POST 35 THE BEGINNING OF FREEDOM

4 min.

Providential Orchestration and the American Founding

The Emergence of a Free People

The Declaration of Independence marked the appearance of a free people upon the stage of history. Thomas Jefferson crafted it as “an expression of the American mind,” distilling centuries of moral insight, philosophical inquiry, and spiritual yearning into a single, world‑altering statement. Joseph Smith later affirmed its divine purpose: “God established this land by the hands of wise men whom he raised up unto this very purpose.”

George Washington recognized the uniqueness of the moment. Writing in 1783, he observed that the foundation of the new nation was laid not in an age of “ignorance and superstition,” but at a time when “the rights of mankind were better understood and more clearly defined than at any former period.” The Declaration became the turning point of human liberty — the birth of a people who claimed their freedom by appealing to both reason and revelation.

The Articulation of Universal Rights

In 1776, the Declaration did more than announce separation from Great Britain — it articulated a universal moral grammar for human freedom. Its opening lines declared that all people possess inherent, God‑given rights, and that governments exist only to secure those rights. This was not political rhetoric; it was a revolutionary assertion about the nature of humanity itself.

Jefferson grounded human equality in creation — not in culture, class, or government — and insisted that liberty is woven into the very structure of reality. “The Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God” became the twin pillars supporting the claim that rights are eternal and non‑negotiable. Abraham Lincoln later observed that the Declaration’s principles were intentionally placed there “for future use,” meant to serve as a permanent rebuke to tyranny and a safeguard against humanity’s recurring temptation to oppress.

In 1776, these truths were spoken aloud in a way the world could not ignore. They became the moral foundation upon which the Restoration would later stand.

The Formation of a Nation Grounded in Consent

The Declaration’s claims demanded a new political order. In 1776, the American people openly rejected the ancient assumption that authority descends from kings or priestly castes. Instead, they affirmed that legitimate government rises from the consent of the governed — from a people endowed with rights by God who lend power to government only for their protection.

This shift overturned millennia of political tradition rooted in coercion and inherited rule. The colonies asserted that government is not a master but a servant; not a sovereign over the people but an instrument created by them. Consent became the cornerstone of a political order designed to secure liberty rather than restrain it.

This principle created the civic environment necessary for the Restoration: a society where individuals could think, speak, worship, and assemble without fear of state persecution.

The Rise of a Constitutional Order Capable of Protecting Liberty

Independence alone could not preserve freedom. Universal rights, however boldly proclaimed, could not defend themselves. Consent required institutions strong enough to restrain tyranny yet limited enough to protect agency. Thus, 1776 initiated the long labor that culminated in the Constitution — a framework designed to divide power, check ambition, protect minorities, and bind rulers to law.

The Constitution transformed the aspirations of 1776 into a durable reality. It provided stability without oppression, strength without domination, and authority without absolutism. It created a nation where scripture could be published, missionaries could preach, congregations could gather, and prophets could speak. It established a political environment uniquely suited for the Restoration — a land where freedom could expand, truth could circulate, and God’s work could advance.

A Divinely Guided Foundation

Seen through the lens of the Restoration, the American founding was not accidental. It was the culmination of an inevitable chain of events — a divinely guided preparation for a world in which truth could spread without coercion, scripture could be published without suppression, and prophets could speak without fear. The rise of America was foreordained because liberty was foreordained. And liberty was required for the Restoration.

Reflecting on the monumental achievements of the Founding Fathers, John Adams wrote, “He who loves the Workman and His work, and does what he can to preserve and improve it, shall be accepted of Him.” His words capture the reverence he felt for the divine hand he believed guided the birth of the nation.

Nearly a century later, in April 1898 during General Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, Wilford Woodruff, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, affirmed that same divine influence. He declared: “Those men who laid the foundation of this American Government and signed the Declaration of Independence were the best spirits the God of Heaven could find on the face of the earth. They were choice spirits, not wicked men. George Washington and all the men that labored for the purpose were inspired of the Lord.

“Every one of those men that signed the Declaration of Independence with General Washington called upon me, as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, in the Temple at St. George two consecutive nights, and demanded at my hands that I should go forth and attend to the ordinances of the house of God for them.”

To Latter-day Saints, the cause of the patriots—kindling and sustaining the sacred fire of liberty—was not merely a political triumph. It was a divinely orchestrated step in preparing the world for the Restoration of the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Their work created a nation where religious freedom could flourish, where truth could be sought without restraint, and where the Lord’s purposes could unfold.

With the Lord’s sacred assurance that He had “established the Constitution of this land,” another essential prerequisite for the greatest event in modern history was soon fulfilled: the personal visitation of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ to the Prophet Joseph Smith. In a land governed by inspired principles of liberty—free from the legal constraints that had long hindered spiritual renewal—the Restoration could rise, take root, and bless all mankind.

Thus, the foundation and destiny of the mighty nation foreseen in the Book of Mormon became inseparably intertwined with the higher purposes of God. The American experiment in freedom was not only a political achievement; it was a divine preparation for the unfolding of the latter-day work.

Next post: The Soul of the First Amendment