In the opening scene of the movie 1776, John Adams is sitting next to a bell in the belfry of Independence Hall. The Congressional custodian McNair is calling for him for an important vote: And when he realizes it is for some equipment, he bursts out shouting, “When will Congress vote for independency!”
The move to declare independence was a long struggle, the South claiming that it was simply an issue that faced New England. Finally, when Richard Henry Lee of Virginia moved that “these United colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent States” the Continental Congress agreed to vote on the resolution July 1.
This day, July 1 was one of heated debate regarding the Declaration of Independence to be adopted. The compromise struck kept slave states agreeable, a price to be paid later in a terrible Civil War. It’s always easy to second guess history but we were not there making the decisions.
Prayer for the Day
You who are ever present in our lives, open us to your ways,
Broaden our vision of your work in the world;
You who call us from our preconceived notions of your will,
Shake us from our slumber and awaken in us a new heart.
Enlarge the boundaries of our thought and imagination,
Confronting us with love's demand for justice and mercy,
As did the One who lived for others,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen
Thoughts for the Day
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Benjamin Franklin, Patriot, statesman (1706-1790)
I want to be remembered as a person who wanted to be free and wanted other people to be free as well.
Rosa Parks who refused to move to the back of the bus (1913-2005)
Hear a just cause, O Lord,
Attend to my cry; give ear to my prayer from lips of deceit.
From you let my vindication come, let your eyes see the right.
Psalm 171-2