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 …
So wrote our founding fathers on July 4, 1776. They recognized that our rights come from our Creator, not from government. This Independence Day 234 years later, our nation needs to remember that government is not God. Only the Lord, the Creator, is God.
ALMIGHTY God, who hast given us this good land for our heritage; We humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favour and glad to do thy will. Bless our land with honourable industry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogancy, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that, through obedience to thy law, we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in thee to fail; all which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ~ Prayer for Our Country, 1928 Book of Common Prayer