American patriotism hasn’t changed, we just forgot what it was.

Before I begin, I should give credit where credit is due. I recently read If You Can Keep It by Eric Metaxas. The book functions as a call to arms for American citizens, alerting us that our country has abandoned some of the very important characteristics that made it great.

Metaxas, an evangelical conservative, contrasts sharply with me, a technocratic liberal. Despite our political differences, I fell in love with the ideas he expressed, and I was inspired to write this as my own miniature call to arms. I’ll begin by discussing religion, something even a devout atheist such as myself can’t deny was influential in shaping our early nation.

The Shining City Upon a Hill - and a bunch of other things people said

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.” - Matthew 5:14

Our story begins with this Bible verse from the Salt and Light parable. Over time, the “light of the world” and the “town built on a hill” have become known as the “Shining City Upon a Hill.” The phrase’s renown is thanks to its significance in pre-American history. In 1630, on a ship bringing passengers to the New World, a now-legendary sermon given by John Winthrop referenced the city upon a hill.

“We shall find that the God of Israel is among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies; when He shall make us a praise and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, ‘may the Lord make it like that of New England.’ For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause Him to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world.” -John Winthrop, 1630

In modern English, Winthrop was remarking that this new civilization they were destined to begin would be seen all around the world. Every success and failure would be meticulously chronicled in the annals of history. Knowing this, Winthrop encouraged his listeners to watch their step and stay true to their faith, or as my mom would say “be on their best behavior.” This endeavour in the New World would require not only mettle and savvy, but also an undying dedication to morality and ethics. Upon these values, colonies were born.

As America collected more and more European settlers and refugees, it also gathered more and more sects of Christianity. Christianity is known for its ideas that all people, rich or poor, are equal in God’s eyes. Therefore, these Christian colonies were primed to be one of the first societies to declare all men to be created equal under not just religion, but the law as well. They just needed a unifying push to cast off the chains of colonizers.

Then George Whitefield happened.

Whitefield, one of the founders of Methodism, is today recognized as one of the most talented and prolific preachers ever to live. As a young man, Whitefield was unable to afford tuition at Oxford, so he accepted a role as “servitor,” which cast him on the lowest rung of the social ladder, and required of him many tasks such as cleaning halls, tutoring students, and even helping them bathe. But this also gave him access to the school.

During his time at Oxford, Whitefield became passionately devout, and experimented with asceticism in an effort to deepen his faith. When this left him unsatisfied, he and some friends adopted a strictly regimented and methodical mode of religious practice, which lead to his group being nicknamed “Methodists.”

Eventually, Whitefield began preaching, and thanks to a childhood background in theater and his copious amounts of raw talent, he had oratory skills the likes of which had never before been seen in either Britain or America. He quickly became a veritable religious phenom.

Whitefield rapidly gained fame in Britain, but more importantly, he had a great effect when he eventually traveled to America. This passage by Benjamin Franklin describes his talents.

“He had a loud and clear Voice, and articulated his Words and Sentences so perfectly that he might be heard and understood at a great Distance, especially as his Auditors [audience], however numerous, observ’d the most exact Silence. He preach’d one Evening from the Top of the Court House Steps, which are in the middle of Market Street, and on the West Side of Second Street which crosses it at right angles. Both Streets were fill’d with his Hearers to a considerable Distance. Being among the hindmost in Market Street, I had the Curiosity to learn how far he could be heard, by retiring backwards down the Street towards the River; and I found his Voice distinct till I came near Front Street, when some Noise in that Street, obscur’d it. Imagining then a Semicircle, of which my Distance should be the Radius, and that it were fill’d with Auditors, to each of whom I allow’d two square feet, I computed that he might well be heard by more than Thirty Thousand. This reconcil’d me to the Newspaper Accounts of his having preach’d to 25,000 People in the Fields, and to the ancient Histories of Generals haranguing whole Armies, of which I had sometimes doubted.” - Benjamin Franklin

Franklin, ever the scientist, recorded that Whitefield could be heard by nearly thirty-thousand people at once without a microphone . Over his career, it is estimated his total audience could have reached over ten million people, and approximately 80% of America’s colonists heard his message. Note also that Whitefield preached outdoors, so there were not obstacles to attending a sermon, and every race, class, and creed could hear Whitefield share his message. So what was his message? Whitefield, the once-pauper now luminary, believed every man to be equal in the eyes of God, and he preached just that.

Today, Whitefield is revered as America’s first celebrity. After him, we were no longer just a group of colonies united only in shared geographical location, but we had a cohesive ethic and belief system that we were committed to maintaining. America’s culture of virtue was observed by French political philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville, who explained in the following manner:

“There are certain populations in Europe whose unbelief is only equaled by their ignorance and debasement; while in America, one of the freest and most enlightened nations in the world, the people fulfill with fervor all the outward duties of religion.

“On my arrival in the United States the religious aspect of the country was the first thing that struck my attention; and the longer I stayed there, the more I perceived the great political consequences resulting from this new state of things. In France I had almost always seen the spirit of religion and the spirit of freedom marching in opposite directions. But in America I found they were intimately united and that they reigned in common over the same country.” - Alexis de Tocqueville

Tocqueville, also credited for coining the idea of “American Exceptionalism,” was noticing that American religion was not just about ceremonies, deities, and prayers, it was a way of treating others and interacting with society. Religion provided a set of moral laws that were adhered to just as closely as any king or president’s laws.

These laws came from the people, not from a government. The people followed them not out of fear of legal action, but out of respect for society. This basis of self-governing would prove critical to America’s ability to create a democracy.

After The Revolution - and a bunch of famous presidential quotes

We can trace American virtue through the years by remembering the words of our greatest Presidents. Perhaps no one expressed these ideas more eloquently than Abraham Lincoln did in the close of his first inaugural. Sensing the tension in the bonds of our Union, the President said…

“ I am loath to close. We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.” - Abraham Lincoln

He asserted here that the saving grace of America would not be military prowess, or a culture of law and order, but kindness and love for one another. He knew that for self-government to work, the “self” must be good and moral.

A century later, John F. Kennedy would reiterate this when he told us to value the good of society over the good of ourselves.

“My fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.” - John F. Kennedy

Society over self. The greater good. These are timeless American values. Just as timeless is the lesson that John Winthrop taught us in 1630, that our behavior in the New World would be watched and judged by all other countries, and that we had a duty to be moral. We had a duty to set an example. Ronald Reagan, who had made a habit of referencing the shining city upon a hill, made this argument in his farewell address.

I've spoken of the shining city all my political life, but I don't know if I ever quite communicated what I saw when I said it. But in my mind it was a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, wind-swept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace; a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity. And if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. That's how I saw it, and see it still.” - Ronald Reagan

Our founders and leaders thereafter considered morality to be indispensable to a free, self-governed nation. But why?

America Is Only As free As It Is Good

Consider a society plagued by ignobility, where citizens care only for themselves. The people—while they may begrudgingly follow the laws of their government—entirely neglect the laws of morality. A nation such as this would be infested by cheaters, connivers, and corrupters, and if the society wished to make any forward advances, it would need a forceful guiding hand to direct it. As you can predict, this forceful guiding hand would likely come dressed as a dictator or authoritarian, neither of which is conducive to freedom or self-government.

This means every bank that defrauds the public, every factory that pollutes a stream, and every cigarette butt carelessly tossed on the ground is an affront to our freedom. Each transgression requires pursuant legislation and law-making to prevent similar future sins, and these new laws necessarily extend the reach of government, requiring taxes to pay for enforcement, more intervention and observation, and an overall stronger guiding hand.

Of course, freedom is not necessary to a nation’s greatness. Many powerful countries have been built and run by power-hungry liars, frauds, and cons. In fact, some such nations still exist. But they are not free. Which begs the question: Is freedom itself valuable?

No. Freedom has no inherent value. It is what we do with freedom that makes it so. If we perceive freedom as license to sin, we are destined to fall into the clutches of corrupt authoritarianism. But if we perceive freedom as license to be virtuous in accordance with our own personal understanding of virtue, then we can have a society of saints, each dedicated to what they believe is good and true. This is the promise of freedom, but it is not to be taken for granted.

Freedom cannot be defended by guns or walls. Nor can it be maintained by habitual recitations of anthems or pledges. Instead, it is kept by daily tributes of selflessness and goodness.

If we wish to export this freedom, we cannot do so through military might. Rather we must first demonstrate the value of ethics and mores to the world so they will see what is required of citizens if self-government is to succeed. They will look to our shining city upon a hill as an illustration of what it means to be free, and they will unleash the better angels of their nature upon the world.

We must constantly remind ourselves and the world of two truths: America is great because it is good, and it is free because it is good. It must always be thus.



