the clear thinking common sense of reagan conservatism
Pres. Reagan's Remarks at the Annual Convention of the National Association of Evangelicals in Orlando, Florida
March 8, 1983
I tell you there are a great many God-fearing, dedicated, noble men and women in public life, present company included. And, yes, we need your help to keep us ever mindful of the ideas and the principles that brought us into the public arena in the first place. The basis of those ideals and principles is a commitment to freedom and personal liberty that, itself, is grounded in the much deeper realization that freedom prospers only where the blessings of God are avidly sought and humbly accepted.
The American experiment in democracy rests on this insight. Its discovery was the great triumph of our Founding Fathers, voiced by William Penn when he said: ``If we will not be governed by God, we must be governed by tyrants.'' Explaining the inalienable rights of men, Jefferson said, ``The God who gave us life, gave us liberty at the same time.'' And it was George Washington who said that ``of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.''
And finally, that shrewdest of all observers of American democracy, Alexis de Tocqueville, put it eloquently after he had gone on a search for the secret of America's greatness and genius -- and he said: ``Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the greatness and the genius of America. . . . America is good. And if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.''
March 8, 1983
I tell you there are a great many God-fearing, dedicated, noble men and women in public life, present company included. And, yes, we need your help to keep us ever mindful of the ideas and the principles that brought us into the public arena in the first place. The basis of those ideals and principles is a commitment to freedom and personal liberty that, itself, is grounded in the much deeper realization that freedom prospers only where the blessings of God are avidly sought and humbly accepted.
The American experiment in democracy rests on this insight. Its discovery was the great triumph of our Founding Fathers, voiced by William Penn when he said: ``If we will not be governed by God, we must be governed by tyrants.'' Explaining the inalienable rights of men, Jefferson said, ``The God who gave us life, gave us liberty at the same time.'' And it was George Washington who said that ``of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.''
And finally, that shrewdest of all observers of American democracy, Alexis de Tocqueville, put it eloquently after he had gone on a search for the secret of America's greatness and genius -- and he said: ``Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the greatness and the genius of America. . . . America is good. And if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.''
posted by hondo at 11:11 PM
2 Comments:
Love your blog. I hope you consider linking to us:
www.cofcc.org
I appreciate your kind words, and I appreciate the fact that there are grassroots, conservative organizations out there fighting the good fight against liberalism. I can't, however, in good conscience, link to your site. I'll tell you why.
I went to your site and looked at your statement of principles, where I found the following statements:
"We therefore oppose the massive immigration of non-European and non-Western peoples into the United states..."
"We also oppose all efforts to mix the races of mankind..."
I myself oppose affirmative action, as do you. I oppose the unconstitutional forced desegregation efforts legislated by activist judges during the 60's and beyond. So do you. I absolutely DO NOT oppose legal immigration of anyone into this country. I support the legal immigration of any group of people who want to come to America, work hard, support the foundational principles of this great republic, and assimilate into the unique American culture. To say that we are "a European country" and that we should remain European is, quite frankly, racist.
Besides, why would your organization, as Christian as it professes to be, cling so tightly to a culture that is so thoroughly secular. Europe has turned its back to God, and they are suffering the consequences today.
There is so much about your statement of principles that I agree with. I do not understand, though, how people who profess to be Christians can also be racists. If America is indeed a Christian nation, if that's our goal, why would we deny anyone the opportunity to come here and become a part of that? Wouldn't that fit right in with Jesus' command to go into ALL the world and preach the Gospel? Think about it.
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