Government

The purpose of government, according to the founding fathers, is to protect the natural rights of man, secure the blessings of liberty, and promote the general welfare. The founder’s philosophy of governance drew deeply from their christian-enlightenist roots. In order to realize just how far reaching the benefits of their ideas are to all Americans now, it is important to know what each of these phrases really represent:

Protect the natural rights of man – Natural rights are those rights that are given by God and that do not violate the laws of nature or nature’s God – that is the laws that govern the physical, moral, and creative realms of mans existence.

Secure the blessings of liberty – Liberty (freedom) comes from God, and is the natural state of man because man is created in the image of God, who himself is eternally free.  Blessings refer to gifts and enjoyments that are part of the natural design of life and given through grace.

Promote the general welfare – Means to bring everything within the scope of creative reason and natural authority in order to improve the overall vitality, strength, and order of society.

Taken all together, these key phrases summarize government’s essential role as one that creates the robust, equitable, and just conditions within society that will best serve the people’s natural right and responsibility to pursue life, liberty, and happiness (well being), both from an individual perspective and within the context of society.

The general welfare is made up of the health and harmony of a free, happy, and virtuous populous.