke of the individual, it spoke of the soul.

Justice as a Divine Imperative

The prophets of Israel carried forward the moral vision of Sinai. They declared that:

  • Power must serve righteousness
  • The strong must not oppress the weak
  • Nations are accountable to moral law
  • Justice is not optional — it is required

This prophetic tradition shaped the conscience of the West. It taught that societies rise or fall not on wealth or power, but on moral character.

The Hebraic Roots of American Order: From Siani to Mayflower

The Mayflower Compact begins “In the name of God” and binds its signers by “covenant” to enact “just and equal” laws. It is an early instance of conscience preceding coercion — of law honored as more than enforcement.

America thus inherited a reverence for the sanctity of law and the conviction that justice is not sheer will, but an order answerable to what is right — often expressed in the language of nature, duty, and Providence.

By the time of the American founding, the Law and the Prophets were widely known — if imperfectly obeyed — among settlers and among the men who framed our public documents. This Hebraic moral imagination entered American public life through covenants, oaths, and Bible‑saturated sermons and pamphlets.

The Ten Commandments are not arbitrary taboos but liberating boundaries: they restrain violence and fraud and discipline desire.

Madison captured the same principle in political terms: “Religion or the duty which we owe to our Creator and the manner of discharging it, can be directed only by reason and conviction, not by force or violence.”

A free society presupposes such inward government. Without it, law must do what conscience will not.

Transition to Act I — Life Before Life

The story of the West begins with revealed law — a moral order given, not invented. But the story of humanity begins even earlier. Before Sinai, before nations, before history itself, there is a deeper truth about who we are.

The Hebraic worldview insists that human beings are not accidents of matter or products of power. We are souls with purpose, known by God before we were born, endowed with dignity that precedes culture, politics, and history.

To understand the purpose of freedom, we must first understand the purpose of life. And to understand the purpose of life, we must begin where life itself began — before mortality, in the divine intention that gives human existence meaning.

This is Act I of the Western story: the eternal identity of the human person, the divine origin of moral order, and the reason liberty is not merely a political arrangement but a sacred trust.

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Post 4 — Order, the First Need of All

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

4 min.

The Moral Architecture That Makes Liberty Possible

If the Founders believed that freedom rests on self‑evident truths, they also understood something equally vital: truth alone cannot sustain a nation. Principles must be embodied in habits, institutions, and ordered lives. Liberty is not self‑maintaining. It requires a moral architecture strong enough to support it.

Order is that architecture.

Order is the first need of all enduring societies. Order is the condition that makes justice possible. Order is the framework within which freedom can flourish.

Without order, liberty dissolves into license. Without justice, order hardens into tyranny. The Founders knew this tension well—and they built a nation to balance it.

The Nature of Order

Order begins in the soul. It is discipline, fidelity, restraint, and readiness for duty. A free people must first be a self‑governing people. John Adams put it plainly: “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

Order then extends outward into society. It becomes:

  • courts that adjudicate disputes
  • laws applied equally to rich and poor
  • the peaceful transfer of power
  • institutions that channel human ambition toward the common good

Order is not the enemy of freedom. It is its guardian.

The Requirements of Order

Richard Hooker wrote, “Without order, there is no living in public society.” Augustine added the warning that follows when order and justice are severed: “Remove justice, and what are kingdoms but gangs of criminals?”

The Founders understood this connection. They believed:

  • liberty depends on virtue
  • virtue depends on conscience
  • conscience depends on moral law
  • moral law depends on a recognition of the sacred

When reverence collapses, society fragments. When moral foundations erode, institutions weaken. When institutions weaken, freedom becomes fragile.

Order is not optional. It is essential.

The Principle Stated

Public order rests upon private virtue. Freedom rests upon moral self‑government.

Where conscience weakens, law becomes mere force. Where law falters, liberty becomes a contest of wills.

The question is never whether we shall have order, but what kind.

The highest kind of order shelters freedom and justice and affirms the dignity of man. It honors what Chesterton called “the democracy of the dead”—the wisdom of those who came before. It respects the accumulated experience of centuries. It recognizes that liberty is preserved not by novelty but by fidelity to enduring truths.

The Danger of Ideology

Ideology is the opposite of order. It is a closed system of abstract dogmas imposed without the correction of history or experience. It is political religion without humility. The ideologue is a simplifier—reducing the complexity of human nature to slogans and systems.

Communism, fascism, and anarchism are among the most destructive of these ideologies. Their promises are seductive; their outcomes are catastrophic. They reject the slow, steady wisdom of tradition in favor of utopian schemes that end in coercion.

America has generally resisted such temptations because it has respected inherited moral habits and political forms. These are not relics. They are the living expression of our understanding of ordered liberty.

The Sources of Order

Seeking the roots of order leads us to the great civilizational streams that shaped the Western mind:

  • Hebraic revelation for moral law
  • Athens for reasoned inquiry
  • Jerusalem for the teachings of Jesus
  • Rome for the discipline of law
  • London for constitutional liberty

These influences converged in America, forming a nation capable of balancing freedom with restraint, rights with responsibilities, and individual dignity with the common good.

Cicero called history “life’s teacher.” The Founders believed him.

Providence and the Preservation of Order

Providence does not merely prepare nations for freedom; it sustains them through order. The Founders believed that God works through institutions, traditions, and the moral habits of a people. They saw order not as a human invention but as a divine gift—one that must be guarded with vigilance.

The Restoration, though not yet in view at the Founding, would later affirm this truth. A world of ordered liberty was essential for the return of divine authority. Freedom prepared the way for truth; truth strengthens the cause of freedom.

Reflection

History testifies that liberty is never self‑sustaining. It endures only where people retain the habits of self‑government and the institutions that embody them. When those habits decay, constitutions become parchment and slogans replace law.

To preserve freedom, we must recover the sources of order—its religious, philosophical, and constitutional inheritance—and teach them again in our homes, our schools, and our public discourse.

Transition to Post 5 — Hebraic Roots: Revealed Law and Ordered Liberty

To understand the American commitment to ordered liberty, we must look beyond 1776 to the civilizations that shaped the Western mind. The Founders did not invent the principles they cherished; they inherited them. In Post 5, we begin this journey backward—first to Hebraic influences for moral law; then to Athens, where reason was born; and then to Jerusalem, where moral law was revealed. These three great streams, Hebraic, Hellenic, and Jerusalem formed the soil in which American freedom would one day take root.

Order is the first need of all — but order must come from somewhere… To understand the West, we must begin where the West truly begins: at Sinai.

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Post 3 — The Foundations of American Freedom

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

3 min.

Truths That Anchor a Free People

If Providence guides history, then the American Founding must be understood not merely as a political achievement but as a moral moment. The Founders believed that certain truths were not invented but revealed—truths that form the bedrock of human dignity and the architecture of liberty. These truths shaped the Declaration of Independence and continue to shape the American conscience.

At the heart of the Founding lies a conviction older than America itself: human beings possess inherent worth because they are created by God. From that worth flow rights—unalienable, universal, sacred, and undeniable.

Sacred, Undeniable, and Self‑Evident

Thomas Jefferson originally described these truths as “sacred and undeniable.” Benjamin Franklin’s revision to self‑evident did not diminish their divine origin; it broadened their reach. It signaled that moral truth is accessible to reason, conscience, and experience—that it is written not only in scripture but in the human heart.

This shift helped secure the Declaration’s adoption. It also anchored the nation’s moral compass. America’s founding truths are not sectarian claims. They are universal principles grounded in both revelation and reason.

Natural Law: The Moral Structure of Creation

The Founders understood that a free society must rest on something deeper than preference or power. They turned to natural law—the belief that moral truth is woven into the fabric of creation. Natural law teaches that:

  • human dignity is inherent
  • rights are divine in origin
  • justice is not arbitrary
  • liberty requires virtue

These principles set limits on what any government may claim over the human soul. They also provided the philosophical foundation for the American experiment.

Providence in the Founding Moment

Again and again, the Founders spoke of Providence, a Superintending Influence, the Father of Lights. They saw improbable victories, moments of unity, and flashes of moral clarity as signs that history was being guided toward a new chapter. Freedom, in their view, was both a divine gift and a solemn responsibility.

They believed that God had prepared the world—through scripture, through reason, through centuries of struggle, through those who came before—for a nation built on moral truth. And they believed they were instruments in that preparation.

Why These Foundations Still Matter

The ideas that shaped the Founding are not relics. They remain the conditions under which liberty can survive. When a people forget the truths that made them free, they risk losing the freedom those truths once secured.

Recovering these foundations is not nostalgia. It is necessity.

A nation that remembers its moral origins can renew its moral purpose. A nation that forgets them drifts toward confusion, division, and decay. America is part of a larger story. She is a nation shaped by natural rights, religious liberty, and the dignity of the individual; a nation with a cause. As Jefferson envisioned, she is an empire of liberty.

Where This Series Goes Next

This series now turns to the deeper roots of American liberty:

  • order, the first need of all
  • the Law and the Prophets
  • the meaning of natural law
  • the moral logic behind the consent of the governed
  • the ancient traditions that shaped the American mind

By returning to these sources, we reclaim more than historical insight. We recover the principles that once formed a free people—and can form us again.

Looking Ahead to Post 4

Truth alone cannot sustain a nation. Principles must be embodied in habits, institutions, and ordered lives. The Founders understood that liberty without order collapses into license, and order without justice hardens into tyranny. In Post 4, we explore why order is the first need of all enduring societies—and how private virtue and public law work together to preserve freedom.

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blog: americasgrand.design

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Post 2 — Providence in History

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

3 min.

The Guiding Hand Behind Human Liberty

If Post 1 established the purpose of this series, Post 2 turns to the question beneath all others: How does God work in history? For the Founders, this was not an abstract inquiry. It was the lens through which they interpreted their own moment. They believed that the cause of liberty was not merely political but sacred, and that Providence had prepared both people and principles for the birth of a free nation.

Among these just and holy principles: religious freedom and independence from government; freedom of belief and expression; equal justice under the law.

To understand the American Founding, we must first understand the pattern behind it.

The Pattern of Providence

Providence is not coercion. It is not the erasure of human agency. It is the quiet, steady influence of God moving through cultures, ideas, and events—preparing the world for greater truth. The Founders saw this pattern everywhere:

  • in the rise of moral law
  • in the spread of literacy and scripture
  • in the development of reason and science
  • in the emergence of constitutional government
  • in the yearning of ordinary people to be free

They believed their moment was part of a larger story, one that stretched back to ancient civilizations and forward to generations yet unborn.

Providence, to them, was not superstition. It was history seen with moral clarity.

The Founders’ Testimony of Divine Guidance

The Founders spoke of Providence with remarkable consistency:

  • Washington saw it in the preservation of his army.
  • Franklin saw it in the improbable unity of the colonies.
  • Adams saw it in the rise of ideas that preceded the Revolution.
  • Jefferson saw it in the moral arc of human equality.

These were not men given to mystical exaggeration. They were practical, often skeptical, and deeply aware of human frailty. Yet they believed—firmly—that God had a role in the affairs of nations.

Their belief was not naïve. It was observational.

They saw that history had prepared them.

Providence and Human Freedom

Providence does not eliminate struggle. It works through it. It does not bypass human choice. It elevates it.

The Founders understood that liberty requires:

  • moral restraint
  • civic virtue
  • ordered institutions
  • a people capable of self‑government

These qualities do not appear suddenly. They are cultivated across centuries. The Founders believed that the world had been prepared—intellectually, politically, spiritually—for a new chapter in human freedom.

And they believed they were living at the hinge of that chapter.

Providence and the Restoration

Here the narrative widens.

If God prepares nations for liberty, he also prepares them for truth. The Restoration did not emerge in a world of tyranny, illiteracy, and closed scripture. It emerged in a world shaped by:

  • the spread of the Bible
  • the rise of religious liberty
  • the development of natural rights
  • the protection of conscience
  • the belief that God still speaks

These were not accidents. They were preparations.

The Restoration is not the focus of this post, but it is the horizon. As the series unfolds, its connection to the Founding will become clearer—not forced, but revealed.

Why Providence Still Matters

We live in a time when many see history as random, power‑driven, or morally indifferent. But a people who lose sight of God lose sight of purpose. They forget that liberty is not merely inherited—it is entrusted.

Providence reminds us that:

  • freedom has a moral foundation
  • nations rise or fall on virtue
  • truth is revealed line upon line
  • history bends toward divine purposes

To recover the meaning of America, we must recover the meaning of Providence.

Transition to Post 3 — The Foundations of American Freedom

If Providence guides history, then the American Founding must be understood not merely as a political event but as a moral moment. The Founders believed that certain truths were not invented but revealed—truths that form the bedrock of human dignity and the architecture of liberty. In Post 3, we turn to these foundational principles and explore how divine truth and human reason converged in the Declaration of Independence.

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Post 1 — The Purpose of the Series

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

3 min.

The Hand of Providence in the Rise of Liberty

There are moments in history when the ordinary gives way to the extraordinary—when events align, ideas converge, and a people rise to meet a destiny larger than themselves. The American Founding was such a moment. It did not emerge from accident or convenience. It was the fruit of centuries of preparation, carried forward by individuals who believed that liberty was not merely a political preference but a divine stewardship.

This series begins with a simple conviction: history is guided. Not controlled, not coerced—but guided. Through cultures, through conscience, through the rise and fall of nations, God works patiently to prepare the world for greater light. The Founders sensed this. They spoke of Providence not as metaphor but as reality. They believed that the cause of liberty was bound to the purposes of heaven.

This series traces that preparation. It follows the long arc of ideas—Hebraic, Greek, Christian, Roman, and Anglo‑American—that shaped the Western mind and made the American experiment possible. It explores how moral law, reason, virtue, and ordered liberty converged at a precise moment in time to create a nation capable of defending human dignity.

And beneath it all runs a quieter truth: the need for the Restoration of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It emerged in a world prepared—intellectually, politically, spiritually—for the return of divine authority. This series will not force that connection, but it will honor it. As the narrative unfolds, the Restoration will appear naturally, as the horizon toward which history bends.

Why This Series Matters Now

We live in a moment when the foundations of freedom are questioned, forgotten, or dismissed. Many sense that something essential is slipping away. But the remedy is not despair—it is remembrance. A people who forget the truths that formed them begin to forget themselves.

This series is an invitation to remember.

To remember the ideas that shaped the American mind. To remember the sacrifices that secured liberty. To remember the divine influence that guided a nation into being. To remember that freedom is never self‑sustaining—it must be taught, cherished, and defended.

What This Series Will Explore

Over the coming posts, we will examine:

  • the nature of Providence in history.
  • the foundations of American freedom.
  • the necessity of order for liberty.
  • the Hebraic and Greek roots of Western civilization.
  • the Christian, Roman, and English contributions to law and government.
  • the rise of the American experiment.
  • the preparation of the world for the Restoration.

Each post builds on the last. Each reveals another layer of the story. Each points toward the truth that liberty is both a gift and a responsibility.

A Nation Prepared

America’s creation was not inevitable. It was prepared. Prepared by centuries of moral development. Prepared by the rise of reason and the refinement of law. Prepared by the courage of those who believed that human beings are created equal and endowed with unalienable rights.

The Founders saw this preparation. They felt it. They spoke of it. And they acted with the humility of men who believed they were instruments in a larger design.

This series seeks to recover that vision.

Transition to Post 2 — Providence in History

To understand the American Founding, we must first understand the pattern behind it. Before we explore the ideas that shaped the nation, we must consider the deeper question: How does God work in history? The Founders believed that Providence guided their cause. In Post 2, we will examine what they meant—and how that belief shaped the birth of a nation.

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Our Sacred Trust

Post 2

4 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

Excerpt: As our nation nears 250 years of independence, we remember the truths that shaped our liberty—and the rising generations who must learn them, if freedom is to endure.

A Moment That Calls Us Back to Our Beginnings

In the introduction to this series, I reflected on the remarkable convergence of ideas and events that shaped the American founding. Before we explore those moments in detail, we must first consider why remembering them matters.

A 2009 survey revealed that 83% of American adults lack even a basic understanding of the American Revolution, and a later poll found that one in four Americans could not identify the nation from which we declared independence. These are not small oversights. They signal a widening distance between a people and the principles that first secured their liberty.

Why Our Founding Still Matters

The Declaration of Independence is more than a historical document; it is a moral proclamation, a bold assertion of universal rights endowed to all people. Its vision was never meant to be narrow or fleeting. It invited humanity to see freedom as a birthright—rooted in dignity, not granted by rulers.

As noted in the opening post of this series, the founding vision did not emerge in a straight line; it arose from a remarkable convergence of convictions and circumstances that pointed toward a larger purpose.

“All men are created equal” was not merely a political statement. In his original draft of the Declaration, Thomas Jefferson wrote, “We hold these truths to be sacred and undeniable”. Benjamin Franklin, acting as an editor, changed this phrase to “self-evident,” replacing a religious, theological tone with one based on reason and Enlightenment philosophy. Franklin felt this would be acceptable to the delegates rather than getting locked into a contentious debate over religion. It was a declaration about the nature of humanity itself—an affirmation that no person is born to rule another.

From this truth flowed another principle just as revolutionary: government derives its just powers from the consent of the governed. Authority is legitimate only when it rests on the willing agreement of a free people. This idea reshaped the world. It placed the citizen above the state, conscience above coercion, and liberty above the ambitions of those who seek to command it.

Our national concern for human flourishing—our instinct to defend liberty and extend opportunity—flows directly from this founding vision, written for the benefit of “all flesh.”

The Responsibility of Memory

Liberty is never self‑sustaining. It survives only when it is taught, cherished, and passed deliberately from one generation to the next. Abraham Lincoln warned that a nation can lose its freedom in as little as two generations if its people cease to understand the principles that uphold it. His warning was not theoretical; it was a sober reminder that forgetting is often more dangerous than any foreign threat.

Edmund Burke saw the same danger when he wrote that “the true danger is, when liberty is nibbled away, for expedients, and by parts.” Freedom rarely disappears in a single moment. It erodes quietly—through neglect, distraction, and the slow fading of civic memory.

Thomas Jefferson likewise insisted that education is essential to the preservation of liberty. A free people must be an instructed people. Without knowledge of their rights, their history, and the moral foundations of their institutions, citizens become vulnerable to those who would distort the past or redefine the meaning of freedom itself.

We are living in a moment when these warnings feel especially urgent. Much has changed in our civic life:

  • the pledge of allegiance is spoken less often,
  • patriotism is sometimes treated with suspicion,
  • cultural voices diminish or distort our founding,
  • and many actively work to rewrite or corrupt our history.

These forces take a toll—not only on adults, but especially on the rising generation. Young people cannot love what they have never been taught to understand. They cannot defend what they have never been taught and invited to appreciate. If we hope to preserve the blessings we have inherited, we must recommit ourselves to teaching these ideals clearly, honestly, and without apology.

An Invitation to Remember Together

In the coming weeks, I will be sharing reflections on the ideas, events, and individuals who shaped the American experiment. My aim is simple: to strengthen our connection to the past so we may more fully inherit its blessings.

Reflection: A republic endures only when its people remember what made it possible. Memory is not nostalgia; it is stewardship. It is the work of citizens who understand that liberty must be renewed in every generation.

Knowing our history can help us rekindle a love for our country. Each reflection in this series will build on the last, helping us trace the patterns, principles, and providences that shaped the American experiment. May we remember together, stand together, and faithfully preserve the freedom entrusted to us.

Blog: americasgrand.design

website: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

Email: bruss1@comcast.net

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SERIES INTRODUCTION

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

Post No. 1

3 min

Excerpt: Can God’s providence be argued within the standards of modern history? This 60‑day series explores contingency, primary voices, and convergences that invite a fresh look at America’s founding.

For generations, Americans have spoken of the founding era with a sense of awe—sometimes even reverence. Many of the Founders themselves described the events they lived through as “miraculous,” guided by a hand greater than their own. Yet modern historical writing often emphasizes uncertainty, chance, and human limitation. Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Jon Meacham notes that “nothing was foreordained about the American experiment,” while Walter Isaacson describes the revolutionaries’ sense of spiritual support as a kind of haze surrounding their efforts.

I understand why many scholars hesitate to speak of divine causation. Academic history prizes neutrality, and theological claims can feel out of place in that setting. But neutrality does not require us to ignore what the Founders said, what they believed, or how remarkably their independent choices converged toward a coherent outcome. If we take their words seriously—and if we examine the patterns of contingency and convergence with care—then the possibility of providential orchestration deserves thoughtful consideration.

That is the purpose of this 60‑day series.

Why This Series Matters

As we approach the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we have an opportunity not only to remember events but to reflect on meaning. The American founding was not a straight line. It was a tapestry woven from uncertainty, courage, conflict, and conviction. And yet, again and again, circumstances aligned in ways that seemed improbable—sometimes astonishing—to those who lived through them.

My aim is not to preach, but to persuade. Not to insist, but to invite. Not to simplify, but to illuminate.

Across the coming posts, I will explore:

  • Contingency — the real alternatives that could have changed everything
  • Primary voices — what the Founders and their contemporaries actually said
  • Convergences — the surprising alignments that shaped the nation’s birth
  • Providence — the possibility that these alignments were not accidental

If the evidence holds together, the argument will stand on its own merits.

A Journey Told One Day at a Time

This series is designed to unfold gradually—one post every day or two—so that readers can walk through the American founding step by step. Each entry will connect another dot, reveal another convergence, or highlight another moment when events seemed to bend toward a larger purpose. You are warmly invited to follow along.

Visit the blog or listen to the podcast regularly. Share it with others who love history, faith, or the American story. Reflect on what these patterns might suggest about our nation’s origin, purpose, and destiny.

There is a plan in place for this series—carefully structured, thoughtfully paced, and meant to build toward a fuller understanding of the founding as both a human achievement and, perhaps, a divinely orchestrated one.

Author: Brent Russell

Email: bruss1@comcast.net

Website: www.americansgranddesign.com

Blog: americasgrand.design

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Understanding America’s Christian Heritage: A Renewed Perspective

Reading Time: 3 minutes.

Many folks I know have children or grandchildren in the Gen Z age range. When I read the Deseret News account of Bishop Gerald Causse and the Piano Guys (August 31) I wanted to share a few things I have learned about that generation. This past weekend there were thousands of YSAs meeting in Salt Lake.

Gen Z Turning to Spirituality

An Invitation

The improvement of understanding serves two purposes: to expand our knowledge and to share it with others.  –John Locke

A Pew Research Center report highlights that Christianity’s decline has stabilized, with Gen Z attending church more than previous generations. This trend is seen in both the US and Western Europe, with fewer people identifying as atheists.

Gen Z is turning to spirituality to cope with anxiety, depression, and loneliness, seeking stable structures amid social disconnect and institutional mistrust. Religion helps address identity, purpose, and belonging.

For those seeking new perspectives, I invite you to explore “How and Why Christianity Came to America” which will be presented in a series of posts beginning in August 2025 in celebration of our nation’s 250th birthday.

Site: http://www.americasgrand.design. My first post: Waving the Flags of America and the Restoration.

As you learn the true story behind America’s creation, the falsehoods you may have been fed will disappear. Discovering and learning about how this nation came into existence will not only be rewarding, it will fill your mind with the realization that it is wonderful to have a country to love.

In an environment where anxiety and depression are rampant, understanding God’s love and his purposes helps people of all ages build stronger futures.

LDS Chapel

Emphasizing democracy, religion, family, and relationships supports stability.

Faith in God and in his Son Jesus Christ and believing in immortality are vital for a strong, free society.

Human progress is founded on freedom, accountability, and following the Golden Rule. Enlightenment about America’s founding provides purpose and meaning, which this series aims to deliver.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The flourishing of human progress depends on the harmonious integration of freedom, accountability, and a democracy grounded in religious values. Faith plays a vital role in shaping stable societies by fostering strong families, moral responsibility, and a sense of purpose.

Key Points

Generational Shift: Christianity’s decline in the West has plateaued, with an increase in church attendance among Gen Z, who are less likely than Millennials to identify as atheists.

Social Drivers: Rising anxiety, depression, loneliness, and weakened social trust are motivating young people to seek the structure, identity, and belonging that religion can offer.

Series Invitation: The series “How and Why Christianity Came to America” aims to clarify misconceptions about America’s origins and foster renewed appreciation for the nation’s heritage.

Core Values: Faith in God and in Jesus Christ, the belief in immortality, robust family life, and practicing the Golden Rule are foundational to a stable and free society.

Renewed Understanding: Learning about America’s founding principles can inspire gratitude and offer meaning, especially during times of widespread uncertainty and disconnection.

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Waving the Flags of America and the Restoration

Post No. 1 Read Time: 7 minutes.

Painting and comments by Al Rounds: “I was going through all of the old photographs of downtown Salt Lake, and I came across one particular photograph of the Salt Lake Temple with an American flag that hung on the south side of the temple. There was no explanation on the photograph as to why the flag was there. Nor why the flag was seemingly backwards . . .

“The flag was hung in 1896 to celebrate Utah’s statehood, and it was not hung backwards as I had thought. There was just no protocol on how to hang the United States flag until after the turn of the century . . .

“I was very fortunate to interview a woman whose mother helped sew that very special American flag. She told me that the stripes were 6 feet tall and the stars were each about a foot tall. She also said the flag was sewn on only one side such that it could be hung in only the one direction. The flag hung on the temple for the entire year in ‘Celebration’ . . .

“Larry and Gail Miller purchased this painting because of their love of pioneer heritage. And they enjoyed telling the story of why the flag was hung seemingly backwards.”

The American Experiment is Foreordained

In a recent talk, Elder Gary Stevenson invited us, as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to wave the flag of the Restoration. Because the events are so deeply and beautifully intertwined, I am setting out, as we celebrate our nation’s 250th birthday, to wave the flags of both America and the Restoration. To tell the story, I have developed a series of 120 posts, set to be released at a pace of two or three per week until July 2026.

These posts explore the backstory of mankind’s creation, God’s unfolding work on behalf of his children, the discovery of the Western Hemisphere, the founding of America, and many of the key events that followed, all under the dual themes of “History is Prophecy Unveiled” and “How and Why Judeo-Christian Influences Came to America.” The content is tailored to resonate with three specific audience groups.

Group one comprises those who share the view of America as a nation founded under divine guidance; a nation where wise men were raised up to establish a government to be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles. With its distinctive democracy and representative government, America serves as a beacon of hope and inspiration to the world.

Group two consists of those who generally hold a favorable view of America, believing that Providence may have played a role in its founding, but often lack strong spiritual or patriotic sentiments. They see the colonists as motivated primarily by economic opportunities rather than religious or spiritual influences. Many are easily convinced that America’s founding was rooted in greed, conquest, and mistreatment of others, at times making its legitimacy questionable in their eyes.

Group three consists of deceiving intellectuals and sophists. Openly hostile to America, they comprise a disparate group of individuals who write history and commentary, serve in politics and leadership, and advocate from positions of trust in academia, media, entertainment, and think tanks that there was nothing foreordained about the American experiment. To this group, American history was not an inevitable chain of events leading to a sure conclusion, rather it was a movement founded on selfishness and greed. Individually and collectively, they dismiss the Declaration of Independence, consider the Constitution outdated, and pursue a strategy of tearing down the structure of democratic capitalism and representative government, with a twisted desire to rebuild it based on Marxist ideology.

Based on my experience, people are generally engaged in attempts to persuade others through conversations, actions, and the written word. As a missionary for my Church, I aim for my research and writing to address questions, to spark interest, and introduce ideas that may have been dismissed or never considered.

History provides a wider view of life, acting as a source of inspiration and resilience. The story of America defines us as individuals and as a nation, offering plenty to be proud of. Core values like liberty, justice, and personal responsibility play a vital role. Much like music, poetry, and art, history expands the mind and opens the heart to new possibilities.

I want people to understand how members of the LDS faith view life before birth, the purposes of mortality, and life after death; to explore how and why our perspective on the Trinity differs from the biblical view as interpreted by traditional Christianity; to gain insight into how we balance faith, works, and grace; to consider our approach to personal prayer, institutional revelation, and our willingness to follow modern day apostles and prophets; and to reflect on how we see the Creation, the Fall, and the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I also want the general populace to understand our unique beliefs on the fulfillment of prophecy and how and why America was founded in keeping with God’s grand design.

When looking at history, it is important to remember the respect owed to those who laid the foundation of Western civilization and America’s creation. Together, we stand on the shoulders of Hebrew prophets, the sages of Greece and Rome, the Founders, philosophers, and religious leaders of far-reaching civilizations, and the multitude of key figures of the Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment. Culminating with the vision and work of the Founding Fathers and those who continued their efforts, we are the beneficiaries of those who have gone before. The evidence is compelling that the American experiment unfolded by Intelligent Design. At the very least, let’s resist and stop the mindless destruction of Western civilization and the American nation.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

America’s founding and history are not accidental but are guided by a divine plan, particularly as understood within the context of the LDS faith. The narrative aims to highlight how America’s origins and development are deeply intertwined with spiritual principles and why understanding this perspective matters in current discussions about the nation’s identity and values.

Key Points

Series Purpose: A collection of 120 posts is being launched in celebration of America’s 250th birthday, focusing on the discovery, founding, and significant historical moments of the nation, especially through the lens of Christianity’s arrival in America.

Audience Groups:

Group one: Believes that America was divinely inspired and founded on holy principles.

Group two: Generally positive about America but views its founding as more pragmatic and less providential.

Group three: Hostile toward America’s founding, seeing it as selfish and illegitimate, and advocating for fundamental changes to its governance.

Purpose of Writing: To offer historical context, inspire thought, and share the LDS perspective on faith, America’s founding, and related theological principles.

Importance of History: History is presented as a source of inspiration and identity, shaping individuals and the nation while promoting values like liberty, justice, and responsibility.

LDS Beliefs Highlighted: The text seeks to explain LDS views on the nature and character of God, mankind’s pre-mortal existence, the roles of noble and great souls in advancing God’s work on Earth, the vital importance of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice, the divine role in America’s creation, and its aftermath.

Call to Respect Foundations: Emphasizes honoring the figures, philosophies, and events that contributed to the founding of Western civilization, America’s formation, and the spread of truth; further arguing that these events are a product of Intelligent Design rather than random chance.

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Be a Purveyor of Hope

We live in a world plagued by a growing epidemic of depression and anxiety, especially among the younger generations. Recent surveys have shown that nearly one-third of teenagers are suffering from clinical levels of anxiety and depression. Among the contributing factors are genetics, trauma, neglect, parenting styles, sexual orientation, peer and social group influence, and social media use. Data also suggests that older age groups are not immune to the discouragement, frustration, and sadness running rampant throughout American society. Overall, it is being reported that over 50% of Americans are dissatisfied in their lives.

I am not a counselor or mental health specialist. However, I have kids, grandkids, and friends who are facing life’s challenges as they pursue happiness and seek to discover meaning in their lives. Like Americans of all ages, they want to dream, to find meaning, and to fulfill their potential. In the ongoing battle that at times can overwhelm each of us and fill us with despair, it is my hope that when we see our futures as bleak and fragile, we will find strength and reassurance.

One clue as to where we are as a society was recently provided by a billionaire donor to Harvard University who said that Harvard and other elite schools create “whiny snowflakes.” He asked, “Are we going to educate a group of young men and women who are just caught up in a rhetoric of oppressor and oppressee and ‘this is not fair’?

“Until Harvard makes it very clear that they are going to resume their role of educating young American men and women to be leaders, to be problem solvers, to take on difficult issues, I am not interested in supporting the institution.” Over the past 40 years, he has donated in excess of $500 million to the school.

As we confront and conquer tough times, we owe a debt of gratitude to all of those, past and present, who work overtime to become a counterweight to the negative factors that threaten our individual and collective peace. Through inspiring words of wisdom and encouragement, they demonstrate how we too can become purveyors of hope.

Looking back in time, we can see that what passes today for intellectualism and scholarship is a very narrow view of the world. Disdain for natural law and a lack of respect for the great thinkers of the past has led to an intellectual environment governed by license–Let me do what I want, let me live “my truth,” while I mock and ignore the sacred, the foundational, and the traditional.

In 1987, Allan Bloom wrote The Closing of the American Mind. Painting the picture of a nation in crisis, he wrote of “the universities’ lack of purpose and the students’ lack of learning. Each of which has led to nihilism and despair, of relativism disguised as tolerance.

“What we see today is a culture which lacks an understanding of the past and a vision of the future. Entrusted with the education of our people, our system no longer provides the knowledge of the great traditions of philosophy and literature that made students aware of the order of nature and of man’s place within it. In their failure to arouse or to nurture the self-knowledge that has always been the basis for serious learning, the intellectual currents of Western civilization and history have been replaced by a spiritual malaise.”

Accelerating this deterioration are those who either have no interest in or who are actively hostile to our founding, to the Declaration of Independence, and to the Constitution. Employing deceit, and under the guise of objectivity, our culture has been transformed “by the idea that there is no longer hope in great and wise men from other places and times who can reveal the truth about life.” In short, relativism, revisionism, and opposition to spiritual principles have extinguished the real motives of education and the essential importance of the standards by which we are to be governed.

My prescription for instilling hope and alleviating sadness is as follows:

  1. We live in a world of spiritual warfare. Beginning with the War in Heaven and continuing on Earth today, a fierce battle is being waged between the forces of good and evil. It is imperative that all people, both young and old, see this.
  2. We are children of God; created in His likeness and image.
  3. Our two greatest blessings are the gift of life and the freedom to direct that life.
  4. Mortality is an opportunity to gain a physical body, to overcome weakness and temptation, to improve, and to gain experience. Each of us won (earned) the right to be here (on Earth). We were not forced to come. Furthermore, we each have an important mission to fulfill. So much of what is beneficial is discovered through developing a love of work and in learning to value time.
  5. We are possessed with an irresistible desire to know our relationship with the Infinite. Hope is rooted in faith and trust that God is at the helm.
  6. Knowledge is of no value unless used. Learn and apply correct principles.
  7. Strive to rise above the environment. Master the body and all things physical and live in a higher and more beautiful world.
  8. Turn to Jesus Christ. He is the Light of the World. He has overcome spiritual and physical death. He has suffered pains, afflictions, and temptations of every kind. Full of mercy and compassion, He understands our infirmities, anxieties, and limitations.
  9. Our nation was founded by honorable men. The invention of the market economy fostered upward mobility, harnessed self-interest, and spurred creativity, imagination, and individual talent. Remember all of our hard-won rights and responsibilities. Pursue a renaissance of respect, a revival of responsibility, a spiritual awakening of our story, of who we are and how we got here, of all we have been through and achieved, to accompany the emphasis on human rights, our pursuit of equality and justice, and our celebration of human freedom. There is no upside to the weakening of our nation. The conservative worldview drives human flourishing.
  10. Reverence for life is imperative. The world’s richest man is also the world’s leading proponent of natalism. “Having children is saving the world,” said Elon Musk. “A collapsing birth rate is the biggest danger civilization faces by far.” Prepare well, fall in love, walk down the aisle or kneel at the altar, and raise a family. The right to life is the universal birthright of every soul.
  11. Seek and promote balance in our environmental stewardship. We do not have to choose between a cleaner planet and a prosperous economy. We can have both.
  12. Maintain freedom against the forces of socialism and communism. “Of all the systems of political economy which have shaped our history, none has so revolutionized ordinary expectations of human life–lengthened the life span, made the elimination of poverty and famine thinkable, enlarged the range of human choice–as democratic capitalism” (Michael Novak).
  13. “Lay down true principles and adhere to them inflexibly. Do not be frightened into their surrender by the alarms of the timid, or the croakings of wealth against the ascendancy of the people” (Thomas Jefferson).
  14. Live the Golden Rule. Always be kind, honest, and friendly.
  15. Righteousness exalts a nation. When the meanings of words are changed through plausible definitions, freedom is degenerated, and the culture is in decline.

Above is a list of universal truths. They are designed to help us better understand the why of our existence and the purposes of mortal life. Understanding them, applying them, and sharing them will build and preserve spiritual and emotional resilience in ourselves and others. May we be the voice of hope, the purveyors of hope, to all those around us. 

 

 

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The Books of Judah and Joseph

Each calendar year, as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we rotate our weekly Sunday School scripture study between what we call the Standard Works: The Old and New Testaments from the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants. These four books represent our canon of scripture. Accordingly, calendar year 2024 is devoted to the study of the Book of Mormon.

The Bible is a divine library of sixty-six individual books divided into the Old and New Testaments, collected and edited over many centuries. The books were written by divinely inspired authors about Israel’s sacred history and theology, her covenants with God, her faith and loyalty to Him, her patriarchs and prophets, her expectation of a Messiah, and the fulfillment of that expectation in the advent of Jesus Christ.

Our Church honors and reveres the Bible. We believe that the Bible has had greater influence on the world for good than any other book ever published. We consider the Bible to be the Book of books! 

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ, is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the Bible. Foretold in both the Old and New Testaments, it is a record of God’s dealings with the ancient inhabitants of the Americas and contains, as does the Bible, the fullness of the everlasting gospel. The Book of Mormon is the greatest witness for the truth of the Bible that has ever been published. Through its teachings, we draw nearer to the Infinite, greatly aided in our discovery of the reasons for our being.

In support of these claims, Plato’s divine ontology and Socrates’s divine signs manifestly fit the narrative of the human quest: to discover our highest potential. As members of the human family, we were in the beginning with God. Each of us is on the Earth because of our acceptance of the plan of salvation, and because we lived satisfactory preexistent lives. We won the right to be here; we were not forced to come; we won our place on the earth!

The work of God has been designed and will not be complete until every soul has been taught the gospel and has been offered the privilege of salvation and the accompanying great blessings which the Lord has in store for His children. Joining the Bible in proclaiming that our purpose in mortal life is to seek and follow divine pronouncements, the Book of Mormon is essential to mankind.

Further substantiating these assertions are four narratives, each beginning around 600 BC. First are the prophecies of Isaiah which foretell the coming of the Messiah, a time of falling away through transgression of the laws and changing of the ordinances, the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, and the establishment of an ensign for the nations in anticipation of the gathering of Israel and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Second is the philosophical account which led to ethics and helped preserve Christianity in the time of Constantine. The three great minds behind this unfolding were Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Third is the Muslim scholarly tradition. The role played by eastern intellectuals in keeping truth alive was essential, as visionary Muslim scholars fled the Ottoman Empire, bringing sacred and vital works to Italy, thus fueling the Renaissance. The fourth in this series of connected events is the record of Nephi, a succession of kings and prophets in the New World. Containing the fullness of the everlasting gospel, this record is known as the Book of Mormon.

Creating a paradox, the philosophical, Roman, and Muslim narratives had at their heart the idea of obscuring, burying, or eliminating true Christianity. For example, in the face of biblical and historical evidence, the Greeks and Jews scoffed at the idea of Christ’s resurrection, thus negating the purpose for which He had come to Earth and given His life. Islam, on the other hand, though regarding Jesus as a great prophet, is not Christian. Siding with universal truths that were appealing and important, in order to be popular and relevant in the world, these movements sold out what Jesus Christ was really about, and precious truths were lost.

Upon the foundation of Hellenism–the act of becoming Greek in thought and culture–and warped by speculative thinking–resulting in creeds and edicts–God lost His corporeal form and free will yielded to the iron yoke of man-made ecclesiasticism through the joining of the altar and the throne and the establishment of the Divine Right of Kings. Moreover, many of the Master’s original teachings, such as the correct mode of baptism, the doctrine of preexistence, and the emblematic nature of His sacrifice were allowed to wither away. Over time, through the introduction of doctrines and practices such as purgatory, limbo, the sale of indulgences, and the establishment of national churches, the Roman Church would greatly limit the spiritual quest of ordinary people. To ensure conformance with an ever-changing orthodoxy, the state became the arm of power.

Unique from other Christian churches, this combination of events, known historically as the Dark and Early Middle Ages, and theistically as the Great Apostasy, triggered the loss of priesthood power from the earth, severed the lines of revelation, and signaled that purity of doctrine would not long remain. Over a period of centuries, guided by the hand of the Lord and designated scripturally as a marvelous work and a wonder (see Isaiah), a series of events took place which prepared the way for constitutional government and the Restoration of that which had been lost. Beginning with the Renaissance, and continuing with the Protestant Reformation, the Ages of Enlightenment, Discovery, and Colonization, and the War for Independence, the way was paved for civil and religious liberty and pluralism, wherein the restitution of all things as foretold by Peter could begin to unfold.

As the doctrine of biblical inerrancy and the rise of state churches continued to perpetuate the falsehoods of apostasy in America, the timing was right for a great reset. Translated by the gift and power of God and coming forth as the great clarifier of the true mission of Jesus Christ, the Book of Mormon was brought forth in 1830. Bypassing the influences of Greek and Roman jargon and sophism, the Book of Mormon was also spared the grueling process of polemical translation that the Bible had undergone. Accordingly, we believe, as expressed by the Prophet Joseph Smith, that the Book of Mormon is “the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”

Beginning with the events of 1820, the Doctrine and Covenants is not a translation from ancient documents but rather direct revelations and communications from God to His children through His chosen prophets in our times. It is a book of scripture given directly to our generation, containing the will of the Lord for us in these last days that precede the Second Coming of Christ.

Throughout the history of the world, the Lord has revealed His word and will to prophets. In our day, all the streams and rivers of the past are flowing into the grand ocean of truth that is known as the dispensation of the fulness of times.

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Opinion: ‘He appeared and the soul felt its worth’

The James Webb Telescope has shown the world a glimpse into endless and spectacular creation. The question is, do puny humans on a tiny speck of a planet really matter?

My post for this week is by The Deseret News Editorial Board, Salt Lake City, Utah December 24, 2023.

The “Pillars of Creation,” a star-forming area about 6,500 light-years away from Earth, are shown in this image from the James Webb Space Telescope.
The “Pillars of Creation,” a star-forming area within the Eagle Nebula about 6,500 light-years away from Earth, are shown in this image from the James Webb Space Telescope.

Viewed in the right light, Christmas brings clarity to so much of what vexes the world. If that clarity entered every household during this season, think how the world would change.

Consider how ridiculous the hubris of dictators and tyrants appears amid the endless sparkles of creation the James Webb Telescope has laid bare this year. Consider how the perspective of endless creation reduces human conceit and pride to nothingness.

Just one example, but a typical one, is a photo the telescope produced, showing what experts say is 50,000 sources of near infrared light. Each tiny bright spot is a separate galaxy containing millions of stars and planets. The website explorersweb.com says this one single photo may contain as many as 4 trillion stars.

That seems impossible to comprehend.

Not only do human pursuits vanish into vapor against this backdrop, but a bigger, more ominous question comes to mind. How could anyone on a planet such as earth, which is less than a dark pebble in an ocean of stars and planets, presume a level of importance at all? How does anything we do matter?

And how could any thoughtful person consider the vastness of endless creation without wondering about the value of individuals, from the tiniest newborn baby to the most powerful political figure?

Christmas brings clarity to it all. 

“O, Holy Night,” a hymn written by Placide Cappeau, a poet in a small town in France, contains these words about Jesus Christ: “Long lay the world, in sin and error pining, till he appeared and the soul felt its worth.”

The story of Christmas is the story of weak things being, in reality, of infinite worth. It is the story that corrects the way perspectives can be obscured by finite vision. It is about how tiny lives on a dim and remote planet, eclipsed by endless creative splendor, are important enough for the God of all creation to send his “only begotten son” to offer redemption, “that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) 

More than just a story about a baby born in a manger, it is a jaw-dropping affirmation of the divine worth of every person who has inhabited this planet, or whoever will so long as the planet exists. This tiny speck of a globe, then, is in reality the most sparkling jewel in the vast array of cosmic lights.

One of the most troubling tragedies of modern life is the way so many people today readily lose sight of the eternal and focus obsessively on things of little or no value. Much has been written in recent years about families in the United States being torn apart by politics. Many people cringe at the thought of another acrimonious election season coming in 2024. 

Too many people now refuse to talk to or acknowledge mothers, fathers, sisters or brothers who hold differing political views. Too many walk amid splendor and beauty, focused only on the tiny specks of imperfections they insist on magnifying beyond proportion. Too many strive to keep those they dislike under their thumbs.

In an opinion piece for The New York Times, Will Leitch described the change in people regarding politics over the past eight years, or so.

“What had once been merely some awkward moments at Thanksgiving became constant fissures pitting kids against parents, siblings against siblings, generation against generation,” he said.

Others focus solely on wealth or the acquisition of things, oblivious to the short duration of their own lives.

It is common this time of year to hear people talk about wanting to feel the spirit of Christmas. Let’s be clear about that. 

Cappeau’s “O, Holy Night” continues, “Truly he taught us to love one another; his law is love and his gospel is peace. Chains shall he break for the slave is our brother, and in his name all oppression shall cease.”

The spirit of Christmas comes when we forgive as he does, when we love as he does, and when we stop trying to punish others for what we have seen as irredeemable shortcomings. It comes when we view all people as equals, endowed by the same loving creator with certain inalienable rights. It comes when we look around us and, most importantly, above us, focusing on transcendent beauties and wonders that lift and inspire.

It comes when we discover the worth of our own soul, and subsequently the worth of all other souls. It comes when we can see the bright light of that holy night through the perspective of eternity.

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What is the Bible and Where did it come from?

Who wrote the Bible?

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I may look at the Bible differently than you. While I consider it to be the greatest literary treasure of Western Civilization and the driving force in the shaping of the English-speaking world, I have studied the path that what would eventually become the King James Version, commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, traveled, before its official designation and acceptance. Historical data has influenced my thinking.

To begin, we know very little about the authorship of the Old Testament with the exception that it arose over time and in phases. No doubt, its different prophets had different agendas and concerns while working in different cultural frameworks. While it conveys many wonderful and consistent themes, it is also complex and can be the subject of controversy.

Likewise, in the New Testament, which has a much less complicated history, we find discordance between the apostles. For example, the challenge James faced with what he was hearing about the teachings of Paul began when he realized that Paul’s teachings about salvation through faith alone in Jesus Christ, absent performance according to the law, were being interpreted in an oversimplified way that Paul never intended. In his book, James clarified this by writing that true faith always leads to righteous works, meaning our actions and efforts.

In the ensuing centuries however, beginning with Martin Luther, who was attempting to unwind some of the elaborate theology that had overtaken the Roman Church through the doctrines of pilgrimages to holy sites, confession to a priest, penance, indulgences, limbo, purgatory, and transubstantiation, we see that Paul’s teachings were continuing to be distorted through Luther’s development of the doctrine of justification by faith alone.

As their frustrations grew with these works that were purported to save, “The Reformers overcompensated and invented a new doctrine of salvation by grace alone, a doctrine that disavowed all works, even godly works, as a necessary ingredient of salvation. The pendulum merely swung from one heresy to another. As a result of the Reformation, many Christians teach that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can be saved by grace alone, regardless of any works on our part” (Callister).

In his misinterpretation of Paul’s teachings, Luther contended that the redemptive work of Christ was finished, that the sinner’s condition does not depend on what he can do today, but on his relationship to what Christ has done. Justified by faith alone, he taught that all that is needed for salvation is to either accept Jesus in your heart or confess him with your lips.

When one looks at the hold this doctrine of justification by faith alone has on the Christian world as well as its mistaken linkage to the doctrine of grace, it is as if a central theme of the Book of James, “Faith without works is dead,” has never been a factor. It is as if Luther was saying, “Well, let’s just throw out the book of James!” Moreover, it undermines the Savior’s continual emphasis of doing and becoming as He constantly emphasized in His sermons. A half-brother to Jesus, and one who was by His side for His entire earthly ministry, there can be no doubt that James understood the Savior’s teachings.

When our Church states, as a matter of doctrine, that “We believe in the Bible, as far as it is translated correctly,” what we mean is that we are not on board with the liberal Protestant tradition of biblical inerrancy. There are too many things that have been lost, too many definitions that have been incorrectly formulated through the interpolations of men, and too many erroneous descriptions of God and His interactions with His children.

Furthermore, as Joseph Smith labored to better understand the Bible, there were the frustrations of working within the limits of language. Thus constrained, he struggled to transmit his feelings into words and wrote, “The little narrow prison almost as it were total darkness of paper, pen, and ink, and a crooked, broken, scattered, and imperfect language.”

Willing to acknowledge the challenge of writing with concise, accurate grammar and diction, and anticipating a future day when all of us will read and understand to the fullness and satisfaction of our immortal souls, the Prophet of the Restoration seemed to say, “I don’t have the full picture. I’m struggling with an imperfect language.”

There are far too many unanswered questions to make everything fit together perfectly. This suggests that the Bible is the repository of numerous accounts, versions, and a library of stories rather than one coherent narrative. Because there is so much to learn about the life before, the Creation, Adam and Eve, the Fall, the Atonement, the true nature of God and man, and the teachings of Jesus, rather than take the position that the Bible is complete and has all the answers, it seems reasonable to be open to further revelation or even scholarship to fill in the gaps.

In accordance with this line of thinking, there is another basic belief to share. Introduced by Joseph Smith in 1842, as one of 13 Articles of Faith of the newly restored Church, it is the doctrine of ongoing revelation: “We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.”

In conclusion, the Bible is a book of inspired discourse. It unites us in our pursuit of understanding ethics and the divine will. The foundation of our Judeo-Christian heritage, it provides a basis for common conversation and community. In its morality lies the safety of society.

Explained by a Jewish writer, “Somewhere on the Temple Mount was the actual temple, but we don’t know exactly where. And so, we take off our shoes and treat the whole Mount with the reverence it deserves. And that’s how I try to approach the scriptures. I know that God’s fingerprints are there.”

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O Beautiful for Spacious Skies

It never ceases to amaze me how incredible, and how beautiful, this country and her people are.

Park City, Utah, started out as a mining town in 1884 and had great success.  When the mines played out there was agriculture and farming.  Then, along came skiing, tourism, and the Olympics.  At its heart, a community of wonderful people combined the elements of all these industries. And therein lies the appeal of this very special place on the western edge of the Rocky Mountains.

No doubt, the most interesting thing I do, as an owner of a transportation company with two of my sons, is meet and talk with people from all over the United States (and the world) and from all walks of life.  Over the years I have heard some amazing things as people shared a part of their life story.

I remember the young man from Tibet.  In our ride to the airport, he spoke quietly of how much he enjoyed the solitude of the mountains.  He said that as he skied through the powder and the trees he was overcome by the grandeur of it all and felt great peace, “a oneness with nature.”

I’ll never forget the woman who flew in for a convention and a three-day ski vacation at a luxury hotel.  She was so appreciative of everything from the physical beauty of her surroundings to the way she was treated.  Traveling to the airport we began to talk about her story–her pathway to such an “incredible experience.”

A few years before she held a good job doing research.  Then she was hired by a large firm to find out why their candy sales fell off during Christmas and other major holidays, at a time when the owners of the company felt that their sales should soar.

What she discovered was that candy sales did increase, but it was in the upscale brands because people were willing to spend more on candy during those times of the year.

Her discovery led to a change of thinking in the presentation of their product.  This was followed by the development and marketing of red and green M & M’s and other candy specialties.  Indeed, their candy sales took off–and so did her career.

Two years ago, on a beautiful evening, just as the sun was beginning to go down, I was returning to Park City with a family who had enjoyed an afternoon of snowmobiling.  Sensing what was happening in the sky and on the tops of the mountains, as the light converged in an incredible mixture of pinks and blues on the snow-capped peaks, I took a different route because I wanted them to see the back of the Wasatch Range (Mt. Timpanogos) under these conditions.

Nature did not disappoint.  As we crested a hill and the back of the Wasatch came into view, with its 11,000-foot peaks, there were gasps of appreciation.  Then, stilled silence, as they took it all in.  It was a special time as a family from New Orleans experienced a moment they will never forget.

What I have written about Utah is something that unfolds in thousands of places across America, many of which I have witnessed firsthand. Throw in the changing seasons, from the fall colors to the stillness of winter, from Nature’s renewal in springtime to the long summer days with their parades, celebrations, and family gatherings.

Such reflection often leads me to a question: What is the higher purpose of Nature? And to a possible answer: “To cultivate the sense of the beautiful, is one of the most effectual ways of cultivating an appreciation of the divine goodness” (Bovee).

As I wrote in the beginning, it never ceases to amaze me how incredible, and how beautiful, this country and her people are.

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All Men Are Created Equal

A Rebuke to Tyranny and Oppression

When considered in light of the most common charge leveled against America’s Founding Fathers, and against our nation itself, that they were hypocrites who did not believe in their stated principles, and therefore the country they built rests on a lie, two of the leading theological doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, properly understood and taught, would have significant impact on our culture. These teachings would refute the machinations of politics and selfish human interests, as well as undo the destructive theories that continue to divide Americans and tear at the fabric of our country.

First, is the powerful teaching of premortal life. Simply stated, man was in the beginning with God.

More specifically, in the premortal realm, order, agency, and eternal truths prevailed. Setting themselves apart through faithfulness, diligence, and devotion, leaders, including those who would discover, colonize, and establish the American nation, emerged. Born when and where they would be needed the most, these faithful individuals would be called upon to assist God in the development and progress of His work on earth.

Demonstrating the pattern of heaven, these noble and great souls would come forth as ancient philosophers, pagan or Israelite, as well as the great characters of modern times. In renewal, invention, translation, reform, discovery, science, enlightenment, music, colonization, the struggle for freedom, emancipation, union, statesmanship, diplomacy, religious ideals and philosophy, educational pursuits, and innovations, they would find in Christ the keys to human advancement and the source of the marvelous truths they would advocate.

Contrary to the greatest acts of mighty men, which have been carried out to depopulate nations and to overthrow kingdoms at the expense of the lives of the innocent, the blood of the oppressed, the moans of the widow, and the tears of the orphan, these noble and great ones would be inspired in doing what they do for the amelioration, liberty, and advancement of the human race. Unfolding under the umbrella of divine design, their leadership and accomplishments would be progressively refined to correspond with human understanding of God’s intentions.

Second, the inspiring assertion that our founding documents, and our nation itself, were created by the hands of wise men who were prepared in the premortal realm for that very task and raised up by God in mortality for that very purpose. Moreover, upon the foundation of the existential nature of freedom, over the course of centuries, God would employ a wide variety of methods and individuals to prepare the way and assist His chosen servants in the creation of this nation.

In 1620, upon boarding the Mayflower, the Pilgrims were worried about how self-government might be established upon their arrival in America. Somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, in one of the most significant acts in history, they drew up the Mayflower Compact.

Drawing heavily on the Long Letter, which had been presented by their spiritual leader, John Robinson, in Holland, the Mayflower Compact spelled out ideas for the group’s legal and social organization in the New World. For the role it played in inspiring this document, John Adams would credit Robinson’s Long Letter as foundational to the United States Constitution.

The aim of the Pilgrim enterprise, undertaken to escape religious persecution in the Old World and to seek the opportunity for self-government in the new one, was underscored by their belief that the Renaissance and Reformation were not ends but means to greater light. And even though God had not revealed His whole will to them, they knew they wanted to “be as a city upon a hill, [for] the eyes of all people are upon us” (John Winthrop).

In 1687, our notion of the structure of the natural world expanded dramatically with Isaac Newton’s discovery of gravity. The concept of a higher law, divinely ordained, was strengthened.

If Newton had been able to discern the particular laws that God had established to govern the movements of the planets in the heavens, how much more certain it was that He had ordained such laws for the direction of human societies. Accordingly, acting on John Locke’s assertion that the natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior power on earth, and that ordinary individuals could form new communities and governments simply by agreeing to do so, confident of the fact that their rights were guaranteed by God Himself, the Founding Fathers would source human rights to the “Laws of Nature and Nature’s God.

Having gained a foothold in the New World, the parade of great and noble souls in pursuit of God’s will, continued to unfold. With a collective yearning for divine and practical guidance in an era of constitutional thinking, colonial America was richly blessed by the influence of George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, Cotton Mather, John Wesley, and James Otis.

In 1776, building upon the momentum of the Great Awakening, and further magnified by clarity of intellect, profundity of knowledge, and revolutionary genius, a powerful combination of noble and great souls would come together in Philadelphia. Bound together in their love of freedom, this most remarkable generation of public men in history would deliver a compendium of self-evident truths, truths they regarded as “sacred and undeniable.”

Envisioning an empire of liberty traveling westward, they were looking forward to the destined moment when America would give the “law” to the rest of the world in fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah: “Out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” Pledging their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor, they would declare independence, affirm that “all men are created equal,” state that rights come from God, and enshrine in the American consciousness the supernal principle of consent of the governed.

Also in 1776, Adam Smith would publish The Wealth of Nations, which, through the invention of a market economy, would unleash a movement that would more profoundly revolutionize the world between 1800 and the present day than any other singe force. Defining freedom of thought as the most critical goal of the America Revolution, Thomas Jefferson would author the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, thus laying the groundwork for the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. And Edward Gibbon, seeking to answer the questions, “what happened, and could it happen again” would publish The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire.

Eleven years later, the Founding Fathers, led by George Washington, whose “very presence in Philadelphia certified the connection between the two founding moments: the first to win independence and the second to secure it” (Ellis), would give birth to the Constitution of the United States of America, “the most wonderful work ever struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man” (Gladstone). Basing their work on “just and holy principles,” the Framers would establish the foundation and legitimacy of our nation.

Meanwhile, on July 13, 1787, in New York, the Confederation Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance which protected civil liberties and outlawed slavery in the new territories. Simultaneously in Great Britain, William Wilberforce, in combination with other noble and great souls, began a determined effort to abolish the slave trade and then to abolish slavery itself in all English possessions.

As indicated in the small sampling of noble and great ones aforementioned, foreordination is the premortal selection of individuals to come forth in mortality at specified times, under certain conditions, and to fulfill predesignated responsibilities. In the totality of these few examples, through what they accomplished as individuals and in groups, as well as in the movements they led and supported, the discovery, colonization, and establishment of America was to be a significant part of “a marvelous work and a wonder,” as foretold by the Old Testament prophet Isaiah.

While “many Americans labor under the illusion that slavery was somehow a uniquely American evil, it was the Western world’s repudiation of slavery, only just beginning to build at the time of the American Revolution, which marked a dramatic sea change in moral sensibilities. The American Founders were living on the cusp of this change, in a manner that straddled two worlds” (1776 Report).

The Framers of America’s founding documents knew that slavery was incompatible with the idea that “all men are created equal.” Yet, in the formative years of the United States, there was insurmountable social, cultural, and political opposition in the fight to end human bondage in America.

Remarkably, on December 16, 1833, with the issue of slavery unresolved, the Prophet Joseph Smith quoted the Lord. Referring to one of the “just and holy principles” upon which this nation was founded, he wrote, “It is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood” (DC 101.79-80).

In the fight against tyrannical practices, our history is one of common struggle and great achievement. Our ancestors won independence, created a government, and tamed a wilderness. In addition, over 600,000 lives were lost in the successful effort to end human bondage.

Interpreting the Declaration of Independence, Abraham Lincoln noted, “They meant to set up a standard maxim for free society, which should be familiar to all, and revered by all . . . and even though never perfectly attained, constantly approximated, and thereby constantly spreading and deepening its influence and augmenting the happiness and value of life to all people of all colors everywhere.”

Having based our political legitimacy on the eternal principles of liberty, justice, and consent of the governed, Thomas Jefferson was singled out by Lincoln, who wrote, “All honor to Jefferson–the man who, in the concrete pressure of a struggle for national independence by a single people, had the coolness, forecast, and capacity to introduce in a merely revolutionary document, an abstract truth, applicable to all men and all times . . . a stumbling-block to the very harbingers of re-appearing tyranny and oppression.”

In their appeal to both reason and revelation, our founding documents speak to “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God,” to the principle of freedom, and to the will of “We the People.” Working together, they are “an outgrowth, in practical terms, of man’s desire to protect the principle of free agency by defining the role and limits of civil authority” (G. Homer Durham).

Having established America as a city on a hill, those who came before brought forth eternal truths and a desire to share those truths with the rest of mankind. Under the protection of the Constitution of the United States, the spread of Christ’s gospel can go forward as the greatest motivational power in the world to be and to do good. Revealed as a trail of clues, our founding documents have given us the opportunity to establish and maintain a Republic, if we can keep it, and to offer universal peace and prosperity to all mankind, if they will receive it.

For additional information on America’s Grand Design, please see: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

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Standing with the Constitution

THE RELATIONSHIP OF FREEDOM AND TRUE KNOWLEDGE

Freedom is not a gift bestowed upon us by other men, but a right that belongs to us by the laws of God and nature.  –Benjamin Franklin

The deliberations of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 were held in strict secrecy.  Consequently, anxious citizens gathered outside Independence Hall when the proceedings ended in order to learn what had been produced behind closed doors.  The answer was provided immediately.  A Mrs. Powel of Philadelphia asked Benjamin Franklin, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”  With no hesitation whatsoever, Franklin responded, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

What do you think Benjamin Franklin meant by those words?

The American government was created and established on the foundation of natural law.
The American government was established on the foundation of natural law.

Centrally involved in the process that resulted in The Declaration of Independence and the creation of The Constitution of the United States, Franklin understood natural law which is the belief which holds that rights exist in nature and are not granted to individuals by anyone or any government.

Our nation was established on the foundation of natural law.  Expressed in the Declaration of Independence, “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:  that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

We live in a world where freedom is not guaranteed.  Liberty is fragile and can be lost.  A constitutional republic, like ours, can quite naturally become wicked and corrupted and evolve into tyranny and dictatorship.

By applying the conditional, “if you can keep it,” Franklin was saying that only individuals can secure and maintain their liberty. If we the people do not uphold natural law and remain “ever vigilant” in watching our government, the rule of law, society, and government itself will break down in the face of abusive practices.

The Constitution is an outgrowth, in practical terms, of man’s desire to protect the principle of freedom; our personal ability to choose.  Constitutional, or higher, law undertakes to protect that principle by defining the role and limits of civil authority.

As to what kind of ideas the Founders subscribed to, Franklin noted, “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become more corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” Putting forth another idea on which our Republic was founded, James Madison wrote, “We have staked the whole future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, and to sustain ourselves, according to the Ten Commandments of God.” The Ten Commandments are the basis and fundamental principles of all law, just, and legal administration that should govern the human family. 

Far from being an establishment of religion, this very practical approach to self-government places political power in the hands of the people through a system built on trust.  Madison knew that reverence for God, regard for others, and respect for property inspires adherence to a high moral law that transcends the constraints of civil and criminal codes.

As a body, the Founding Fathers subscribed to the belief that “human passions unbridled by morality and religion” would lead people away from the voluntary fulfillment of responsibilities based upon morality to costly legal enforcement of rights compelled by legislation, litigation, and oppression because they understood that personal freedom yields to the power of government. They comprehended in the abstract what sports and music teach us about rules, out of bounds, and out of tune.

In 1987, an exhaustive study was conducted to determine the sources of the ideas that influenced the Founding Fathers.  In a remarkable conclusion, it was determined that of the thousands of citations quoted to support their ideas, 34 percent came from one source–the Bible.  Most of these were from the book of Deuteronomy, which is the Book of God’s law.

With the importance of the Bible’s influence on the Framers in mind, recommitting to the Ten Commandments is a good starting point in our quest to Stand with the Founding Fathers.

  1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
  2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.
  3. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
  4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
  5. Honor thy father and thy mother.
  6. Thou shalt not kill.
  7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.
  8. Thou shalt not steal.
  9. Thou shalt not bear false witness.
  10. Thou shalt not covet. 

The Founders were highly qualified and educated men–the best and the brightest of their time.  They were deeply read in the facts of history; they were learned in the forms and practices and systems of the governments of the world, past and present; they were, in matters political, equally at home in Rome, in Athens, in Paris, and in London; they had a long, varied, and intense experience in the work of governing their various Colonies.

With no known exception among them, they were united in their belief, as expressed by James Madison, “A well instructed people alone can be permanently a free people.”

As such, they should be our inspiration.

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Stand with the Founding Fathers

A Worldwide Collision of Ideas

Let the Constitution be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges, let it be written in primers, in spelling books and in almanacs, let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice.  And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation.  –Abraham Lincoln

In the world we live in there is no question that government is preeminent:

  • from student loans to immigration,
  • from health insurance to how much money is left over from our labors,
  • from the establishment of justice to the assurance of domestic tranquility,
  • from the fear of our enemies to providing for the common defense,
  • and from the promotion of our general welfare to the securing of the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.

Government is very much at the center of our lives.

With so much money, power, and influence at stake it is essential that we educate ourselves and others regarding the proper role of government.  We must do so in order to remain free.

I cite two examples:

In recent years, we have allowed the government to ignore one of the most fundamental stipulations of the Constitution–namely, the separation of powers–by allowing Congress to fund numerous federal agencies that encroach significantly on our constitutional rights.  These agencies grow continually to regulate and control the lives of millions.

Most of these federal agencies are unconstitutional because they concentrate the functions of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches under one head. They have power to make rulings, enforce rulings, and adjudicate penalties when rulings are violated. They are also unconstitutional because we the people have no power to recall administrative agency personnel through our vote. These agencies form a shadow government that operates contrary to the principle of consent of the governed.

The abandonment of fundamental governing principles places our nation in great jeopardy. Pondering what kind of a government they wanted to establish, the Founders learned that civilizations of old had “been destroyed by convulsions and upheavals, by vice and decadence.” By the love of money and power.

With these lessons in mind, and with great foresight, the Founders championed religious freedom and education as a means to “cultivate the piety and virtue necessary for the success of self-government.”  To safeguard their efforts and secure the republic, they nurtured an environment in keeping with George Washington’s warning, that “of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.”

Through a series of essays entitled STAND WITH THE FOUNDING FATHERS, I would like to give expression to certain principles that are so basic to human nature as to be applicable to different times and cultures as well as to our own.  In other words, to principles that are universal, and even eternal.  I do so with the hope that our freedoms, both individual and collective, will be better understood and more anxiously safeguarded.

We are witnessing a collision of ideas that is worldwide.  I urge all Americans to Stand with the Founding Fathers; against those who are seeking to destroy their work.

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The Declaration of Independence, The U. S. Constitution, and The Bill of Rights

Established on Just and Holy Principles

What I Believe

America’s founding documents: The Declaration of Independence, The United States Constitution, and The Bill of Rights are the culmination of centuries of progress. Paving the way for freedom, they express the ideals that define “We the People of the United States” and inspire free people around the world. They represent the consolidation of eternal truths for the universal blessing of the human family, the common connection through which all the inhabitants of Earth will be blessed.

Envisioning an empire of liberty traveling westward, the Founding Fathers looked forward with eager expectation to the destined moment when America would give the “law” to the rest of the world in fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah: “Out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

Reflecting this sentiment, Thomas Jefferson wrote in his initial rough draft: “We hold these truths to be sacred and undeniable.” Preferring a phrase which characterized the truths as grounded in rationality and reason–truths that could be understood by basic, original evidence and man’s innate moral common sense–not in the dictates or dogma of any particular religion, Benjamin Franklin changed the wording to “We hold these truths to be self-evident.” In both cases, these statesmen were declaring that in its design and intent what they were proposing was to be established “according to just and holy principles” (Doctrine and Covenants 101:77).

It was this appeal of America’s values, through a willingness to engage in a war of ideas, that won us independence. Likewise, it has been the continued appeal of America’s values that has assured victory over totalitarianism and communism in modern times. Both generations realized that ideas had power which would prove stronger than weapons.

Now being challenged by those who are willing to undermine our founding principles through the advancement of progressive policies and increasing governmental power, we, as citizens who believe we are entitled to liberty and that our rights should be respected by a government whose legitimacy comes from our consent, are seeing unfold before our eyes what lawyer and diplomat James Russell Lowell may have had in mind when he said, “Our American republic will endure only as long as the ideas of the men who founded it continue dominant.”

In like manner, we are witnessing the deteriorating conditions in our culture and social environment which call attention to the words of John Adams, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” Little by little, day by day, in a failure that would dismay the Founders, who knew the power of those truths they proclaimed nearly 250 years ago, we are losing the war in defense of self-evident truths–the war of ideas, ideals, and eternal verities–in America and around the world. A caution to each of us, we must awaken to the truth that the ideals which inspired the Founding Fathers remain inspiring today.

As to what we can do, we must understand that people and principles are superior to the governments they form. Thomas Jefferson emphasized principles in the Declaration of Independence by advancing the claim that all persons are entitled to equal rights and privileges before the law, that certain rights come from the Creator, and in themselves are divine and eternal in nature, and that these sacred rights pertain in part to the enjoyment of “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Also focusing on correct principles, the Prophet Joseph Smith taught that both governmental and personal leadership are successful when rooted in principle rather than expediency.

In the Great Declaration of Belief regarding governments and laws in general, members of the Restored Church in 1835 sustained the principle of a “higher law,” designed to protect the free agency of man. “We do not believe that human law has a right to interfere in prescribing rules of worship to bind the consciences of men, nor dictate forms for public or private devotion; that the civil magistrate should restrain crime, but never control conscience; should punish guilt, but never suppress the freedom of the soul” (DC 134:4). The doctrine of higher law is an ancient idea. It runs to the most basic considerations in religion. It is found in cultures throughout history.

For example, Aristotle distinguished between written laws, which are man-made, and the “law,” which he felt was in accordance with nature and therefore immutable. In Roman law, distinctions were made between the summa lex, or the highest law, and the lex scripta, or man-made law. Catholic philosophers from Augustine to Aquinas discussed the idea of an overruling law of nature, and other fundamental laws which were not capable of being changed by any civil authority. Anglo-Saxon political and legal tradition, including the philosophical method of John Locke and the scientific method of Isaac Newton, were also part of the “establishment” process which resulted in the formation of America’s founding documents and their assertion that people are created equal and have certain inalienable rights.

The Framers not only understood the significance of the legacy which history and tradition had bequeathed them but coupled that knowledge to their own colonial experience so when it came to political questions, they were at home not only in Virginia, Maryland, or New York, but also equally at home in Rome, in Athens, in Paris, and in London. “The Constitution was born, not only of the wisdom and experience of the generation that wrought it, but also out of the wisdom of the long generations that had gone before, and which had been transmitted to them through tradition and the pages of history” (J. Reuben Clark).

In 1842, Joseph Smith declared, “The Constitution of the United States is a glorious standard; it is founded in the wisdom of God.” Providing deep insight into the religious basis of our founding documents, members of the Church sustain several underlying principles which represent a practical guarantee in the political arena that individual freedom will not perish.

First, the basic elements of constitutional government, as embodied in our founding documents, “should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh” (DC 101:77). Each individual, whatever their race, color, or creed, is equally entitled to the protection of law in the exercise of personal rights.

Second, America’s government should be maintained “according to just and holy principles” (DC 101:77). The Framers, by divine inspiration, embedded within our founding documents certain eternal principles–self-evident truths. “Just and holy” in nature, these principles prove themselves without the need of further validation. They are the eternal, irrevocable, and inalienable “endowment” of all mankind.

Third, the purpose for which these “just and holy principles” exist is to assure that “every man may act in doctrine and principles pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment” (DC 101:78.) This pronouncement suggests that principled limitations upon the government are ordained to provide the maximum possible range of freedom of choice as people engage in the pursuit of happiness and the creation of a more perfect union.

Fourth, “It is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose,” (DC 101:79-80). The most common charge leveled against the Founders, and hence against our country itself, is that they were hypocrites who did not believe in their stated principles, and therefore the country they built rests on a lie. This charge is false!

Even so, “Many Americans labor under the illusion that slavery was somehow a uniquely American evil” (1776 Report). In truth, “It was the Western world’s repudiation of slavery, only just beginning to build at the time of the American Revolution, which marked a dramatic sea change in moral sensibilities. The American Founders were living on the cusp of this change, in a manner that straddled two worlds” (Ibid). Our Founding Fathers knew that slavery was incompatible with the idea that “all men are created equal.” Yet, in the formative years of the United States, there was insurmountable social, cultural, and political opposition in the fight to end human bondage in America.

Following the loss of over 600,000 lives, the clashes in the halls of Congress and on the battlefields of America were finally resolved by amendments that abolished slavery. However, amplified by the machinations of politics and selfish human interests, the damage done by the denial of core American principles proved widespread and long-lasting. Continuing to this day, they form the basis of some of the destructive theories that continue to divide us and tear at the fabric of our country.

In the fight against tyrannical practices, we need to remember that our history is one of common struggle and great achievement. Our ancestors won independence, created a government, and tamed a wilderness. Interpreting the Declaration of Independence, Abraham Lincoln noted, “They meant to set up a standard maxim for free society, which should be familiar to all, and revered by all . . . and even though never perfectly attained, constantly approximated, and thereby constantly spreading and deepening its influence and augmenting the happiness and value of life to all people of all colors everywhere.”

Having based our political legitimacy on the eternal principles of liberty, justice, and consent of the governed, Jefferson was singled out by Lincoln, who wrote, “All honor to Jefferson–the man who, in the concrete pressure of a struggle for national independence by a single people, had the coolness, forecast, and capacity to introduce in a merely revolutionary document, an abstract truth, applicable to all men and all times, . . . a stumbling-block to the very harbingers of re-appearing tyranny and oppression.”

Hence, in their appeal to both reason and revelation, our founding documents speak to “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God,” to the principle of freedom, and to the will of “We the People.” Working together, they are “an outgrowth, in practical terms, of man’s desire to protect the principle of free agency by defining the role and limits of civil authority” (G. Homer Durham). In other words, “just and holy principles,” championed by the hands of wise men who were raised up for that very purpose, provide the foundation and legitimacy of our nation.

In a recent address on the Constitution, Dallin H. Oaks told of an experience in the 1960s when he began teaching law at the University of Chicago. An older professor, who had taught at the University of Utah’s College of Law early in his career related that he met many students who were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “They all seemed to believe that the Constitution was divinely inspired,” he said, “but none of them could ever tell me what this meant or how it affected their interpretation of the Constitution.”

President Oaks went on to say that he believes the Constitution is divinely inspired because it contains principles and rights that bless not only this nation but also the world. To him, the attribution of sovereign power to the people, the Bill of Rights, the separation of powers, and the balancing of powers between the federal government and the states is the foundation for a well-ordered government of laws, and not of men.

Respecting the divine nature of human relations, Friedrich A. Hayek declared, “If old truths are to retain their hold on men’s minds, they must be restated in the language and concepts of successive generations.” In other words, every generation needs someone to interpret the wisdom of the past for the present, for every generation must rediscover true history and the gospel anew.

This is especially true in our day “because error is preached all the time.” As a result, “Truth has to be repeated constantly” (Goethe). Our collective task is both exhilarating and foreboding: “We must stop the mindless destruction of historical America” (David McCullough).

Think about it! As Americans, the story we have to tell is exciting beyond measure! As one of 56 delegates who gathered in Carpenters’ Hall in 1774, John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, that “he thought he had come to one of the greatest conclaves of the greatest minds of all time. He was amazed by the range and variety of talents on display” (McCullough). Two years later, this group of patriots would pledge their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor to the cause of freedom.

Years later, having again finished their work in Independence Hall, James Madison wrote of his colleagues: “Whatever may be the judgment pronounced on the competency of the architects of the Constitution, or whatever may be the destiny of the edifice prepared by them, I feel it a duty to express my profound and solemn conviction, derived from my intimate opportunity of observing and appreciating the views of the Convention, collectively and individually, that there never was an assembly of men, charged with a great and arduous trust, who were more pure in their motives, or more exclusively or anxiously devoted to the object committed to them, than were the members of the Federal Convention of 1787.”

As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in our desire to champion civic awareness and the common good, it is our privilege and responsibility to affirm that, “History is not an accident. Events are foreknown to God. Long before America was even discovered, the Lord was moving and shaping events that would lead to the coming forth of the remarkable form of government established by the Constitution” (Benson). It was not by chance that the Puritans and others who followed later left their native land and sailed to New England where they were inspired to establish the God-given system of government under which we live. Laying the foundation for the 1820 vision of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the unfolding Restoration, this series of historical events is described by the biblical prophet Isaiah as “a marvelous work and a wonder.”

We need not pretend to a divine commission and a sacred destiny. America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s grand design. Established for the rights and protection of all flesh, America’s founding documents represent the practical guarantee in the political arena that adherence to natural law and Christian teachings will protect freedom, that liberty of conscience and individual moral agency will not perish from the Earth.

This is why I believe.

Featured

Reason and Revelation

“Almighty God hath created the mind free.” Thus, in 1776, Thomas Jefferson begins the “Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom.” The freedom of the human mind means that all individuals can choose between good and evil.

The theological conviction of early Americans was that all human beings are fallen and fallible, subject to roiling passions and calming reason. As flawed but rational beings, humans should strive to let reason–a gift from God–rule their lives, for with that rule comes the possibility of self-government.

The Founding Fathers concluded that with careful cultivation of the soul, with attention to “the laws of nature and of nature’s God,” and with the uplifting assistance of family, church, and local community, America’s citizens could learn to control their passions and act worthy to receive the blessings of liberty.

Advancing one of the most revolutionary tenets in the history of ideas, America’s right to religious liberty was established as a matter of principle.

We know of human nature, natural law, and the mind’s freedom not because we are members of any particular church or denomination, but because we are able to follow reason’s path in the discovery of such truths. In other words, reason demands religious liberty.

In one of the most famous metaphors in American political and constitutional thought, Jefferson wrote of “a wall of separation between church and state.” In 1947, in Everson v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court transformed his words into constitutional law.

For many, who have listened mainly to the Supreme Court for lessons about religious liberty, the Court’s misreading of Jefferson’s metaphor has contributed to a popular misunderstanding of politics, law, morality, and religion.

The religious liberty established by the Founders does not mean the erection of a wall separating religion and politics. Rather, it was the establishment of a principle that would let religion flourish.

Please see Brent’s latest book: americasgranddesign.com

Introduction

As America approaches its 250th birthday, the gospel motivates us to recognize our unity in purpose, promoting truth, moral courage, and strengthening societal fabric globally.

As our nation approaches America’s 250th birthday, I want to show that Jesus Christ’s pronouncement ignited a chain of providential preparation—creating Western civilization, enabling America’s founding, and making possible the Restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Across centuries that only God could orchestrate, this unfolding work arrested spiritual decline, expanded civil and religious liberties, and opened the path to exaltation (eternal life) for innumerable souls. Isaiah’s words fit it perfectly: “a marvelous work and a wonder.”

The gospel perspective compels us to see one another as we truly are—literal brothers and sisters, sharing the same heavenly origin and separated, in the eternal view, by only a brief span of instruction and ordinances. Our charge as members of the Restored Church is to learn truth and carry it to others. Yet that very perspective also demands humility: God continues to raise up and employ people outside his Church to accomplish his purposes.

All around us, organizations, churches, and individuals lift societies by teaching moral courage, practicing real compassion, and providing steadying influences for those reaching for a better life. The freedom, imagination, and creativity, encouraged—and protected—by our constitutional system do more than benefit a nation; they give the Lord’s work room to advance across the globe.

Even when the beauties and glories of the Restored Gospel are not fully recognized, honoring the good done by others does lessen our core beliefs or dilute our convictions—it strengthens our integrity. The doctrines and teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are unparalleled: the most profound system of philosophy and spiritual truth the world has ever known. Foretold by Isaiah, Daniel, and a host of other Hebrew prophets, they will be established prominently and spread freely from one to another across the earth—incapable of confinement or exclusive appropriation—for the moral and mutual instruction of mankind. As this work gathers force, millions of God’s children will join with it, fulfilling his purposes: to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

The Tale of Two Paul’s

Raising the Bar

Across America, across the world, across generations, across the span of a lifetime, in pursuits that are both universal and timeless, people seek to find meaning and purpose in their lives. With keen insight, the poet Harry Kemp wrote:

But, chief of all thy wondrous works, Supreme of all thy plan,

Thou hast put an upward reach, Into the heart of man.

Homeward Bound, a musical composition by Marta Keen, carries symbolic lyrics often seen as a metaphor for life’s journey and returning to God. Lines like “Bind me not to the pasture; chain me not to the plow” express a wish to gain independence and transcend earthly limits, while “When adventure’s lost its meaning, I’ll be homeward bound in time” implies seeking renewal, a change in direction, after worldly pursuits. “And the path I’ll be retracing, when I’m homeward bound again” points to regaining a state of emotional stability and spiritual purity.

The song’s broader, universal themes—seeking purpose and returning home—invite varied religious and secular interpretations. Ultimately, its message resonates with many, whether about personal growth or coming back to one’s values.

Music

Greek myths and legends offer insights into the role of music. In ancient Greece, music was an element of basic education and played a part in religious and civic activities. Plato studied music and its influence on individuals, stating that rhythm and harmony affect the mind and can shape character.

Ancient Greeks, despite lacking biochemical knowledge, theorized that music entered through the ears, was processed by the brain, and transmitted via the blood to influence both organs and the soul. Modern research indicates that certain sounds can trigger reactions in the brain that affect the body.

Plato discussed the importance of music in education, defining rhythm as order in movement and pitch as order in articulation; together, these formed choric art. He recommended two forms of education: gymnastics for physical development and music for mental development—believing that both are necessary for balanced growth. According to Plato, music could elicit emotional responses and encourage virtuous behavior.

Plato illustrated his viewpoint using the example of a mother who lulls her child at night, not with silence but with motion and sound, similar to dancing and singing. These external stimuli help ease agitation or fear.

Plato maintained that music could represent emotions such as courage and dignity. Listening to music often aligns one’s feelings with those conveyed by the music. He proposed that beneficial music promotes virtue, while adverse music can lead to negative outcomes.

Exposure to quality music can have long-term effects on personality. Plato suggested that children who experience measured emotional expression through music learn to regulate their feelings. This fosters a sense of well-being and prepares the mind for learning, stimulating curiosity and perception.

Regarding universal enjoyment of music, Plato argued that although everyone can appreciate rhythm and melody, preferences vary. He believed that the value of music could be assessed by the nature of its audience and posited that the best music appeals to those who are virtuous and educated.

In summary, Plato identified three benefits of listening to high-quality music, especially during childhood: it influences emotions and fosters virtues, provides moderated enjoyment that helps the soul appreciate goodness and beauty, and enhances perception, making learning more effective.

A Tale of Two Paul’s

The apostle Paul, formerly Saul, was a Pharisee who persecuted Christians before a vision on the road to Damascus transformed his life. After his baptism, he preached in Arabia and Damascus, travelling widely as a disciple of Christ, ultimately dying as a martyr in Rome.

Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus

In the late 1960s, Paul McCartney faced major personal and professional changes following worldwide fame. Seeking renewal, he moved with his wife Linda to a Scottish farm, embracing rural challenges and self-reliance. The isolation fostered creativity and helped him move beyond the Beatles. Linda’s desire for personal freedom aligned with his journey. Together, they formed Wings.

Paul McCartney’s family farmhouse in Scotland

Touring, with their children in tow, showed Paul the universal nature of people and music’s power to unite different backgrounds. Family responsibilities kept both away from the destructive habits that destroyed the lives of many of their associates and friends, such as Jimmy McCulloch, Hendrix, Joplin, and Keith Moon. Wrote McCartney, “When you think of all the drug taking, of the deaths of many of us, you realize we were lucky, but it was more than that: we avoided the hard drugs, and most of all, it was family . . .  

“Passages of time give us a richness of perspective that I’m particularly aware of now. The fact was that Linda and I now had kids who were growing up. A lot of others didn’t have these kinds of responsibilities. We could no longer go out late. We had to avoid the insanities. Because you had children, you wouldn’t do drugs, and you couldn’t drink as much, either.” Reflecting on how these changes in perspective facilitated his creative process, McCartney values inspiration, nostalgia, and the drive to be different as he continues to create new music.

Conclusion

In the universal message of Homeward Bound, diverse interpretations emerge, both religious and secular. For some, the journey is not necessarily about death, but personal growth, spiritual renewal, and returning to one’s core values or family.

For Saul, lifetime changes began as he fell to the earth when a voice said unto him, “Saul, Saul, why persecutes thou me?” And Saul responded, “Who art thou, Lord?” And the Lord said, “ I am Jesus whom thou persecutes.” And Saul, trembling and astonished said Lord, “What wilt thou have me to do?”

The men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man, led him to Damascus where he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.

With the apostle Paul his change was of a spiritual nature, as he was brought into contact with what would become his “calling.” With Paul McCartney, his lifetime of changes began with the realization that he wanted to chart his own path after the adventures of his life had lost their meaning. In the cases of both men, it was about seeking and finding a different path, a higher purpose.  

Note:  Homeward Bound, Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square, arranged by Mack Wilberg. This song is also themed in a wonderful period-piece movie from the 1912 Olympics in Sweden, entitled Raising the Bar by TC Christensen.   

SUMMARY

Big Idea

Raising the bar is the universal human quest for meaning, purpose, and personal growth across generations, cultures, and lifetimes. Drawing from poetry, music, philosophy, and biography, individuals seek to transcend earthly limitations, find renewal, and return to their core values.

Key Points

People everywhere strive for purpose, as captured in Harry Kemp’s poetry and the symbolic lyrics of Marta Keen’s “Homeward Bound,” which represent the journey of life and the desire to return to spiritual or emotional wholeness.

Greek philosophy, especially Plato, highlighted music’s power to shape character, emotions, and virtue. Ancient and modern perspectives agree that music deeply influences both mind and body, fostering well-being and learning.

The stories of the apostle Paul and Paul McCartney illustrate profound personal change. Paul’s spiritual awakening led him to a new life mission, while McCartney’s shift to family life and rural isolation fostered creativity and personal growth.

Both Paul’s found deeper purpose by moving away from destructive paths and embracing values of family, responsibility, and inspiration—reflecting the broader theme of returning “home” in a metaphorical sense.

The message of “Homeward Bound” and the life changes of both Paul’s can be seen through religious and secular lenses, emphasizing growth, renewal, and the pursuit of a higher calling.

The Golden Rule

Post No. 10    Read Time: 2 minutes.

The Foundational Principle for Human Relations

I am determined to subdue every unworthy passion and treat all men as I wish to be treated by all. –John Adams

Two thousand years ago, Jesus shared a timeless principle: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This Golden Rule echoes through our founding documents and is a universal truth shared by many religions.

Examples include:

Buddhism: “Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.”

Confucianism: “Do not do unto others what you would not want done to yourself.”

Hinduism: “Do naught unto others which would cause you pain if done to you.”

Islam: “No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother what he desires for himself.”

Taoism: “Regard your neighbor’s gain as your gain, and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss.”

The Golden Rule teaches empathy and compassion, urging us to care for all people, even those we do not know personally. It underpins moral virtue and social teachings, fostering faith, hope, and ethical behavior across humanity.

If we all followed the Golden Rule, our world would be kinder and happier. Homes would be more harmonious, relationships warmer, and conflicts resolved with empathy. We would show more generosity, thoughtfulness, and a stronger commitment to peace and goodwill.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The Golden Rule—treating others as you wish to be treated—is a timeless moral principle shared across many cultures and religions. It promotes empathy, compassion, and ethical behavior, and its universal adoption would lead to a kinder, more harmonious world.

Key Points

The Golden Rule is found in Christianity, Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, and Taoism, each expressing the idea of empathy and reciprocity.

This rule underpins moral virtue and social teachings, fostering faith, hope, and ethical conduct.

It teaches us to care for others, including strangers, by putting ourselves in their position.

Widespread practice of the Golden Rule would result in greater kindness, harmonious relationships, and peaceful conflict resolution.

The Word

Post No. 9   Read Time: 2 minutes.

The Word

Order is the foundational element for both individuals and societies, signifying a structured and harmonious organization of character and communal life. Societies that uphold justice and freedom exhibit robust systems of order.

Order is established through both revelation and reason. In philosophical terms, the Greek concept of “logos” encompasses reason, purpose, and plan; in Christian theology, it underscores Christ as the intermediary between God and the universe.

According to John 1:1, wisdom originates from God, with Christ imparting teachings through reason and law while acting as the creative agent who facilitates understanding of the divine. Jesus employed parables as a means of providing moral instruction and guiding humanity towards spiritual reconciliation.

The development of any civilization is intrinsically shaped by its dominant religious beliefs. Economic structures, artistic endeavors, and scientific progress are reflective of the values and frameworks inherent to religious traditions. At the heart of every culture lies an ethical system that defines notions of good and evil, founded on the authority of established religious doctrines.

The Ten Commandments, conveyed to Moses by Jehovah (the pre-existent Christ), addressed persistent human concerns. Although Moses was acquainted with the sophisticated society of Egypt, the commandments he received transcended existing norms and contributed to their enduring relevance. Rather than serving solely as prohibitions, the Ten Commandments function as principles designed to minimize wrongdoing, foster justice, and facilitate peaceful and ethical coexistence.

American legal tradition has roots in the influence of ancient Israel, which recognized the significance of law and established core principles of justice. The moral and legal codes associated with Moses laid the groundwork for subsequent Christian ethical thought.

The framers of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were guided by a biblical interpretation of human nature. They constructed the Constitution as a covenant intended to limit violence and dishonesty, embedding mechanisms to check authority through moral and religious principles.

Stated in modern revelation, “And for this purpose have I established the constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose.”

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The central theme of the passage is the foundational role of “Order” in shaping individuals, societies, and civilizations. Order is both a philosophical and theological concept, rooted in reason, revelation, and religious ethics. This structure underlies justice, freedom, and moral development, serving as a guiding force for societal organization and legal traditions.

Key Points

Order brings structure and harmony to personal character and community life, supporting justice and freedom.

Order is established through both revelation (divine guidance) and reason (philosophical inquiry), with the concept of “logos” bridging these realms.

Dominant religious beliefs shape the development of civilizations, influencing economics, art, science, and ethical systems.

Core ethical principles, derived from religious doctrine, define notions of good and evil within cultures.

The Ten Commandments serve as enduring moral guidelines, designed to reduce wrongdoing and promote justice and peaceful coexistence.

Ancient Israel’s recognition of law and justice influenced the development of Christian ethics and American legal principles.

What Would I Say To My Younger Self?

Post No. 8 Read Time: 5 minutes.

What I Would Say To My Younger Self?

The wisdom of predecessors and past ages is like an elder guiding their younger self. Tocqueville would advise, “Remember that life is neither pain nor pleasure; it is serious business, to be entered upon with courage and in a spirit of self-sacrifice.” Santayana would offer, “There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval.” James M. Barrie would remind us, “Life is a long lesson in humility.”

Regarding the significance of work, Johnson would suggest, “He that embarks in the voyage of life will always wish to advance rather by the impulse of the wind than the strokes of the oar; and many founder in their passage, while they lie waiting for the gale.” Colton would reflect on the fleeting nature of enjoyment: “How small a portion of our life it is that we really enjoy! In youth, we are looking forward to things that are to come; in old age, we are looking backward to things that have passed; in manhood, although we appear occupied with the present, even that is often absorbed in vague determination to be vastly happy on some future day when we have time.”

Albert Barnes would advise his younger self, “Life, if properly viewed in any aspect, is great, but mainly great when viewed in its relation to the world to come.” Bulwer would add, “There are two lives to each of us, the life of our actions, and the life of our minds and hearts. History reveals men’s deeds and their outward characters, but not themselves. There is a secret self that has its own life, unpenetrated and unguessed.”

Goethe might provide a metaphor, “Life is a quarry, out of which we are to mold and chisel and complete a character.” Phillips Brooks would encourage us to aspire to greatness: “Be such a man, and live such a life, that if every man were such as you, and every life a life like yours, this earth would be God’s Paradise.”

To my younger self I would say: God is the source of order and justice. All true law comes from him.

Society is held together by order. The inner order of the soul and the outer order of society are intimately linked together. The path we follow; the pattern by which we live with purpose and meaning would be insufferable without the harmony of an ordered existence. It is not possible for us to live in peace with one another, unless we recognize some principle of order.

Turn to the beliefs of yesteryear for guidance, there is not a better moral system or political pattern than the ones we have inherited. Given to Moses and repeated by Jesus: our charge is to love God and our fellowman. When we do that, everything else will fall into place; it will fit together and make sense.

Recognizing that life encompasses highs and lows, adversities and triumphs, it is fitting to reference the Master. The Bible clearly and certainly defines happiness and the path to attain it. As Augustine noted, “In Cicero and Plato, and other such writers, I meet with many things acutely said, and things that excite a certain warmth of emotions, but in none of them do I find these words, ‘Come unto me, all ye that labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’”

I conclude with this thought from President Dallin H. Oaks, a prophet of God, and the newly installed President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: “Those who govern their thoughts and actions solely by the principles of liberalism or conservatism or intellectualism cannot be expected to agree with all of the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. As for me, I find some wisdom in liberalism. Some wisdom in conservatism. And much truth in intellectualism–But I find no salvation in any of them.”

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The enduring wisdom of historical thinkers and spiritual leaders emphasizes the importance of order, purpose, and moral guidance in life. True happiness and meaning come from adhering to timeless principles—specifically those rooted in faith, love, and self-sacrifice. The inner order of the soul is intrinsically linked to societal harmony. While various intellectual traditions offer insights, it is only through the spiritual teachings found in Christianity that salvation and ultimate fulfillment can be found.

Key Points

Wisdom from the past acts as a guide, offering perspective and advice for living a purposeful life.

Life is serious and requires courage, humility, and enjoyment of the present, as noted by various philosophers and writers.

The significance of work and the fleeting nature of enjoyment highlight the importance of focusing on meaningful pursuits rather than waiting for ideal circumstances.

Life should be viewed in relation to the world to come, emphasizing spiritual perspective and the existence of a “secret self” beyond outward actions.

Character is shaped through ongoing effort and self-reflection, as described by Goethe’s quarry metaphor.

Societal order is grounded in Divine and natural law; the harmony of the soul and society are interconnected and essential for peaceful coexistence.

The best guidance for living comes from inherited moral and religious traditions, particularly the commandments to love God and others.

The Bible provides clear direction for true happiness, surpassing the wisdom found in secular philosophy.

Intellectual, liberal, and conservative philosophies offer partial truths, but only spiritual teachings offer salvation.

Free Expression and Civility are Only the Beginning

How long will the American Republic endure? “As long as the ideas of the men who founded it continue dominant.” –James Russell Lowell

James Russell Lowell, a 19th-century American poet and diplomat, was an influential abolitionist and “Fireside Poet.” In 1845, he noted that the nation’s survival depended on upholding the Founders’ moral and philosophical principles.

Lowell’s phrase emphasizes the importance of civic virtue and unity, referenced by Benjamin Franklin’s “A republic, if you can keep it,” and John Adams’s “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.”  Alexis de Tocqueville wrote, “If America is ever destroyed, it will be destroyed from within.” Abraham Lincoln warned that any danger to the nation would arise from within, not from external sources. He stated that if destruction occurs, it will be self-inflicted: “As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time or die by suicide.”

Without shared standards, persuasion gives way to power and conflict as noted by William J. Bennett: “We must make America safe for argument again . . . Our form of government requires us to be able to argue our way to truth rather than shoot our way to silence.”

When fundamental moral principles are disregarded, society faces serious risks. A nation rooted in liberty cannot ignore Divine and natural law without consequences. Diversity of opinion and freedom of speech alone will not restore lost values or prevent moral decline. As Ronald Reagan noted, “Freedom is a fragile thing and it is never more than one generation away from extinction.” If you think about it, the evil issues permeating our culture right now are all ultimately an attack on the family to destroy the culture from within.

Criticism of America includes claims of corruption, racism, cruelty, and historical abuses. Opponents of American philosophy assert that its founding principles restrict equality of outcome which leads them to argue for political correctness over traditional values.

A significant fact facing society today was noted in 2018 by Christian researcher George Barna, who stated that Generation Z (born between 1999-2015) is the first truly “post-Christian” generation. In fact, statistics show Generation Z is twice as likely to be atheist as any previous generation. While delivering a speech in Australia, in August 2014, atheist Lawrence Krauss stated: “Change is always one generation away . . . So if we can plant the seeds of doubt in our children, religion will go away in a generation, or at least largely go away—and that’s what I think we have an obligation to do.”

Another current challenge for young people and society is understanding America’s political climate post-Civil War. While some believe slavery was an exclusively American issue, it was actually Western opposition to slavery—growing since the American Revolution—that changed moral perspectives. The Founders recognized slavery conflicted with the principle that “all men are created equal.”

During the Industrial Revolution, many American elites advocated Progressivism, arguing that the governing principles formulated in the 18th century were outdated for modern society. They claimed truths change over time and dismissed the Declaration of Independence’s core rights—the right to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, and government by the will of the people.

Progressives created a new government system based on their false view of rights. Under the “living” Constitution theory, government evolves to secure changing rights instead of protecting traditional natural rights.

Codified within our founding documents, America’s Framers believed in a Creator who established clear moral laws, including loving God, others, and following the Golden Rule. From their study of history, they recognized that republics had been destroyed by convulsions and upheavals, by vice and decadence. From their study of human nature, they became acutely aware of man’s instability, self-interestedness, and selfishness, designing America’s political institutions to take these into account. As John Adams put it, “Human passions unbridled by morality and religion would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net.”

A significant challenge for national unity today, as described by Robert George, is “moral subjectivism,” which refers to the view that truth is determined primarily by individual feelings rather than faith or reason. According to George, this perspective can lead to strong moral positions based on personal belief rather than shared principles, which results in actions such as limiting others’ freedom of speech or participating in efforts to discredit people whose ideas are considered objectionable. This approach causes societal divisions, including disputes expressed through violence, academic sophistry, and the misuse of power.

Simply promoting free speech and civility will not succeed in saving our republic. As declared by James Russell Lowell, this will only occur as we re-anchor ourselves to the eternal truths embodied in our founding documents. It is my hope that as we celebrate 250 years of America’s existence that we can awaken something deep within, for it is a beautiful thing to have a country to love.  

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The endurance of the American Republic depends on upholding the founding moral and philosophical principles. Mere freedom of expression and civility are not enough; the nation’s survival requires a renewed commitment to the core values enshrined by the Founders, such as civic virtue, unity, moral standards, and respect for Divine and natural law.

Key Points

The survival of the Republic is tied to adherence to the original moral and philosophical standards set by America’s Founders, as emphasized by James Russell Lowell and echoed by Franklin, Adams, and Lincoln.

Historical figures like Tocqueville and Lincoln warned that internal moral decay, not external threats, poses the greatest danger to America.

Without shared moral standards, society risks replacing reasoned debate with conflict and power struggles, as noted by William J. Bennett.

While free expression is vital, it is insufficient to restore lost values or prevent decline without a foundation in shared morals and Divine and natural law.

America faces new challenges as younger generations, particularly Generation Z, move away from traditional religious and moral frameworks, increasing the risk of societal fragmentation.

Misunderstandings about issues like slavery and the evolution of Progressivism show the ongoing tension between founding ideals and modern re-interpretations of rights and government roles.

The rise of moral subjectivism—where personal feelings override shared truths—threatens unity and fosters division and intolerance.

To ensure the Republic’s future, Americans must reconnect with the enduring truths embedded in the founding documents and cultivate a renewed sense of national love and responsibility.

THE PLAN OF LIBERTY

Post No. 7 Read Time: 11 minutes.

The Plan of Liberty

God’s aim is to develop human personality. In particular it is to create within men and women the priceless quality of intelligence, skill, and kindness. To succeed in this undertaking, he designed a world, with laws, suffering, risk, and free-will, where life is a training school for character. –James Gordon Gilkey

I have no way of knowing if this statement is still accurate, but years ago, it was claimed that as a religious institution only the LDS Church believed we existed in spirit form before birth. The writer also noted that most people believed that Jesus lived pre-birth, but not themselves.

With those thoughts in mind, and in the spirit of the above-quoted words of James Gordon Gilkey, there are four intellectual, spiritual, and universal truths that will advance our understanding of the structure and purposes of life on earth. First, man was in the beginning with God. Second, rather than a Spirit, our Heavenly Father is an exalted man in whose image and likeness we are created. Third, following his rebellion against God, Satan was thrust down from heaven along with those that followed him where he would continue his rebellion in the ongoing conflict between good and evil. Fourth, comprehending these eternal truths will lead to an understanding of God’s plan for his children where everything fits together and makes sense. In other words, the fact that God created a world for us where we could strive to fulfill our potential, prove ourselves, and gain experience, is not only theological it is logical.

Early Christians valued the doctrines of preexistence and an embodied God as crucial for understanding life in mortality. However, in the early centuries following the death of Christ and the apostles, these teachings were corrupted, ignored, and allowed to wither away. Alternatively driven by speculative thinking, the philosophies of men, so-called Christian scholars, and influenced by councils and creeds, civil and religious authorities exerted efforts to suppress individual freedom and control the populace through heresies and orthodoxy while excluding revealed truths.  

Fortunately, divine intention did not allow this spiritual disruption to continue. As the foundations of Western Civilization and the American nation were established, an extensive process of deconstruction and reconstruction occurred over centuries. This created the environment for Joseph Smith’s experience in the Sacred Grove in 1820. At 14-years-old, the young prophet bravely challenged conventional definitions of God that were unsupported by scripture or logic but upheld by powerful institutions and traditions. He also confronted falsehoods and advanced truths surpassing philosophy and science. With his assigned work underway, the Restoration reintroduced the interconnected structure of mankind’s preexistence.

First, it defines the true nature of both God and mankind. Second, it explains that the Fall was not just a seemingly negative occurrence—rather it initiated human progress. Third, possessing great knowledge and power, the Devil and his henchmen are continually trying to make us do anything and everything that is not right. Fourth, it highlights the Atonement of Jesus Christ as the centerpiece of the gospel by asserting that human effort alone cannot restore righteousness or our relationship with God. Only through divine intervention can we overcome sinfulness and be resurrected.

To better comprehend the interconnection between the Creation, the Fall, the temptations we face, and the Atonement, it is helpful to view God’s plan for humanity as a three-act play. Act One narrates the premortal existence. Act Two encompasses mortality. Act Three describes the postmortal experience.

Act One

In the beginning, as the future human family, we lived with Elohim, the name-title for our Father who is almighty, all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-loving. He is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. Jehovah is the name-title by which the premortal Jesus Christ was known. The Holy Ghost is a male spirit personage, the minister of the Father and the Son. These three distinct personages form the Godhead.

Wanting to be like God, we were taught that our mortal experience would continue our premortal opportunity to prove ourselves. Endowed with agency, having been told that we would come to earth and receive a physical body, we voted upon and accepted his plan. This announcement caused us to shout for joy.

Before mortal life, we learned about a governing structure based on loving God and others. We were taught that true freedom comes from following the law of Christ; that moral reasoning is essential for civic order and needs ongoing renewal. Possessing innate intelligence, having been well-instructed, and free to think and act independently, we grasped the concept that individual destiny lies in the one’s own hands, that freedom of choice is crucial for developing true values and making moral choices and that we could either accept truth when it is presented on earth or reject it.

Over the years, various figures have added perspective to the life before: President Harry S. Truman stated: “Human life comes from beyond this world. It is God-given and infinitely valuable.” William Wordsworth remarked: “Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting.” Harry Kemp noted: “Chief of all thy wondrous works, O God, Supreme of all thy plan. Thou has put an upward reach; into the heart of man.” The Hebrew prophet Jeremiah expressed: “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou came forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”

Acknowledging the natural man, God understood that resulting tensions would lead to a profound struggle between human and divine will. Because the doctrine of our premortal life was untaught due to periods of apostasy, it is a vital part of the restitution of all things.

With confidence in God’s plan, we believe in laws enabling us to progress. Anticipating mistakes and recognizing the need for a Redeemer, we see the importance of a Savior. Thus, Jesus Christ, stands as the central figure guiding the world’s progression.

Act Two

Mortal life is a probationary period whose primary purpose is to give us the opportunity to return to the presence of God. In our quest, we learn that truth is discovered, not created; that individual freedom is a core right and that we are individually responsible for living in harmony with divine and natural laws. We constantly face the choice between serving the body or developing the spirit, recognizing that some restraint is beneficial while absolute freedom is not.

Heraclitus (500 BCE) noted: “All things come into being by the conflict of opposites.” William Blake (1790) declared: “Without contraries there is no progression.” Comprehending that conflict drives progress, a Book of Mormon prophet wrote: “There must needs be an opposition in all things.”

Our divided nature leads to a mighty struggle between spiritual and carnal desires. While we admire human achievements in science, we frequently ignore wisdom and conscience. Ironically, many otherwise talented individuals oppose moral principles, such as the rule of law, the right to life, sound economic policies, and sacred teachings, the foundations of our prosperity and survival.

Cultural approbation may seem to improve society but can lead to the loss of valuable past insights. New morals do not guarantee enlightenment or happiness. We need thinkers who revive timeless truths through moral philosophy and sound economics, so each generation can reconnect with enduring principles.

Ancient wisdom can help us lead fulfilling lives. Humans need connection, love, purpose, and meaningful activity. As Buddha said, doing good brings joy. Strong leadership and respect for established laws also guide us toward a purposeful life.

Ultimately, finding happiness and meaning, regardless of the source, is an extension of The Golden Rule. Rabbi Hillel stated: “That which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow; this, in a few words, is the entire Torah; all the rest is but an elaboration of this one, central point.”

Buddha, Lao Tzu, and other sages of the East discovered a method for achieving peace and tranquility through letting go. They explained how to follow this path using meditation and stillness. Many individuals in the West have adopted these practices, and although few have achieved Nirvana, many have experienced some level of peace, happiness, and spiritual growth.

Some people question the necessity of a church, believing they can feel spiritual in Nature. While Nature can be a wonderful source of spiritual renewal, Christ established his church with various offices and callings and encouraged his followers to be baptized into it. He knew happiness comes from internal feelings, external connections, and serving others.

Attending church, engaging in fellowship, and participating in service opportunities create a community of individuals who seek inspiration from stories about Christ, virtuous actions, and correct principles. When attendees leave such gatherings feeling hopeful and desiring to improve, they have been influenced by the Spirit of God.

A modern prophet has taught that the purpose of earthly existence is to develop spiritual qualities. Loyalty to ideals, helpfulness to humanity, suffering for righteousness, being and doing good for goodness’ sake, and unselfish expressions of love are all aspects of spirituality.

“Spirituality, our true aim, is the consciousness of victory over self and communion with the Infinite. Spirituality impels one to overcome difficulties and acquire more and more strength. To feel one’s faculties unfolding and truth expanding in the soul is one of life’s sublimest experiences” (McKay).

Our time on Earth consists of daily thoughts, spoken words, and actions, along with the need for spiritual renewal. Our goal is to uphold Christ, maintain individual and collective liberty, and support newly revealed truths that come into our lives by virtue of “the restitution of all things.”

Act Three

Through Jesus Christ’s Atonement, every person who has been or will be born will be resurrected with a perfected, immortal body. Known doctrinally as salvation, this future gift is due to our past choices, to God’s love, and to the mercy and grace of Jesus Christ.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The text explores the interconnected doctrines central to understanding the purpose of life on earth from a Latter-day Saint perspective. It emphasizes the eternal nature of humanity, the development of spiritual and moral character, and the divinely orchestrated plan (often called the “Plan of Salvation”) that encompasses our premortal existence, mortal life, and eventual resurrection. This plan is logical, purposeful, and rooted in revealed truths that were once lost but restored through modern revelation.

Key Points

Premortal Existence:

Humans existed as spirits with God before birth. This doctrine, largely unique to the LDS Church among modern religious institutions, is foundational to understanding life’s purpose.

The Nature of God and Humanity:

God is an exalted man in whose likeness and image we are created. Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost, as distinct personages, form the Godhead. Understanding their true nature clarifies our own divine potential.

Mortal Experience as a Test:

Life on earth is a probationary period designed for personal growth, spiritual development, and moral choice. The existence of suffering, agency, and opposition is essential for learning and character formation.

Doctrinal Restoration:

Key doctrines—such as the premortal existence, the embodied nature of God, the true significance of the Fall and Atonement, and the role of Satan—were lost or corrupted after the time of Christ but were restored through modern revelation beginning with Joseph Smith.

The Three-Act Super Structure of God’s Plan:

Act One: Premortal life with God, learning and accepting his plan. Act Two: Mortal life as a time of testing, choice, and growth. Act Three: Life after life.

The Role of Opposition and Agency:

The ongoing struggle between good and evil, exemplified by Satan’s rebellion and temptations, is necessary for spiritual progress and the development of true values and character.

Importance of Eternal Truths:

Internalizing these restored and eternal truths provides coherence and meaning to life’s challenges, and places human experience within a logical and divinely orchestrated framework.

Spiritual Growth and Community:

Developing spiritual qualities, participating in church, and serving others are essential to fulfilling God’s plan and achieving lasting happiness.

The Greek Philosophers

Post No. 5   Read Time: 2 minutes. 

              

The Ancient Greeks

When the ancient Greeks traveled to India and other places, they found that rules, morals, and customs varied from region to region. This observation led to the development of philosophy, a field dedicated to the study of wisdom, moral inquiry, and introspection.

Socrates contributed to this development by emphasizing freedom. He recognized that different individuals have unique frameworks guiding their lives, which broadened his understanding of humanity. In response to conflicting moral codes, he chose to dedicate his life to seeking wisdom that could provide insight into these differences. He developed the method of asking probing questions.

Aristotle’s ideas significantly influenced Western civilization. He observed that specific rules, laws, and customs varied across regions. Instead of being discouraged by these differences, he argued that humans naturally develop governing attitudes. As their knowledge grows, they respond to reason, logic, and order.

Plato believed in the immortality of the soul and viewed philosophical inquiry as a means to test existing concepts. He asserted that learning is about rediscovering forgotten knowledge—latent within consciousness—rather than creating new information. Through priori reasoning, individuals recognize the eternal forms with which they were familiar before birth.

Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato have significantly influenced beliefs and lifestyles throughout history. Their teachings encourage individuals to achieve their potential, despite often confronting the realities of sin and self-criticism.

The concept of natural law emerged from the synthesis of biblical teachings on the inherent value of mankind and the Greek belief in human rationality. The combined wisdom of Socrates, Aristotle, Plato, and others led to the formulation of natural rights.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The development of philosophy in ancient Greece, especially through the teachings of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, fostered a new approach to understanding morality, wisdom, and the nature of law and human rights. Their insights laid the groundwork for the concept of natural law by blending Greek rationalism with biblical views of human value.

Key Points

Ancient Greeks noticed that moral codes and customs varied between regions, prompting deeper philosophical inquiry.

Socrates introduced the method of questioning and emphasized the importance of individual frameworks for understanding life.

Aristotle observed the diversity of laws and customs but saw them as a reflection of humans’ capacity for reason and governance.

Plato asserted that learning is the recollection of innate knowledge and believed in the immortality of the soul.

The philosophies of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle have had a lasting influence, encouraging self-discovery, moral inquiry, and the pursuit of potential despite human flaws.

The concept of natural law emerged from the integration of Greek philosophical thought and biblical teachings about human dignity and rationality.

Moses: The Great Lawgiver

Post No. 4  Reading Time: 8 minutes.

The Gift of Self-Government

As a historian, an orator, a leader, a statesman, a legislator, a patriot, and a man, Moses stands pre-eminent. But no mere genius could have made          him the originator of sound jurisprudence—the great teacher of     monotheism and sound morality—except he had also been a              prophet of God, supernaturally guided and aided in his work. –Funk and Wagnall                                                                            

America: a Judeo-Christian Nation

Destructive criticism of the Bible, with its companion process of downgrading biblical personalities, has been engaged in over the years. Because of its apparent scholarship this criticism has led many believers astray, destroying their faith.

Such was the case in the early days of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Widespread religious revivals created confusion about God’s nature. To restore Christ’s original church, accurate knowledge of God had to first be reestablished.

Recent scientific research supports elements of the biblical account, with modern scripture from Joseph Smith aligning with descriptions of the Israelite experience in Egypt. The Bible recounts Moses leading the Israelites to the promised land with demonstrations of divine intervention.

Research also indicates that ancient societies possessed advanced knowledge and skills. Craftsmen received training and often belonged to guilds. Artistic practices existed and earlier cultures displayed significant levels of refinement.

In another evidence that the gospel came down from Adam, many of the moral laws taught by Moses were already practiced by Egyptians of his time, showing that these principles predate both Moses and the Christian Church. Archaeological evidence also suggests that such laws have existed since the earliest civilizations.

Moses, born in 1393 BC and living for 120 years, was rescued as an infant from a royal decree by Pharaoh’s daughter’s maid and raised by the princess after being nursed by his own mother. He was educated in the wisdom of the Egyptians, who were then unsurpassed in civilization and learning by any people in the world.

A military leader, a well-educated man, and a prophet without parallel, Moses walked and talked with the Lord repeatedly. He was shown the mysteries of the heavens and much of creation. He received laws from God beyond any other ancient man of whom we have record. His work had both ancient and modern significance.

Moses learned about astronomy through divine power, asking God about this earth and its people. In reply, God told Moses, “Worlds without number have I created . . . This is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”

A unique prophet, Moses regularly communicated with God and was entrusted with divine laws and insights. He was raised up by the Almighty for the express purpose of releasing Israel from bondage. However, the Israelites were so apostate and steeped in the traditions of the Egyptians that they would not heed his guidance.

Despite his Egyptian education and upbringing by Pharaoh’s daughter, Moses remained committed to his Hebrew identity. In the words of the apostle Paul, “By faith he forsook Egypt.” His life is a study in obedience to the divine will.  

The Bible states that Moses killed an Egyptian who was attacking a Hebrew but provides no further details. Historian Eusebius adds that this occurred during a court plot to assassinate Moses, and he killed his attacker in self-defense.

No one can worship God intelligently without an accurate understanding of the nature of the Deity. It is a lack of such knowledge that leads to the proliferation of creeds and false religious traditions.

God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ appear to Joseph Smith.

These are the foundational reasons for the appearance of God the Father and his Son Jesus Christ to Joseph Smith in 1820. It was on this occasion that Joseph Smith discovered that indeed they are in human form, and that the scripture was correct in saying that man was made in the image and likeness of God.

Joseph Smith heard their voices and received their counsel. As he gazed upon them, he could see plainly two heavenly Personages, and he knew for a fact that they were as separate and distinct as any two other persons, each one an individual by himself.

It was at that moment, for the first time in many centuries, that a mortal being knew what God looked like, and heard his spoken words. It was only with this sure knowledge that Joseph Smith was able to proceed with his great assignment.

In the account of Moses, the narrative states that the Ten Commandments were inscribed on stone tablets by the finger of the Lord. These commandments are described as forming a foundational part of both civil and religious legal traditions. While similar principles appear in other biblical texts addressing specific issues, the Ten Commandments are generally considered the foundation for all proper human conduct.

Among thousands of citations supporting the ideas of the Founding Fathers, 916 were key, with 34% from the Bible—mostly Deuteronomy, also known as the Book of God’s Law. Citations ranged across works by historians, philosophers, and Enlightenment thinkers, but their core principles were consistently anchored in the Bible.

In their discovery, the Founding Fathers viewed biblical governance and Anglo-Saxon traditions as key influences for the American Constitution. Seeing this nation as the place where the remnants would begin to gather, they saw in their interpretation of scripture a divine plan for America; and they saw themselves as divinely appointed servants of the Almighty in restoring the sacred law given to Moses. All throughout their writings is the expressed anticipation that these events will take place in their day.

Their deep understanding of the Bible stemmed from their college educations, as all major American institutions then required students to study the Bible regardless of their major. At King’s College in New York, for example, John Jay, at the age of 14, was taught by Samuel Johnson, an Anglican minister, who used the New Testament for his text. For Johnson, almost every aspect of the college curriculum was aimed at turning out devout and virtuous young men.

Years later, upon the passing of his wife, Sarah, at the age of 45, an ardent American patriot who was perhaps more vocal than her reserved husband as she contributed to the creation of the new nation in many ways, John Jay led their five children “into an adjoining room, and with a firm voice but glistening eye, read to them the 15th chapter of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, thus leading their thoughts to that day when the lifeless but beloved form they had just left would rise to glory and immortality.” Ten years older than his wife, Sarah had provided the light and the life in the Jay household.

In summary, the account of Moses is one of the earliest recorded instances of a leader being chosen to receive, document, and implement a significant set of laws. By the time these laws influenced America’s Founding Fathers, they had adopted the belief that these ancient statutes were the fundamental principles for all law, justice, and legal administration.

Attesting to their relevance, James Madison, a coauthor of the Constitution, wrote, “We have staked the whole future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, and to sustain ourselves, according to the Ten Commandments of God.” Madison believed that reverence for higher principles, regard for others, and respect for property inspires adherence to a moral code that transcends civil and criminal regulations.

In 1836, Moses, in the capacity of a ministering angel, conferred the keys of gathering upon the Prophet Joseph Smith, and these were subsequently passed to each successive leader in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. One significant aspect of Moses’ life was his direct association with the Almighty. The Savior affirmed Moses’ prophetic role, and Moses, in turn, bore testimony of the Savior. The Savior is regarded as God, while Moses is recognized as one of his prominent prophets.  

SUMMARY

Big Idea

Moses was a divinely guided leader whose reception and implementation of God’s laws not only shaped ancient Israel but also profoundly influenced the moral and legal foundations of American self-government.

Key Points

Modern criticism has challenged biblical figures like Moses, yet his influence remains foundational for law and morality.

Moses was uniquely qualified, being educated, a leader, and a prophet who communicated directly with God.

The biblical narrative, supported by scientific research and ancient records, affirms Moses’ role in lawgiving and morality.

Joseph Smith’s experience is linked as a restoration of true knowledge of God, paralleling Moses’ role as a prophet.

The Ten Commandments are a core foundation for both civil and religious law, influencing subsequent societies.

The Founding Fathers of America drew deeply from biblical law, especially Deuteronomy, when forming the Constitution and their vision for the nation.

Biblical study was central to early American education, with figures like John Jay exemplifying the integration of scripture and civic virtue.

Moses’ legacy continued in American religious and civic life, with key LDS teachings linking his prophetic role to modern prophets. James Madison and other Founders stressed that self-governance depends on adherence to the spiritual and ethical standards rooted in the Ten Commandments.

How Does God Accomplish His Work on Earth?

The prophet Isaiah foretells the birth of Christ and the marvelous work and wonder.

Post No. 5 Read Time 6 minutes.

These I will make my rulers.                                                                                                           –Abraham

Although American society is more prosperous than ever, skepticism about God’s existence has grown. Christianity in the U.S. has declined over the past 15-20 years but now appears stable, with Christians making up about 60-63% of the population.

Skeptics often struggle to reconcile faith with science, seeking evidence before belief. While many acknowledge the historical Jesus and value his teachings, they reject claims of his divinity and supernatural events like the resurrection. Most skeptics also lack a personal experience with prayer, seeing it as going unheard.

Both believers and non-believers make compelling points. Mill noted that understanding all sides is essential. Atheists argue for restricting religion in government and society, while believers highlight the value of religious morals and accountability to God.

In his Farewell Address (1796), George Washington argued that morality and religion are key to national prosperity. James Madison noted that political institutions rely on self-governance guided by religious principles such as the Ten Commandments. While to some degree ethics can exist apart from religion, dismissing religious belief as unimportant is unfounded.

To broaden our perspective, we need influential thinkers who will revive moral philosophy and reintroduce timeless truths for every generation. Drawing on historic wisdom, they help us balance introspection with life’s challenges and guide us toward ethical ideals rooted in respect for others.

During periods of uncertainty, increasing complexity, and prevailing pride, a close examination of the world reveals that, despite perceptions of divine absence, it is ultimately God who is deserving of the most steadfast loyalty and reverence. As Emerson observed, “Nature is too thin a screen; the glory of God bursts through everywhere.”

Throughout history, prophets, philosophers, and religious leaders have conveyed moral principles which contribute to evolving concepts of human values. Promoting moral truths that broaden human understanding, the belief that all individuals have inherent value, rooted in the idea that “God created man in his image,” emerged early on. Later, the Greeks were inspired with the concept that men and women are naturally meant to use their reason.

Plato argued that the immortal soul recalls knowledge through inquiry, viewing philosophy as rediscovering what was once known. Using priori reasoning, we access truths understood before birth, a view echoed by Joseph Smith who defined such knowledge as “that which was from the beginning.” Plato’s concept of divine ontology included reason, will, and natural law. The integration of Greek rationalism with Judeo-Christian beliefs about human value contributed to natural law theory.

Many influential figures throughout history, such as Cicero, Augustine, Da Vinci, Gutenberg, Columbus, Luther, Newton, Handel, Franklin, Washington, Jefferson, Wilberforce, Lincoln, and King Jr., played key roles in human progress across various fields. Collectively, their contributions and those of many others significantly advanced society.

Furthermore, artists, scholars, scientists, and prominent individuals from the Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment eras were motivated by the advancement and improvement of mankind. Their contributions, alongside those of parents and committed leaders, facilitated the expansion of individual liberty and the dissemination of knowledge.   

Samuel F.B. Morse invented the Morse Code

Enlightenment thinkers, though separated by time and distance, explored the foundations of morality and education, shaping ethical principles that drove intellectual and societal progress. Most believed mankind could understand its purpose through adherence to higher laws, influenced by social contracts, moral agency, religious teachings, classical education, cultural values, universal truths, natural law, popular consent, the combination of Judeo-Christian principles, and common sense. Adherence to these ideals meant that nations would foster progress and virtue.

Using Enlightenment language, Thomas Jefferson stated: “We are not in a world ungoverned by the laws and the power of a superior agent. Our efforts are in his hands, and directed by it; and he will give them their effect in his own time.”

Affirming that we are not left alone in our mortal journey, Jefferson further grounded his ethics in a universal, innate “moral sense” that he believed was given to all human beings by their Creator as the true foundation of  morality. Described in scripture as the Light of Christ, the gift of conscience has also been defined as “the spark of divinity.”  It is given to every person that comes into the world to help us judge good from evil.

The Founding Fathers initiated revolution and constitutional government, leading to expanded civil and religious liberties, a free-market economy, and pluralism. A participant in the Federalist with Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, and America’s first Chief Justice, John Jay, declared, that God works for our good in every circumstance—testing our gratitude in prosperity, our contentment in mediocrity, our submission during misfortune, our faith in darkness, and our steadfastness under temptation. We are called upon to act wisely and trust him with the outcome.

Author John A. O’Brien argues that belief in God’s existence is based not on conscience as a mystical or infallible faculty, but on the moral order of the universe reflected in our conscience’s directive to do right and avoid wrong. Alfred North Whitehead described God as a figure who guides the world through an emphasis on truth, beauty, and goodness, while Francis Bacon believed that denying God diminishes human dignity.

In summary, our founding documents, with the advances of liberty, religious freedom, and economic prosperity, are based on Judeo-Christian and free market principles. The aim of these principles is to foster the development of the individual through liberty and justice founded in righteousness-affirming mutual respect.

Key historical moments, from ancient eras through the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and the Second Great Awakening in America, set the stage for religious liberty and the restoration of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith’s birth in 1805 marked a pivotal step in establishing God’s kingdom on the Earth, with many dedicated individuals significantly advancing this work.

Referencing Francis Bacon’s view that deep study removes doubt, I witness that our Father in Heaven is real; that he loves mankind; and that he desires our happiness and return to his presence. Historically, he has chosen key individuals and sent them to this world to help set moral standards, encourage freedom, protect people, and advance human potential.

Finally, in his greatest work of all in behalf of the human family, God sent his Son to bring us immortality through his atonement and resurrection. Thus, our great hope is to be raised in immortality unto eternal life through devotion and dedication to keeping his commandments. This is God’s ultimate work on behalf of mankind.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

Throughout history, the achievements of influential individuals have been woven into a greater divine plan. Directed by God, this plan encourages human progress, the expansion of freedom, and guides mankind toward eternal life. The advancement of liberty, religious freedom, and economic prosperity rests on enduring principles that foster the development of individuals through liberty, justice, and mutual respect.

Key Points

God’s plan unfolds through the actions and contributions of key historical figures, including prophets, religious leaders, philosophers, and innovators, each engaged in his work.

Prominent personalities—such as Adam, Moses, Jesus Christ, Mohammed, Buddha, Socrates, Columbus, Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, Madison, Wilberforce, Lincoln, King, and many others—have played pivotal roles in promoting freedom, truth, and the well-being of mankind.

Artists, scientists, and thinkers from the Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment inspired progress and helped spread knowledge, while everyday individuals—including parents and dedicated leaders—also contributed to positive change.

The founding documents and principles of democracy in America are rooted in Judeo-Christian values and a free-market economy, aiming to cultivate liberty, righteousness, and individual development.

Major historical events, from ancient civilizations to the Constitutional Convention and religious awakenings, have enabled greater religious freedom and the restoration of spiritual truths.

Life Before Life

Post No. 3 Read Time 3 minutes.

Nature knows no pause in progress and development and attaches her curse on all inaction. –Goethe

As a Christian, did you know that the belief in mankind’s premortal existence was taught and held by ancient Christians for nearly 500 years before it was declared heretical during the Dark Ages of apostasy and allowed to wither away? Ironically, this key doctrine was altered or lost by those responsible for preserving scriptural truth.

The doctrine of mankind’s premortal existence teaches three main ideas: First, all people existed as spirit children of God before birth. Second, in that premortal life, there was order, leadership, and instruction, allowing each of us to develop personal qualities. Third, adhering to the principle of common consent, we agreed, individually and collectively, to God’s plan to come to Earth in order to gain physical bodies, to prove ourselves through obedience, and to further develop our capabilities.

At that time, we also know that there were individuals designated by God as noble and great. Envisioning a world for developing intelligence, skill, and kindness, with laws, challenges, risks, and free will to build character, our Father in Heaven chose key leaders to set moral standards, to promote and defend freedom, and to help in mankind’s progression.

Among these were men who would come forth as Hebrew prophets, Greek philosophers, Roman statesmen, religious figures from across the spectrum, such as Aquinas, Mohammed, and Buddha, and a host of additional great individuals who would be inspired to promote moral standards, ameliorate human suffering, fight for truth and righteousness, and utilize their gifts and talents to expand human understanding.

A common argument for non-belief is that life’s difficulties leave people with a sense of hopelessness. In “Slip Sliding Away,” in a verse whose lyrical meaning has sunk deeply into America’s cultural psyche, Paul Simon captures this feeling: “God only knows. God makes his plan. The information’s unavailable to the mortal man.”

Because it is true that without vision the people perish, I would like to add my voice to those who believe that God indeed has a plan. Not only does he have a plan, but through the “restitution of all things” he has made that plan available to the mortal man!

With a beginning of understanding regarding the doctrine of premortal life, one now has answers to the questions: Where did I come from? And what is my purpose on this Earth?

SUMMARY

Big Idea

Premortal existence is the belief that all humans lived as spirit children of God before being born on Earth. While in this realm, we gained an understanding of our purpose and destiny.

Key Points

Premortal existence was accepted by early Christians for centuries before being labeled heretical.

This doctrine teaches that all people existed as spirit children of God, received guidance, and developed personally before birth.

As God’s spirit children we agreed to his plan to come to Earth, to gain physical bodies, and to further our spiritual development.

Some spirits were chosen by God as leaders, destined to set moral standards and guide humanity. These figures included prophets, philosophers, and other influential thinkers across religions and cultures.

Life’s hardships can lead to hopelessness, but the doctrine of preexistence reassures believers that God has a plan for each person.

Understanding our premortal existence provides meaningful answers to questions about our origin and purpose on Earth.

The Promised Land

Post No. 2   Read Time: 6 minutes.

Moses leads the Israelites, Lehi leaves Jerusalem, Pioneers arrive in the top of the mountains.

America’s Grand Design

There are places I’ll remember all my life, though some have changed.
All these places had their moments, I’ll often stop and think about them. I know I’ll never lose affection, for people and things that went before. In my life I’ve loved them all. –Lennon and McCartney 

Places gain meaning from our experiences—homes, parks, hillsides, and neighborhoods become special over time. As Shakespeare said, “a place is honored by the actions that occur there.”

Sacred locations are those valued for their spiritual or lasting significance, such as hospitals, homes, chapels, temples, cemeteries, or lands important to freedom and religion. Social media often highlights moving moments, like an artist returning home or to the setting of a choir, where a love of music began. These special places inspire feelings about faith and identity, reflecting humanity’s rich spiritual and cultural heritage.

Lorraine American Cemetery

The Garden of Eden was the original home of Adam and Eve. After their expulsion from the Garden, they settled at Adam-ondi-Ahman in present-day Daviess County, Missouri. This area has been designated as the future site of Zion or the New Jerusalem.

In this sacred place, Adam was told that many nations would come from him, and he would be a leader over them. Despite his age, he gathered his descendants and spoke about their future generations. Never before had one spot of earth been favored with such a meeting.

Adam-ondi-Ahman, Daviess County, Missouri

However, Cain killed Abel, and according to the narrative, unrighteousness increased throughout the world. Generations later, the Lord sent a flood to cleanse the earth.

Scripture records that “after the waters had receded from off the face of this land it became a choice land above all others.” Such a place needed to be protected. In response to God’s decree, the great continents separated and the ocean rushed in to surround them; the promised place was set apart. 

Shortly after the events of the Tower of Babel, a nation known as the Jaredites traveled to the promised land on the condition that only those who served God would be allowed to remain. Over time, their society experienced wickedness and conflict to such a degree that it was eventually destroyed.

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ

Also recorded in the Book of Mormon, after the Jaredite civilization ended, two families, led by a prophet named Lehi, left Jerusalem around 600 BC and sailed to the New World. Their story, along with the account of their descendants, lasted over one thousand years. It recounts cycles of conflict and righteousness, wars and peace, while also including vivid details of Christ’s visit to America. Following nearly three hundred years of peace, they rebelled against the gospel, fractured into tribes, and became the principal ancestors of the American Indians. Through it all, as prophesied, they faced war, disease, and near destruction.

A thousand years later, an Italian explorer sailing for Spain said divine inspiration drove his journey despite ridicule from others. Similarly, again from the Book of Mormon account, a prophet named Nephi saw the future discovery, colonization, and emergence of a mighty nation.

The cultural and religious freedoms that sprang from the Renaissance and Reformation helped inspire the focus on personal liberty during the Age of Enlightenment, creating a foundation for America as a “first new nation.” Before becoming president, George Washington noted that America’s origins were shaped by intellectual progress and a growing awareness of human rights, making it an opportune time to establish a government.

Also recognizing this unique moment in history, Thomas Paine noted that America represented a fresh start for government, where people could observe its creation firsthand rather than relying on ancient history or guesswork. He wrote, “We are brought at once to the point of seeing government begin, as if we had lived in the beginning of time.”

Washington and Paine could not have anticipated the enduring influence of their contributions. Building upon the legacy of predecessors such as pilgrims, Puritans, patriots, and statesmen, they and their contemporaries played a pivotal role in shaping a foundation for the future. Washington referred to the “singular interpositions of Providence,” which, over millennia, helped establish a political framework ultimately facilitating the “restitution of all things.” Shortly after the Constitutional Convention of 1787 secured fundamental freedoms through the Bill of Rights, Joseph Smith, later known for founding the Restoration movement, was born in Vermont.

Following centuries of meticulous preparation, God was ready to restore his priesthood, his church, its central leadership, and the fullness of the everlasting gospel. The purpose of America was to provide the platform of freedom, the setting wherein all of this was possible. All else takes its power from that one great, central purpose. Noted by Lafayette, and as those who gain knowledge and a testimony of this work will attest, “The welfare of America is closely bound up with the welfare of all mankind.”

In summary, the formation of Western Civilization, the founding of America, and the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ can be attributed to two primary factors. Originally, Jesus’ words emerged purely from the Jewish tradition. However, through the machinations of men, many parts of the initial gospel, which included key teachings and covenants, were removed or altered. Secondly, because of what has been lost, many are misled by deception and false traditions. The Book of Mormon plays a central role in the Restoration by reintroducing previously lost teachings intended to benefit people universally.

The Book of Mormon describes America as a land which is choice above all other lands. It is a land reserved for a people who will have Jesus Christ (Jehovah) to be their God. Emphasizing the importance of laws for political and moral order, the book also recounts how two civilizations were destroyed after failing to uphold these standards, highlighting the serious responsibilities that rest upon those living in this promised land.

SUMMARY

Big Idea

The narrative explores the deep significance of sacred places in shaping spiritual, cultural, and national identity, emphasizing how divine guidance and human actions across history set the stage for freedom, faith, and the eventual restoration of the gospel in America.

Key Points

The welfare and destiny of America are intimately linked to the broader spiritual welfare of humanity, supported by the testimonies of influential historical figures.

Places acquire meaning through the experiences and actions that unfold there, becoming sacred due to their spiritual, historical, or personal significance.

Scriptural and historical locations—such as the Garden of Eden, Adam-ondi-Ahman, and sites from the Book of Mormon—are portrayed as pivotal in humanity’s spiritual journey.

Western Civilization and America’s founding were influenced by the ages of Renaissance, Reformation, and Enlightenment, under the direction of Divine Providence.

America’s foundation was uniquely prepared as a place where personal liberty, intellectual progress, pluralism, and religious restoration could flourish, thus facilitating the mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith, the spread of liberty across the globe, and the individual and collective efforts of good people everywhere on behalf of mankind’s general welfare.

The decrees of God warn that whatsoever nation shall possess the promised land shall serve Jesus Christ, or they shall be swept off when the fullness of his wrath shall come upon them. And the fullness of his wrath comes upon them when they are ripened in iniquity.

Please see: Book of Mormon, 1 Ne. Chapter 13 (pages 23-27).

The Solution to Save the Great Salt Lake and Provide Water to Utah and 40m people in the Western Region is Under our Feet.

Read Time: 10 minutes.

The Great Salt Lake, city skyline, and the Wasatch Mountain.

In reference to the drought conditions being experienced in the Great Basin, which directly impact the Great Salt Lake, the Colorado River, Lake Powell, Lake Mead, their tributaries, and the eight-state region, four general positions are being proposed to alleviate the water shortages we collectively face: 1. conservation and slowing growth. 2. bringing in water from outside sources. 3. relying on Nature to provide. 4. finding other sources of water.

While I believe there is merit in a balanced approach and appreciate that much good is being done by thoughtful people at the present time, this post will argue in favor of finding other sources of water as the primary solution to our challenge.

Conservation and slowing growth.

Nine out of ten Utahns live along the Wasatch Front and in Washington County. In other words, 90% of the state’s residents live on just 1.1% of the land.

The federal government owns 64.4% of the land.

4.5% of the land is held in trust for tribal nations.

The state of Utah owns about 10% of the land.

21% of the land is privately owned, much of which is not suitable for or used for residential development.

I do not see conservation (heresy, I know) and slowing down Utah’s growth as feasible solutions.

Bringing in water from outside sources.

If state, regional, national, and international politics could allow water to flow from Canada, the Colombia River, the Snake River, or directly or indirectly from any of the Great Lakes, into the Great Basin, that would be an incredible solution.

Relying on Nature to provide.

In its truest sense, no matter which solution we adopt, we will be relying on Nature to provide. However, I am specifically referring to snowpack, water storage, and allocation. There are many perspectives to consider: we need water for food, recreation, and lifestyles, which is why my proposed solution will focus on the 4th option.

Finding other sources of water.

People of faith are often ridiculed because we believe that “the earth has enough and to spare,” an affirmation that the Earth’s resources are abundant. Somewhat heartening, it is also true that even scientists can be “stunned by Nature’s surprises.” Let’s consider:

71% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water.

The Earth’s crust (mantle) may hold more water than all the ocean’s combined.

Within the Earth are “the fountains of the deep,” the subterranean waters that combined with the rain to flood the Earth in the days of Noah.

The remainder of this post will focus on this option. I invite you to read, comment, like, and share.

COMMON SENSE:  A Call to Action

An LDS maxim states: “Men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause and do many things of their own free will . . . for the power is in them.” There is value in proactive engagement, individual initiative, and meaningful contributions toward achieving positive results, rather than waiting to be told what to do. Service is an imperative, whether to God or to our fellowmen. Bringing water to the Great Salt Lake and surrounding areas is a good cause.

In the 1930s. in a powerful example of harnessing Nature’s abundance, government and private interests combined to build a series of dams, canals, and irrigation systems in the Northwest, bringing water and transportation to the land. These visionary efforts brought productive agriculture and a multitude of benefits to millions of people in the region and across the entire United States. Though solving today’s issues will require a different approach, the challenge remains the same: we need water!

In all human pursuits, power shapes societal structures and influences quality of life. Therefore, even though the issue of power may appear to be balanced and fair at the present time, it is essential to exercise discernment amid the many factors at play. The increasing mindset of scarcity feeds inefficiency, lust for control, and bureaucratic growth. Hence the constant emphasis on the crisis of the GSL: “Droughts are growing more severe as population increases . . . Less surface water is available . . . Reliance on well water is increasing . . . Everything is human caused . . . We must regulate . . . We must control population and growth . . . We have tools for later use.” Some observers even go so far as to attribute aspects of climate change to certain religious groups, such as the LDS Church, noting that their support for irrigation and large families increases resource consumption. These perspectives are a powerful reminder that Thoreau’s idea of addressing the root cause is essential.

Water means freedom!

As debates over power intensify, we the people have a great deal to lose if bureaucratic thinking and policies win the day. To preserve liberty, boldness is needed. Let’s not forget, that government is best which governs least.

Water means beauty!

Let’s continue to beautify our homes, yards, parks, public spaces, and houses of worship; let’s keep our lawns, gardens, and fences well-groomed, reflecting orderliness. Let the beehive–with the hive and the honeybees forming our communal coat of arms–be a significant representation of the industry, harmony, order, and frugality of the people, demonstrating the sweet results of our toil, union, and intelligent cooperation. Let’s keep in mind the eternal principle that all things which come of the earth, in the season thereof, are made for the benefit and the use of mankind, both to please the eye and to gladden the heart. Let’s cherish our mountain lakes, rivers, and streams, and do everything we can to support the migratory birds and animals that seek refuge and sanctuary across our state. In our pursuit of social refinement, let’s rejoice that music continues to swell the breeze with freedom’s song.

Water means a bright future!

Let’s continue to develop parks and trails that bring families together and draw people to the beautiful outdoors. Let’s continue to support the centers that celebrate the arts, elevating the culture. Let’s continue to showcase our commitment to education, physical achievement, and entertainment through beautiful schools, manicured campuses, and magnificent athletic fields, arenas, and golf courses. Let’s continue to facilitate commerce through transportation systems that are safe and efficient as they carry us to the four corners of our state. Let’s continue to keep our winter sports and year-round outdoor activities attractive and vibrant.

Citing Jay Evensen (DN, Dec. 1, 2022), I encourage KSL Radio and TV, the Deseret News, Rod Arquette and Greg Hughes, as well as all other Church and secular communication organs to give voice to the proposals by Steven Lund and Matthew Memmot in order to spur interest and thought in the public square by advancing positive conversation of horizontal drilling of deep freshwater aquifers and statewide desalination reactors to quickly restore the GSL, refill Lake Powell and Lake Mead, and increase water flow across Utah and the Western region for the benefit of over 40 million people. The methods they advocate are presently in use across the United States.

Deep water aquifers, found 400 to several thousand meters underground and still largely uncharted, are more widespread than once thought. The current record drought and historical absence of saline lake recovery offer a timely opportunity to seek new deep groundwater sources.

The USGS estimates that these aquifers contain at least 900 million acre-feet of water, with approximately 700,000 acre-feet needed to restore the GSL. Verifying these figures would involve drilling wells projected to cost $100 million. Using existing oil and gas data and satellite technology will reduce exploration costs.

Down through the years, beginning in Nauvoo and continuing through the modern day, the Restored Church has faced many challenges. In the early stages of the great pioneer exodus, Church leaders directed members to construct the roads and bridges to assist the migration. These efforts were followed by the down-and-back trains and the rescue at Martin’s Cove directed by Brigham Young.

In addition to the tasks performed by the Saints, many of the things that have been done were beyond the capacity of ordinary members, requiring a much higher level of ecclesiastical engagement. For example, sending supplies to war-torn Europe following World War II, the ongoing world-wide philanthropic efforts carried out by the Church, and, in partnership with local officials, the renovation and improvement of downtown Salt Lake City to create a buffer of protection around Temple Square and Church headquarters.

While Church members continue to contribute tithes, offerings, missionary service, and other support, we do not have sufficient resources among us to solve the current water crisis. I believe that alleviating the drought will require another joint venture between ecclesiastical and state officials. I urge the Church to play the leading role in controlling the narrative, providing the funding, and organizing the efforts, because sitting back and relying on well-intentioned individuals and organizations risks empowering bureaucracy and reducing our individual and collective freedom.

LDS generosity is well known throughout the world, but at the same time we can focus on strengthening ourselves from within, without compromising that vital mission. Much like the need for the development of City Creek as a protective barrier within downtown Salt Lake, action must be taken to expand the arc of protection to all citizens of Utah and beyond our borders through solving the water crisis. Regardless of your location or resources, this crisis threatens our very way of life and the spiritual work we have been assigned to do. Instead of relying solely on Providence, let’s keep in mind that the Lord helps those who help themselves.

I respectfully urge the Church at all levels of bureaucracy, leadership, and membership to follow the prophet. When the prophet announces a house of the Lord, he is endorsing growth, prosperity, and freedom. Proven time and again, this is the economic pattern that unfolds once a temple is dedicated. He is also affirming that the Restoration is ongoing, that the Restored Church is the kingdom of God on the Earth, that the earth has enough and to spare, and that the desert blooming as a rose symbolizes a spiritual transformation from darkness to light as well as the interdependence of human and environmental health. If we see in these words more than mere abstractions, then indeed the power is in us to be anxiously engaged in a good cause.

Sources:

  1. Doctrine and Covenants 58:27-28.
  2. Jay Evensen, DN Opinion Editor, December 1, 2022.
  3. Deep Groundwater Might be a Sustainable Solution to the Water Crisis by Claudia Bertoni, Fridtjov Ruden, Elizabeth Quiroga Jordan and Helene Ruden. February 27, 2025.
  4. Great Salt Lake Strike Team.
  5. Doug Burgum: A rough rider at heart. DN May 15, 2025.
  6. Sustainability, October 12, 2022, Beyond the story: Great Salt Lake in the New York Times, Maximilian S. Werner, College of Humanities.
  7. If the Great Salt Lake dries up what would that mean for the U.S. economy? Janet Nguyen, SaveShare.
  8. The Colorado River Basin’s groundwater is disappearing faster than the river  itself. May 31, 2025, Kevin Lind, Ideas and Culture team covering the Intermountain West.
  9. The Great Lake Is Drying. Can Utah Save It? Leia Larsen, The New York Times, May 5, 2025.
  10.  Climate Change and Capitalism: A Political Marxist View. Simon Mair, July 7, 2019.
  11. Environmentalists’ goal is climate indoctrination, not education. Washington Examiner, Kaylee McGhee White.

Celebrating our 250th Anniversary

The American Spirit

Premise: the American experiment is foreordained.

History: who we are and what we stand for.

Purpose: it is wonderful to have a country to love.

Goal: help stop the mindless destruction of America.

Introductory Post: an invitation.

First post: august 28, 2025, and continuing through July 2026.

2/3 posts per week.

I invite you to comment, share, and invite.

PLEASE HELP TELL OUR STORY ACROSS THE WORLD!

americasgrand.design

A Heritage of Freedom

WHY I BELIEVE

America’s founding documents are the culmination of centuries of progress. In their formation, they represent the consolidation of eternal truths for the universal blessing of the human family. Paving the way for civil and religious liberties, they are the common connection through which all the inhabitants of Earth will be blessed.

At the heart of the American system are two vital principles: liberty and justice. In support of these ideals, in an idea that was revolutionary at the time, the Founding Fathers insisted that the new government put the welfare of the population before their own. To accomplish this aim, they established specific economic policies and governing standards. They firmly believed that the key ingredient in wealth creation, the pursuit of happiness, and maintaining moral virtue was man’s creative or productive power, made possible by his being made in the image of the Creator.

Flowing from the vision of our Founding Fathers, the American identity is built around a constellation of ideas–namely, education, equality, love of God and neighbor, hard work, the Golden Rule, the rule of law, individualism, and teamwork. Springing from these values, each of us have something deep within, the big idea of freedom!

Encouraged by the Founding Fathers, Americans internalized the lofty idea that freedom is best served as we learn to master our emotions and actions. Right behavior results from harmony and control of our reason, passion, and appetites. The habits we develop make all the difference. Practice brings self-control. Unhappiness and personal distress come into our lives when we fail to control our tempers, appetites, and passions.

Emphasizing the importance of true knowledge, the Framers saw moral education as training the heart and mind toward that which is good. Stated by Emerson, “If a man’s eye is on the eternal, his intellect will grow.”

In today’s world, where much has been pushed out of our lives, or lost, we may wonder: where do we find the materials, the moral literacy, that will aid us in our quest to live and teach the virtues of self-discipline, compassion, responsibility, friendship, work, courage, perseverance, honesty, loyalty, and faith? How do we discover the ideals by which we wish our children and grandchildren to live out their lives? How do we create and maintain the kind of nation we hope to be?

Certainly, the Bible, the Classics, intellectual pursuits, worship services, and the historical narrative provide a rich quarry of information. In their pages and themes, we find a moral anchor for ourselves, our children and grandchildren, our culture, our history, and our traditions.

Across this nation we have had, and continue to have, men and women committed to the proposition of teaching moral literacy as it relates to personal conduct and the formation of character. Without hesitation, equivocation, or embarrassment, parents, teachers, neighbors, friends, visionary leaders, and a host of others speak to the inner part of the individual, to the moral sense. We better understand the great purposes of Earth and the potential of individuals and nations when we link classical literacy, world history, American history, and commonsense principles. Reminding us of eternal truths and moral verities, they counter the distortions of the times in which we live.

Education, knowledge, and literacy are the foundations for intellectual and moral development. Freedom is not a license to ignore the requirements of moral integrity. We do not progress by making our own rules, by turning our backs on the Almighty, or by creating a golden calf of our egos. It is impossible to build a sustainable society in this manner.

Moral education teaches good habits; it involves rules, precepts, standards, and discipline. It teaches that life has purpose, that it is a necessary thing to be honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, to do good to all men and women, to have a country to love, and to be willing to seek after that which is praiseworthy and of good report. God will patiently and tenderly lead His children in their pursuit of truth, beauty, and goodness.

Benjamin Franklin declared, “To pour forth benefits for the common good is divine. Every thought which genius and piety throws into the world alters the world.” Americans are blessed with a heritage of freedom and the opportunity to chase away darkness, to enlighten nations, and to renovate the world and cover it with light, truth, unity, peace, and love.

This is why I believe.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Brent Russell’s book, America’s Grand Design (2022), retraces the history of American heritage and humanity’s Constitutional liberties, grounded in the hope of universal goodwill.

Holistically outlining the interconnectedness of the historical events which caused and then overcame the Dark and Middle Ages, leading to the development and establishment of America’s civil and religious liberties, this treatise is a timely reminder that God governs in the affairs of men.

Developed through centuries of struggle, freedom of conscience and expression are woven into the very soul of our nation. Yet, there is danger lurking, for those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.

Because error is preached all the time, truth must be repeated constantly. We must stop the mindless destruction of historical America.

The American experiment was foreordained. America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s grand design. As a society of free-born people, we must reawaken to the truth that “righteousness exalts a nation.”        

Third in a trilogy of Constitutional enlightenment and awareness, the author supports the Utah State Legislature’s designation of September as Founders and Constitution Month. In an effort to champion civic awareness and the common good, he reaffirms that it was not by chance that the Puritans and others who followed later left their native land and sailed to New England where they were inspired to establish the God-given system of government under which we live.

Laying the foundation for the 1820 vision of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the unfolding Restoration, this series of historical events is described by the biblical prophet Isaiah as “a marvelous work and a wonder.” In an acknowledgement of our responsibility to teach the true greatness of our founding and nation, may we reenergize a spirit of patriotism in recognition of God’s hand in the origin and destiny of America, that we will be a nation under God, not without God.   

Website:  www.americasgranddesign.com                 BLOG: americasgrand.design 

Courage and Resolve

Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed, is more important than any other one thing.  –Abraham Lincoln

On a recent Sunday, as we sat down with our wives for a spontaneous brunch, a friend and I had one of those conversations that seem to come out of nowhere. Our topics covered a lot of ground. However, the part that touched me deeply was his personal story.

Speaking freely, we discussed the meaning and purpose of life. Why we are here (on earth) and what we are supposed to be doing with our lives.

He grew up in Chicago in a very dysfunctional situation.  There was divorce, alcoholism, drug use, abuse, early separation from his siblings and parents, suicide, and poverty. His reaction was anger, bitterness, loneliness, and hopelessness, a teenager with a horrible temper and poor self-esteem.

At 18, traveling to California with his girlfriend, they stopped at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah. He felt something. Shortly thereafter he joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons).

A year later, sitting in a speed-reading class at BYU, he gazed out the window, thinking how much he hated being there. Standing directly in front of him, the professor asked a couple of questions about the assignment, and then surprised him by asking, “How do you feel about things?”

“You want to know how I feel?” asked my friend.

“Yes,” responded the teacher.

Facing one of those moments requiring courage, he was tempted to ease his way out of the situation. But not today! He spoke his mind, and it all came out.

“I think you and the others are just a bunch of posers. You say things to impress people, but you don’t mean them, and you don’t care about us.  It’s all for show.”

Realizing a teaching moment was at hand, the instructor responded with kindness, “My challenge to you, young man, is to get an education and then go out and confront the hypocrisy you so readily see in the world and change things for the better.”

This was the turning point of his life! He began pursuing his education with a higher purpose in mind. With degrees in hand and happily married, he has been teaching philosophy, critical thinking, and creative writing at the university level for the past 30 years.

Knowing my friend as I do, I can say with great confidence that he has been changing things and making a positive difference in the lives of students, associates, and his family since that day.

In this account we find a universal truth: when you educate a man, you liberate a man. The most important key to a proper education is to read to the point that words become precious. As you learn, you will begin to see that you are the person who has the most to do with you and what happens in your life.

This matters because our country needs you! You need to understand that the men who founded this nation believed that our system of government was designed for a well-informed and educated people. They understood that each of us needs to play our very important part in maintaining liberty.

While it’s true we need smart people to understand and correct our problems, what we need even more is people who care. People who are willing to love God, to love their neighbors, and to live by the Golden Rule.  Like the teacher at BYU, our nation’s greatest need is people with common sense who care about others and the future of our country.

There is a great deal riding on the education of our young people. Misunderstanding freedom, many great and powerful nations have destroyed themselves from within through moral decay, fiscal irresponsibility, and selfishness. A proper education will instill these lessons because they matter, for the same fate could happen to us.

You can make a difference! Be inspired by men like Abraham Lincoln who carried a book with him everywhere he went; and often that book was the Bible. Be motivated by women like Emily Dickinson, who wrote, “There is no Frigate like a Book, to take us Lands away.” Be anxiously engaged in self-improvement. Discover a steadfast purpose to sustain you.

Like my friend, you were sent to earth to make a difference. Improve yourself, gain experience, help others along the way. As encouragement, I offer this poem:

The more you read, the more you know;

The more you know, the smarter you grow;

The smarter you grow, the stronger your voice;

When speaking your mind, or making your choice.

America is the only country founded on the principle that men and women should and could govern themselves. Seek true knowledge and govern yourself accordingly. Have confidence that the goodness of your life will lead to success and happiness.

Please see: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

Blog: americasgrand.design

Oppenheimer: an appeal to the academic left

The Vital Importance of Limited Government, Religious Influence, and Economic Freedom

 The secret of education lies in respecting the pupil.  –Emerson

When J. Robert Oppenheimer, a physics professor at Berkeley, was approached by General Leslie R. Groves to head the Manhattan Project there was the “snag” of Oppenheimer’s left-wing background, which, in the words of General Groves, “included much that was not to our liking by any means.” The general wanted Oppenheimer anyway, because none of the other men suggested for the position appeared to be his equal. “He’s a genius,” declared Groves.

For his part, Oppenheimer thought himself “a most improbable appointment. I was astonished.” At thirty-eight years of age in 1942 when he accepted the assignment, he listed three reasons on how he had changed in recent years from one who “had no understanding of the relations of man to his society.”

First, “I had a continuing, smoldering fury about the treatment of the Jews in Germany.”

Second, says Oppenheimer, “I saw what the Depression was doing to my students. And through them I began to understand how deeply political and economic events could affect men’s lives. I began to feel the need to participate more fully in the life of the community.”

Third, a few years prior to 1942, as he began to move among what he called “leftwing friends,” he wrote, “I liked the new sense of companionship, and at the time felt that I was coming to be part of the life of my time and country.” However, after reading Engels and Feuerbach and all of Marx and finding their dialectics less rigorous than his taste, Oppenheimer declared, “I never accepted Communist dogma or theory; in fact, it never made sense to me.”

Appealing to all members of academia, I would like to ask you to consider how deeply political and economic events are affecting the lives of your students. In hundreds of thousands of cases, year after year, young people are leaving our institutions of higher learning saddled not only with debt but unable to find suitable employment in an economy that has been reduced in many respects to a manifestation of leftwing politics. To address this very basic and systemic problem, your students need each of you–like Oppenheimer’s students needed him–to feel the need to participate more fully in the life of the community by promoting an economic environment that allows them to fulfill their potential and actualize their dreams.

How can this be done? Sadly, with leftwing politics so ingrained within our society, rather than moving into an economy built on meritocracy and free-market values, the talents and gifts of hundreds of thousands of students are being denied expression. With an emphasis on undermining the values of Western civilization, as well as a full-throated endorsement of a green agenda–which, in turn, leads to censorship, the curtailment of free expression, and mob rule–powerful interests are scuttling human potential by promoting a limited kind of diversity. This is no surprise, for as the data demonstrates, at many institutions of higher learning, those with the highest levels of education (including administrators and educators) are the first to dismiss those with conflicting points of view. In one of the great paradoxes of our time, many of those who prize academic freedom for themselves above all else are denying the very essence of academic freedom to those they teach. This is not the education standard our young people have been promised. The resulting impoverishment of intellect is a great loss to them and a tragic loss for our country.

There needs to be a major change in how we approach education. Instead of the politics of coercion, which are grounded in sensitivity, diversity, multiculturalism, and environmentalism (as defined by liberals), we need classrooms where traditional and theoretical ideas can find expression. We need laboratories where students can come to grips with how best to unleash their talents and potential in pursuit of their highest aspirations. Unfortunately, however, to the collective detriment of all Americans, an iron curtain of censorship has descended upon many of our institutions of higher learning. Rather than promoting academic freedom of speech and the free exchange of ideas many of our most prestigious centers of higher learning are promoting diversity in everything but thought.

The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield, and government to gain ground. –Thomas Jefferson

That which the academic left undermines and opposes through censorship can be reduced to three categories: limited government, religious influence, and economic freedom. Institutional opposition to these foundational elements is one of the great mysteries of a free society, especially in light of the conclusion reached by Dr. Oppenheimer (the UC Berkeley creator of the greatest school of theoretical physics that the United States has ever known) that Communist dogma or theory never made sense to him.

It is imperative that today’s young people are taught and understand that limited government, religious influence, and economic freedom are the pathway to the fulfilling of their potential and the betterment of society. No centralized government, no matter how big or well-intentioned, can effectively and efficiently control society in a beneficial way. On the contrary, big governments are inherently inefficient and harmful because in their promotion of dependency they rob citizens of their initiative and self-respect. As declared by President Franklin Roosevelt, “Continued dependence on government support induces a spiritual and moral disintegration fundamentally destructive to the national fiber. To dole out relief in this way is to administer a narcotic, a subtle destroyer of the human spirit.” Evident in our time, big government corrupts the political process and eventually kills the goose that lays the golden eggs.

The parents have a right to say that no teacher paid by their money shall rob their children of faith in God and send them back to their homes skeptical, or infidels, or agnostics, or atheists. –William Jennings Bryan

During the past several years, I have had many rewarding experiences driving people from the Salt Lake Airport to Park City for the Sundance Film Festival or their ski vacations. The 45-minute drive is always interesting as I get to know people from all around the world. Two winters ago, as I drove two first-year college students from Austin, one of them proudly announced that she was a philosophy major who does not believe in God anymore. When I asked her how her parents felt about her atheism she said, “My dad is very sad.”

On a subsequent occasion I was driving a family of four. A daughter, who was attending Notre Dame, happened to be a philosophy major as well. When I asked her if her teachers had destroyed her faith, her mother looked up and said, “I want to hear the answer to this!” The twenty-six-year-old responded, “No. At Notre Dame they are very respectful of religious belief.”

Contrast her experience with what happened to one of my nieces at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, during her freshman year a few years ago. As related by her, she said that she was sitting in a required philosophy class with hundreds of other students when a tenured professor walked in and said, “If any of you believe in God that’s okay. But if you believe in God at the end of this semester it will be because you are a ‘blanking’ idiot!” My niece related that she stood up at that moment and walked out of the class.

Her stand reminds me of the experience of Robert P. George, a devout Catholic and tenured Princeton professor who has been called the most influential Christian conservative thinker” in the United States by Time magazine. As a 19-year-old, George was sitting in an introductory political philosophy class at Swarthmore College discussing “Gorgias,” in which Plato questions the motives for debate by asking if individuals argue in order to find and advance the truth or simply to boost their own social standing by winning the argument.

For George, contemplating those questions for the first time in college was like “having a bucket of ice water thrown in my face, and I woke up. I realized I should be asking a much more important question than about how to win debates. I should be asking the question, ‘What side am I on?’ For the first time in my life…I had to think my way to where I would stand, rather than just standing where I stood because it was what the ambient culture told me.”

With its foundation in faith, its action in works, and its aim of obedience to God in improvement of self and benevolence to others, religious influence is the foundation of society, the basis on which all true civil government rests, and from which power derives it authority, laws their efficacy, and both their sanction. In other words, religious influence is a universal good–a key ingredient in the flourishing of individuals and societies everywhere.  Without its free expression, if shaken by contempt or loss of popular respect, the whole fabric of society cannot be stable or lasting.

Addressing why he is willing to fight for economic freedom, Charles Koch, Chairman and CEO of Koch Industries, Inc., recently wrote, “I want my legacy to be greater freedom, greater prosperity, and a better way of life for my family, our employees, and for all Americans. And I wish the same for every nation on earth.”

Those of us who cherish freedom and the opportunities freedom brings can relate to the desires of Charles Koch. We also want every living soul to experience the joy of potential fulfilled.

There are many reasons why the views of Oppenheimer, Roosevelt, George, and Koch have universal appeal. First, it is good to have feelings for the oppressed and to be willing to do something about it. Second, it is good to consider the state of young people who are facing a bleak economic outlook and be willing to participate more fully in the life of the community. Third, it is good to recognize the importance of limited government, religious influence, and economic freedom and then be willing to champion their value in the classroom, in the news, in political discourse, and from the pulpit.

A society that puts equality–in the sense of equality of outcome–ahead of freedom will end up with neither equality nor freedom.  The use of force to achieve equality will destroy freedom, and the force, introduced for good purposes, will end up in the hands of people who use it to promote their own interests.  –Milton Friedman

As a further inducement to the abolition of social injustice, I suggest that preparing students for an economy built on limited government, religious influence, and economic freedom is our best way forward as a nation.  As things now stand, the rate of return on capital, such as real estate, dividends, and other financial assets, is racing away from the rate of growth required to maintain a healthy economy. Stagnant pay, except among the super-rich, soaring health care and education costs, unemployment, high energy and transportation costs, and diminished expectations among young and old alike are becoming the norm. If these trends continue inequality will get worse as wealth becomes ever more concentrated in the hands of a few.  Moreover, the avenues of upward mobility that beckon us and define the American Dream will be closed off while retirement will become something to endure rather than to enjoy.

The solution to these problems is to create an economy with good paying jobs rather than an economy that punishes success via inflation, taxation, regulation, and redistribution of income.  If academia could somehow reconcile their egalitarian views on poverty, income disparity, redistribution, and the environment with a realization of how deeply political and economic events are affecting the lives of their students and others, they might begin to see the harm in unrestrained government, of social engineering, of denigrating our Founders and our Constitution, of mocking religious influence, and of bashing capitalism.

To underscore the vital importance of economic freedom I turn to the wisdom of Charles Koch:

“Karl Marx famously said: ‘From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs.’ The result of this approach is not equality, but rather a lowering of everyone’s standards to some minimal level.

“Some people worry about the disparity of wealth in a system of economic freedom.  What they don’t realize is that the same disparity exists in the least-free countries. The difference is who is better off.

“Under economic freedom, it is the people who do the best job of producing products and services that make people’s lives better. On the other hand, in a system without economic freedom, the wealthiest are the tyrants who make people’s lives miserable. As a result of this, the income of the poorest in the least-free countries is one-tenth of what it is in the freest.”

The whole art of government consists in the art of being honest… As for governing, I love to see honest men and honorable men at the helm, men who will not bend their politics to their purses, nor pursue measures by which they may profit, and then profit by their measures. –Thomas Jefferson

By doing their part to prepare their students to obtain good jobs in a market based economy, teachers and administrators will maintain the integrity upon which the system of higher education should be built. In so doing they will also help alleviate the problems of poverty, unemployment, and income disparity by placing their graduates firmly in the middle and upper-middle class income brackets.  Beyond that, if they will realize and teach that an economy based upon limited government, religious influence, and economic freedom is in the best interest of not only their students but the entire human family, then, and only then, will they play their unique and pivotal role in helping to turn around a desperately misguided ship of state.

American Founders and Constitution Month

The Utah State Legislature has designated the month of September each year (beginning in 2023) as American Founders and Constitution Month.

In support of this request, the Area Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is asking Church members to reenergize a spirit of patriotism and recognition of God’s hand in the origin and destiny of America, that we will be a nation under God, not without God.

It was not by chance that the Puritans and others who followed later left their native land and sailed to New England where they were inspired to establish the God-given system of government under which we live.

Our rights come from God. Civil power is justified only when it secures, promotes, and defends those rights. Essential to the citizens of a free-born society, freedom of conscience and expression are woven into the very soul of our nation.

Holistically outlining the interconnectedness of the historical events which overcame the Dark and Middle Ages and led to the development and establishment of America’s civil and religious liberties, my recent publication, America’s Grand Design, is a timely reminder that God governs in the affairs of men.

Preparing the way for the 1820 vision of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the ongoing restoration of the Gospel of Christ, this series of events is described by the Old Testament prophet Isaiah as “a marvelous work and a wonder.”

My conclusions are these:

  • The America experiment–the foundation of the blessings of liberty and justice for all–was foreordained.
  • We need not pretend to a divine commission and a sacred destiny.
  • America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s grand design.

The right to offer opinions about morality, society, politics, literature, art, science, or virtually any other subject developed gradually and took centuries of struggle to establish. For these essential characteristics of life to continue:

  • We must stop the mindless destruction of historical America.
  • Because error is preached all the time, truth must be repeated constantly.
  • We must reawaken to the truth that “righteousness exalts a nation.”

Please see: http://www.americasgranddesign.com (Special price: $12.00).

Our Finest Hour

“There is not a truth from history more certain than this: that civil liberty cannot long be separated from religious liberty without danger, and ultimately without destruction to both.” –Joseph Story, Associate Justice U.S. Supreme Court

Coming out of the Great Depression and World War II, the parents of the Baby Boomer generation (1946-1964) wanted to give their children the good life. The result was that the Boomer generation “did many did things which their fathers would have deprecated, and then drew about themselves a flimsy cordon of sophistry while talking about the advance of humanity and liberal thought, when it was really nothing more than a preference for individual license” (John Hall). Agreeing with this sentiment, Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, recently stated that Baby Boomers will “go down in history as the most disappointing generation ever, from sex, drugs, and rock and roll to what we have today.” Hyperbole? I am not sure. But I do see where this could be the epitaph of my generation unless we act firmly and decisively in doing that which is still within our power: changing the course of American civilization.

Along with the aforementioned influences, the Boomer era saw the curtailment of prayer, Bible reading, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, and the singing of Christmas carols in schools. In addition, they created Greenwich Village and Haight Ashbury, epicenters of the 1960s counterculture movement, orchestrated the passage of Roe v Wade, and saw some of the brightest and most ambitious among them take their talents to institutions of higher learning and to Wall Street where they could continue their bohemian lifestyles in more comfortable environs.

The collective result of these actions fueled the acceptance and teaching of Marxist ideas in universities, in the national media, and among the cultural elites. In other words, there was a steady cultural shift away from the traditional values upon which this nation was founded.

Accompanying these trends was America’s turning away from absolute truth and a sense of personal accountability. As described by a leading churchman, “We spend billions of our resources in litigation one against another. Our spiritual power is sapped by a flood tide of pornography, by a debilitating epidemic of the use of narcotics and drugs that destroy both body and mind, and by a declining moral standard that is alarming and devastating to relationships, families, and the integrity of our nation as a whole. In too many ways, we have substituted human sophistry for the wisdom of the Almighty.” (Gordon B. Hinckley)

While we live in a generally prosperous and optimistic age, yet grave problems persist, namely crime, violence, chronic poverty, teen depression, suicide, teen pregnancy, broken families, corruption, changing the meaning of words, fiscal irresponsibility, and other signs of cultural decline. The confrontation in which we are engaged is transforming popular ideas, beliefs, and our national character. Evidence abounds that the fight for the survival of our nation is upon us.

Having won the tacit approval of much of the press, influential policymakers, and a great many ordinary Americans, what has taken place is the triumph of sin and selfishness. In one of the great ironies of freedom, a growing number of our most gifted young people–as well as our citizens overall–are turning away from the principles of our founding, from the nobility of Western civilization, from the rule of law, from sound economic principles, and from the sacred, the very sources of our prosperity and survival.

Data also shows that the decline in foundational virtues–work, marriage, and religion–affects all levels of society. Wrote one essayist, “What a surprise! We raised a generation of bright kids without a foundation in religion . . . We never told them that the virtuous life was both necessary and hard, that character was something that had to be built step by step from youth, that moral weakness was contemptible and natural.” (Walter Russell Mead)

Affirming that although there are many successes in raising great individuals, a renowned scholar writes that conditions in today’s world are particularly difficult for boys. “Confusion regarding manhood abounds, including confusion about a proper understanding of virility. Fathers are missing from boys’ lives in devastatingly high numbers. Children are exposed to a dizzying array of cultural signals about what it means to be a man.” (William J. Bennett)

In search of answers as we cross traditional political and cultural boundaries, the driving force in the potential resolution of this conflict will be an increasing awareness that the fate of our nation depends, perhaps like never before, on this truth, as articulated by Aristotle, “All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth.” Order supplies the basics in training the rising generations; the fate of nations hangs on their education.

Thus, the biggest task at hand is to strengthen the home, family, and community, to remind ourselves of America’s Grand Design through a reaffirmation of our divine heritage and potential. To turn things around, we need a restoration of public sentiment in favor of America and to reintroduce classical literature and civic virtue into the classroom and the culture at large.

But there is a danger lurking. Alarming reports indicate fading respect for absolute truth and foundational traditions, which have obscured enduring values. With great numbers turning away from Christianity, and with many on the pathway to atheism, significant numbers from all generations are turning their backs on the religious traditions of their upbringing.

Each of these conditions point to the fact that if there was ever a time for religious influence in our society to be re-examined, the time is now. To achieve our common goals of the public peace, progress, and prosperity, we must be more articulate and persuasive in making the case for Christ, for Christianity, and for the principles of meritocracy, liberty, and justice, which are at the heart of the American system of government.

The rights of conscience and freedom of expression developed gradually and took centuries of struggle to establish. For these essential characteristics of life in America to continue, we must stop the mindless destruction of our Western and American heritage. We need not pretend to have a divine commission and a sacred destiny. America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s Grand Design.

In a partnership between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born, we must honor the great primeval contract of eternal society, underwritten by the Golden Rule, which connects the visible and invisible world and finds expression in our Declaration of Independence as “the right to life.” Driven by an all-consuming desire to amass power through the doctrines of scarcity, privilege, and fear, we must also realize that freedom’s future hinges on an essential truth: we do not have to choose between a clean environment (via socialism) and a prosperous economy. We can have both.

The roots of this clash extend back hundreds of years. It is a battle between capitalism and Marxism, between the power of the state and equal opportunity for each individual, and between freedom and coercion. It is therefore essential to re-emphasize that a democratic system depends on its legitimacy, not upon equal results, but a sense of equal opportunity.

It has been said that we are fast approaching that moment when, “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.” (Joseph Smith)

“To those who have discerning eyes, it is apparent that the republican form of government established by our noble forefathers cannot long endure once fundamental principles are abandoned. Momentum is gathering for another conflict–a repetition of the crisis of two hundred years ago. This collision of ideas is worldwide. Another monumental moment is soon to be born. The issue is the same that precipitated the great premortal conflict–will men be free to determine their own course of action, or must they be coerced? . . .

“The war in heaven over free agency is now being waged here on earth, and there are those today who are saying, ‘Look, don’t get involved in the fight for freedom. Just live the gospel.’ That counsel is dangerous, self-contradictory, unsound.” (Ezra Taft Benson)

In the movie Apollo 13, as the spacecraft faced multiple perils with three astronauts on board, the chance for a safe return was greatly diminished. Upon hearing his supervisor say, “I know what the problems are. This could be the worst disaster NASA has ever experienced,” Gene Krantz (Ed Harris), the leader in Mission Control, turned towards him and said, “With all due respect, Sir, I believe this will be our finest hour.”

As a generation of Baby Boomers, the challenge before us to preserve human freedom is daunting. Will we be remembered as the generation that lost liberty because of “sex, drugs, and rock and roll?” Or will we, in our finest hour, be the generation that reestablished America as “the world’s best hope?”

Brent Russell is the author of America’s Grand Design. http://www.americasgranddesign.

Blog: americasgrand.design.

Why I Wrote a Book

What does it mean that the American experiment was foreordained? The Ten Commandments, the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount, and the the Golden Rule–these articulate the divine and universal standards upon which all nations will stand or fall.

Five years ago, I began reading Thomas Jefferson, The Art of Power. Nearing the end of the Prologue, I was stunned by the Pulitzer Prize winning author’s words as he asserted that there was “nothing foreordained about the American experiment.”

As the days passed, I could not get those words out of my mind. They went against everything I had been taught about America’s founding and against everything I believed. Furthermore, I was deeply troubled that this point of view was gaining ground and beginning to take hold in the consciousness of the American people.

I gradually came to the conclusion that society will choose and decide; that someone’s values will prevail in the end. It was at that point that I decided to get involved, to push back against the secular perspective, to take a stand on behalf of freedom, religious liberty, America’s founding, and our Founding Fathers.

In the book I address many topics. With regards to whether the American experiment is foreordained, my study and research reaffirmed my personal beliefs. We need not pretend to a divine commission and a sacred destiny. America is a part of redemptive history, of divine prophecy fulfilled, of God’s grand design. Established for the rights and protection of all people, the United States Constitution represents the practical guarantee in the political arena that adherence to natural law and Christian teachings will protect freedom across the globe. Thus, America is a land with not only a sacred history and a prophetic destiny but also a tremendous responsibility to serve as a beacon of hope.

The foundation of knowledge flows from reading. I read to learn of those who have passed before, to weigh and consider, to discover something of value. I read to improve my mind and morals and to regulate my conduct, to mark the great events of the world, to discover new ideas, to separate the chaff from the wheat, and to make myself contemporary with past ages. I read to be taught, because what is written is beyond my own power to have produced.

George Macdonald wrote, “As you grow ready for it, somewhere or other, you will find what is needful for you in a book.” I hope this book will be useful in your search for truth.

For additional information: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

The Big Ideas of Life and Liberty

In Search of What Can Unite Us

Nations have boundaries, but there is no limit to the sphere of ideas. Big Ideas control the world; they are mightier than armies. Big ideas lift civilizations.

Big Ideas spring from noble and great souls, from those who contemplate God’s works, feel a generous concern for the good of humankind, exhibit sincere humility.

Our first parents were instructed in two Big Ideas: “multiply and replenish the earth” and “in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread.”

Champions of Big Ideas, Abraham is the father of nations. Moses is the great lawgiver. Isaiah saw the transcript of God, and in language both poetic and prophetic, wrote of the Messiah and of “a marvelous work and a wonder.”

The rise of the Greeks brought the Big Ideas of the Classical Age which influenced western civilization more than any other people. The Romans spread Greco-Roman ideas across the world.

With immortal words, “Do unto others, as you would have others do unto you,” Jesus brought forth the ultimate in Big Ideas: the sacred covenant of eternal society, thus connecting the visible and invisible worlds in a partnership between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born. Inspired by this Big Idea, Thomas Jefferson declared that each and every soul has “the right to life.”

The thousand years of darkness was a period of decline in spiritual learning and scriptural literacy. The term “Dark Ages” is directly linked to the efforts of medieval church leaders to keep the Big Ideas of the Bible out of the hands of the people and to mediate spiritual enlightenment through priests and bishops of the Roman Catholic Church.

The ages of Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, Discovery, Colonization, and Independence are testimonials to the power of Big Ideas. Beginning with the printing of the Bible and culminating with the ratification of the United States Constitution, the underpinnings of Western civilization were put in place by courageous and visionary individuals who fought against ecclesiastical overreach, scholastic intimidation, and the divine right of kings in pursuit of their civil and religious liberties.

In the ongoing effort to maintain our freedoms, we must value “the sacred right of conscience,” another Big Idea. The Founding Fathers concluded that only with careful cultivation of the soul, with attention to “the laws of nature and of nature’s God,” and with the uplifting assistance of family, church, and local community, America’s citizens could learn to control their passions and act worthy to receive the blessings of liberty.

The ages of Romanticism and Restoration are also testimonials to the power of Big Ideas. Encouraging emotion and creativity, Romanticism emphasized our relationship with the natural world and the sublime.

Among the Big Ideas presented in the Book of Mormon is that there is an opposition in all things, that this life is the time to prepare to meet God, that we should mourn with those that mourn, comfort those who stand in need of comfort, and stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places.

Building on the premise that we are being tested as a nation by small ideas that divide us, former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw shared his unique perspective on how Big Ideas over the past several decades united us and shaped what he called the American century.

These Big Ideas included our defense of freedom against Nazi and Sino aggression, creation of the GI Bill, establishment of minority rights, unleashing science and technology through the vision of going to the moon, emphasis on conservation, new opportunities for girls and women, opening relations with China, confronting and defeating the value system of the Soviet Union, knitting civilization back together after the fall of the Berlin Wall, improving the world through the gifts, influences, and inspiration of talented and visionary individuals and ordinary women and men. Summarizing his list of Big Ideas, Mr. Brokaw wondered where America would be today without them.

Against this backdrop, I pose the question: what are the Creator’s plans for the human family? My answer is based on the Big Ideas embedded within scripture, reason, and modern revelation.

At the dawn of creation God gave us freedom of choice, informed us that this earth would be created for us, and told us that we would be given physical bodies. Our reaction was stunning: “. . . the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy” (Job 38:7). We are on earth to prove ourselves, to grow, to build relationships, and to gain experience.

Explained Joseph Smith, “At the first organization in heaven we were all present and saw the Savior chosen and appointed and the plan of salvation made, and we sanctioned it.” The Prophet further declared, “The great plan of salvation is a theme which ought to occupy our strict attention and be regarded as one of heaven’s best gifts to mankind.”

The contention in heaven was that Jesus said there would be certain souls that would not be saved; and the devil said he would save them all. When the grand council gave its vote in favor of Jesus Christ, the devil rose up in rebellion against God thus beginning the war in heaven.

“The war in heaven over free agency is now being waged here on earth, and there are those today who are saying, ‘Look, don’t get involved in the fight for freedom. Just live the gospel.’ That counsel is dangerous, self-contradictory, unsound” (Ezra Taft Benson).

Big Ideas illustrate that we are on earth for a purpose, that a divinity stirs within us. Accompanying this certainty is another Big Idea, declared by Cicero, “There is, I know not how, in the minds of men, a certain presage, as it were, of a future existence.”

Another Big Idea, we are all born for a higher destiny than that of earth. “Divine wisdom, intending to detain us some time on earth, has done well to cover with a veil the prospect of the life to come” (Mad. de Stael).

The ultimate in Big Ideas puts everything into perspective as we contemplate where we came from, why we are here, and where we go when we die. Searching for answers to our spiritual and intellectual concerns on the boisterous sea of liberty, the words of our Maker, the Great Governor of the Universe, ring out, “This is my work and my glory, to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”

To learn more, please go to: http://www.americasgranddesign.com

Religious Freedom: Cornerstone of Peace

Holy Bible King James Version

The current divisions in the United States are distressing, complex, and increasing in intensity. In the main, they spring from differences between the religious and secular.

As a result of these differences, signs abound that the great battles of the future will occur over the free exercise of conscience, religion, and free expression. Because obedience to the law and political toleration are fundamental to peace and prosperity, if there was ever a time for religious influence to be re-examined, that time is now.

Such a refocus is essential because religious freedom is at the core of what America is and what it stands for. Yet, it is under fire from those who openly ask whether religion belongs in American public life at all.

“For the first time in nearly 300 years, important forces in American society are questioning the free exercise of religion in principle–suggesting that free exercise of religion may be a bad idea, or at least, a right to be minimized” (Douglas Laycock).

With no sense of history, some claim that religious people and institutions violate the constitutional separation of church and state if they bring their beliefs into the public square. A few scholars have even gone so far as to argue that religion does not deserve to be tolerated, much less receive special protection.

The intent of this blog is to promote shared interests and values for the good of society. It is put to forth ideas which will serve the needs of the people and the common good.

It is my belief that those who question the value or legitimacy of religious liberty do not understand that religious freedom is woven into the very soul of America. It is “the cornerstone of peace in a world with many competing philosophies” (D. Todd Christofferson). It is a cherished heritage we must defend.

Explained by historian Perry Miller, “When the English undertook to plant colonies in America, they commenced . . . not with propositions about the rights of man or with the gospel of wealth, but with absolute certainties concerning the providence of God.”

Our nation was founded as an experiment in human liberty: “It was religion, which, by teaching men their near relation to God, awakened in them the consciousness of their importance as individuals. It was the struggle for religious rights, which opened their eyes to all their rights. It was resistance to religious usurpation which led men to withstand political oppression. It was religious discussion which roused the minds of all classes to free and vigorous thought. It was religion which armed the martyr and patriot in England against arbitrary power, which braced the spirits of our fathers against the perils of the ocean and wilderness and sent them to found here the freest and most equal state on earth” (William Ellery Channing).

Religious purpose connected the Puritans of Massachusetts and stirred Virginia’s first colonists, with both groups looking to God for their success. William Penn (Pennsylvania) and Roger Williams (Rhode Island) established colonies dedicated to the principle of religious liberty.

Furthermore, the principal influence in public debates leading up to the American Revolution was the King James Bible. Indeed, America’s War for Independence cannot be understood without taking into account the religious teachings that motivated patriots to action.

Believing that no provision in our Constitution ought to be dearer to man than that which protects the rights of conscience, Thomas Jefferson defined freedom of thought as the most critical goal of the American Revolution. As the grand architect of our Founding Charter, Jefferson was firm in his conviction that without the freedom to live and practice what we believe, the other freedoms are irrelevant. These are the truths that called Americans to action and upon which this nation was founded.

Religious liberty is a fundamental right. “In a pluralistic society, promoting one’s values for the good of society is not imposing them on others–it is putting them forward for consideration along with others. Societies will choose and decide. Someone’s values will prevail in the end, and all of us have the right–and duty–to argue for what we believe will best serve the needs of the people and most benefit the common good” (Christofferson).

Religion and religious freedom are deeply connected to both the formation of America and our ongoing effort to form a more perfect Union and establish justice. Drawing upon our noble heritage as Americans, this is our moment to defend our fundamental freedoms. As Winston Churchill said on the eve of the Second World War, let us “arise again and take our stand for freedom as in the olden time.”

For further information, I invite you to visit: http://www.americasgranddesign.com