A republic, if we can keep it
The above title is taken from a new book by New York Times bestselling author Eric Metaxas entitled “If You Can Keep It—The Forgotten Promise of American Liberty.” He in turn took his title from a response Benjamin Franklin gave in 1787 to a Mrs. Powell, as he left Independence Hall on the last day of the Constitutional Convention. He and the other delegates had just approved our founding document, and as he left the building she asked: “Well, doctor, what have we got? A republic or a monarchy?” Franklin, “the sage of the Constitution,” replied: “A republic, madam—if you can keep it.”
As Metaxas points out, unlike a monarchy, in which the subjects have no responsibility for its present or future operation, the fate of a republic rests in the hands of its citizens. Thus, Franklin’s point was that the Constitution was merely words on paper, and it would be up to each generation to be faithful to its purposes and to perpetuate its blessings for posterity.
Metaxas’ motivation in writing the book is his concern that the “flame of ordered liberty given to us by the founders” is in danger of going out. He first identifies a confluence of factors that fueled the flame in the first place, a principal one being the great spiritual awakening that spread through the colonies just a couple of decades before the Declaration of Independence. He then notes that the growth of faith and an increased emphasis on virtue that resulted from the great awakening combined with a desire for liberty to form “a three-legged stool” by which the vitality of each are heavily dependent upon the others.
Metaxas cites the writings of Adams, Washington, Jefferson and Madison who all, in one way or another, emphasized the importance of faith and virtue among the people as being essential to the long-term viability of the nation they helped form. As he notes, the latter two have lost their importance in our culture over the past several decades, turning us further and further away from the foundational principles that made America great in the first place, and thereby putting the “flame of ordered liberty” at risk of being extinguished unless we as a people act to rekindle it.
I probably have not done justice to Metaxas’ book so I highly recommend you read it yourself. Maybe you will agree with his thesis and his explanation of it, maybe not. But polls show that the great majority of Americans believe our country is headed in the wrong direction. Therefore, isn’t it incumbent on each of us to think about the causes and what we individually can do to keep the “flame of ordered liberty” burning brightly for the generations that follow?
This is not simply a matter of electing the right person for president or ensuring that one political party gains control of the Congress. Rather, it is a matter of reviving the hearts and minds of individual Americans. Only when that occurs will many of the things that ail our land begin to be healed. When and where does that begin? The answer for each of us should be “with me” and “now.”
If you agree, there is an opportunity coming for this community to take a first step. From September 11 to September 14, the First Baptist Church will be holding a revival each evening at 6:30 p.m. It will be led by Tim Clark, author of “With God All Things Are Possible!” and he has a powerful testimony to prove it. This is not denominationally specific. It is open to all who seek revival individually or for our nation. As the Bible tells us in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
I encourage you to read the book and to join us at the revival.
— Joe Cornelison
Maryville, Missouri
