The celebration of Independence Day this year brings our nation many difficult challenges of health, discord, and controversy. It is a year when the Statue of Liberty, a monument to freedom, is closed to visitors and when public firework celebrations cannot take place. The somberness of this year’s celebration reminds us of the many other times of challenges within our nation including its very birth on July 4, 1776, with the Declaration of Independence.
That Declaration gives us great hope as it defines what our nation is all about holding to the “self-evident truths” 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.” These words have brought and will continue to bring us through many somber times, just as they do this year. Abraham Lincoln referred to the Declaration of Independence as “that immortal emblem of Humanity.” May that immortal emblem continue to give us hope, strength and resolve to work together to heal the ills that affect us always with the help of God, our Creator. We have much to celebrate in our great nation during this somber time.
A Blessed Independence Day to all! God bless America!
