Issue 28.16
Part 2
This continues our examination of the thoughts and words of our founding fathers as to the value of virtue in our leaders. Please read and think about these concepts when considering who to support.
From Benjamin Franklin
I pronounce it as certain that there was never yet a truly great man that was not at the same time truly virtuous. The Busy-body, No. 3, February 18, 1728
Be in general virtuous, and you will be happy. letter to John Alleyne, August 9, 1768
From John Adams
Public virtue cannot exist in a nation without private, and public virtue is the only foundation of republics. There must be a positive passion for the public good, the public interest, honour, power and glory, established in the minds of the people, or there can be no republican government, nor any real liberty: and this public passion must be superior to all private passions. letter to Mercy Warren, April 16, 1776
We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other. Address to the Military, October 11, 1798
Children should be educated and instructed in the principles of freedom. Defense of the Constitutions, 1787
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! letter to Abigail Adams, November 2, 1800
If there is a form of government, then, whose principle and foundation is virtue, will not every sober man acknowledge it better calculated to promote the general happiness than any other form? Thoughts on Government, 1776
The only foundation of a free Constitution is pure Virtue, and if this cannot be inspired into our People, in a great Measure, than they have it now. They may change their Rulers, and the forms of Government, but they will not obtain a lasting Liberty. letter to Zabdiel Adams, June 21, 1776
From Noah Webster (founder of Webster’s Dictionary)
In selecting men for office, let principle be your guide. Regard not the particular sect or denomination of the candidate — look to his character…. Letters to a Young Gentleman Commencing His Education, 1789
The virtues of men are of more consequence to society than their abilities; and for this reason, the heart should be cultivated with more assiduity than the head. On the Education of Youth in America, 1788
From Joseph Story – Commentaries on the Constitution 1833
Republics are created by the virtue, public spirit, and intelligence of the citizens. They fall, when the wise are banished from the public councils, because they dare to be honest, and the profligate are rewarded, because they flatter the people, in order to betray them.
More to come.
Lynn West is a thinker, a teacher and a patriot. You can reach him through email at forgingthefuture2021@gmail.com or through this newspaper. Liberty is a state of being which must be continually created. These articles can help all of us discover the ways we can contribute to that outcome.