Here are four texts that define the essence of America.. we value all citizens… and we take ACTION to help each other. We don’t wait for the government to fix it. .Is there any better way to make the case for generosity than to look at what we have accomplished so far in America… or what still needs to be done? Think of the Constitution as your personal ‘to do’ list.
The Big Four:
THE DECLARATION OF “INTER-DEPENDENCE”
John Winthrop’s sermon on the ship named “Arabella” in 1630. Winthrop eventually became Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, but on his way to the ‘newe world’, he said this to his fellow passengers:
Wee must be knit together in this worke as one man, we must entertaine each other in brotherly Affeccion, we must be willing to abridge ourselves of our superfluities, for the supply of other’s necessities… We must delight in eachother, make other’s conditions our own….always having before our eyes our community as members of the same body.
This sermon was delivered 150 years BEFORE our nation was formally founded. Winthrop defined a culture of generosity that has shaped America every since. Without a commitment to ‘the greater good,’ the colonists could not hope to survive and prosper in the ‘newe land.’ The whole sermon can be read here.
THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE
The Continental Congress compiled this amazing document over the summer of 1776, with Thomas Jefferson as the primary ‘writer’.
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…..
And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
The ‘right’ to the pursuit of happiness ( which won out, thanks to Jefferson, over the right to property) meant pursuit of civic virtue and duty ( everyone had a natural ‘right’ to practice their democratic responsibilities). Each citizen had to worry about everyone else’s happiness, in order to guarantee his or her own. What an idea!
The greater good was the defining principle behind the Declaration. Without mutual commitments to each other, no capitalist democracy can survive.
THE YALE UNIVERSITY TREASURER’S REPORT – 1831
Winthrop’s idea that citizens need to invest in each other in order for the nation to prosper is articulated here in perfect 1830 terms. American is great because we strive to educate all citizens to their highest capability, regardless of income or origin. Why waste talent and ability that could help our nation ( and, of course, all of us in the process?) Yale made an early commitment to this philosophy, counting on some ‘superflueties’ to meet ‘necessities’:
The College is [] in want of funds for the relief of necessitous students. Individuals of this class have not unfrequently risen to the highest stations of influence and authority in the nation. The welfare of our republic requires that such men be educated. Other colleges very generally offer education to them at reduced price, Yale must therefore do the same, both to promote the interest of the community and to secure her own prosperity.
So whether you are seeking scholarships, funds for the local hospital, or support for an after school program for poor kids, you can cite this basic truth. In America the very best institutions ( or cities, or businesses) have always competed to support those in need. In the process, of course, they secured ‘their own prosperity’ just as Yale did through offering scholarships 175 years ago.
Now, there are additional texts that deserve to be committed to memory and used repeatedly. But get these down pat and put them to work.. In a few weeks, we will take a look at some ‘religious’ texts from our founding Judeo-Christian tradition. These ‘words of wisdom’ far surpass the dogmatic boundaries of any given faith, and simply define the basic reasons why we are lucky enough to be in this world as thinking, feeling human beings.
ALEXIS DE TOQUEVILLE. DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA – 1835
American moralists boldly aver that men should not sacrifice themselves for their fellow creatures because it is noble to make such sacrifices, but that such are as necessary to him who imposes such on himself as to him for whose sake they are made!
deToqueville recognized something unique in our new nation… that generosity toward others is an essential component of well-being for the individual and an essential component of life in a democracy.