Human Agency and the Revolution

One of the basic doctrines shared by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is that our birth into this world did not mark the beginning of our existence, but merely an advent into the next phase in an ongoing plan. We existed before our birth as spirit sons and daughters of Eternal Parents, living in their presence and being tutored at their holy side (The Family: A Proclamation to the World; paragraph 2-3). At some point in that previous spiritual life, God presented a plan to us that would enable us to gain a physical body and progress in our character and knowledge to become like Him, that we might share in the Eternal happiness and peace that He enjoys. A few things would be needed for that transformation to occur. Among those things were: the institution and perpetuation of the family, obtaining a physical body, gaining experience through a stint of mortal time, a Savior to provide a means of liberation from sin and death, and time enough to acquire the godly attributes that constitute the framework of an Eternal Life. One key element that would be absolutely indispensable in this transformation process would be the ability to freely manage our own lives and to choose for ourselves to integrate Christ-like attributes into our character.

Freedom to act as we see fit has always been inseparably connected to the purposes of God in bringing to pass our Immortality and Eternal Life (Mos 1:39). In fact it was of such monumental import that God was willing to cast out Satan and his followers for seeking to take that freedom away. In so doing, God lost one third of His children, who were tragically wooed away into exile by Satan's promises to make a perfect society where no one would be lost. In this, the mortal phase of God's plan, Satan continues the exact same campaign that he waged in the pre-mortal world. He seeks our misery and will never stop seeking it until we are as miserable as he. He does so by doing two main things 1) enticing us to go against the laws of  God and 2) stripping us of the freedom to act out our own will.

History is filled with a continual stream of civilizations which were given an initial measure of freedom, they chose to abandon righteous principles, and were then subjugated by a King or some other form of overpowering government. Many of these governments simply conquered with brute force. While others have flattered people into support by promising an end to all of the societal woes from which they suffered, woes largely brought on by their choice to abandon virtue. Soon enough, these kinds of governments start imprisoning and killing those that don't willingly submit or those that science or religion or whim deem to be inferior, justifying their actions in the name of the good of society. In the 20th century alone, 169 million people were killed by governments claiming to be on the errand of a better tomorrow, more than four times the number of people killed in all the wars of that century combined. These governments slowly convince the people that they will deliver society from its hardships, if given the opportunity. They convince the people that they needn't worry about trusting them with vast amounts of power because they are benevolent, smart, and have the people's interest in mind.

Regardless of how these governments come to power, the pattern for the people is nearly always the same: freedom, wickedness, subjugation.

I an attempt to flee such oppressive government, the Pilgrims left Europe to come to America. Once there, they established colonies and grew in prosperity. A few centuries passed and the ever-reaching hands of insatiable government hung over the colonials once again. When King George III had proven determined to rule the colonists unjustly, they felt their only recourse was revolution. At this crucial time, God saw fit to call the world back to the core principles of government that allow personal freedom to flourish, enabling His work of transforming souls to advance unfettered by despotism. This was done through a group of men, whom God "raised up" for this purpose (D&C 101:80) and whose collective political genius surpassed any seen before or since. These men, through inspiration, created a new kind of government based on old principles, Eternal principles. These principles were boldly proclaimed to the world in the Declaration of Independence, whose signers pledged everything they had to ensure their establishment as the foundation of a new nation. Once independence had been achieved through blood and Providence, these inspired men constructed a constitution that wove the moral implications of the principles in the Declaration (D&C 101:77) throughout the fabric of a new and unique republic.

The republic born out of the "just and holy principles" (D&C 101:77) re-enthroned in the founding era quickly, within 100 years, became the most powerful and prosperous nation on earth, and the people of the United States enjoyed a measure of freedom that drew admiration, hatred, and immigrants from nations across the globe. Due to the conditions of freedom and prosperity set up through the Constitution, the Lord was able to restore His gospel in its fullness to mankind and His church for its dissemination across the earth, advancing the cause of Eternal Life for its final push before the Millennium. In the wake of the American Revolution, many countries across the earth sought to establish constitutions of their own, modeled after government established by the Founders. In this way the Constitution truly was established by God "for the rights and protection of all flesh" (D&C 101:77), and it set up a much broader foundation of liberty worldwide in which human agency could flourish more fully and into which the Lord could send the truths of His gospel.

As the years have passed since America's inception, however, Satan has continued to fight to take away human happiness and destroy God's plan through the same means he always has, 1) enticing people to abandon God's laws and 2) stripping them of their freedom to act out their own will. He has succeeded on both fronts in significant and sweeping ways. In each case his progress has come through small steps, often barely noticed, but whose aggregate has set this country on a course very different from its founding.

As Benjamin Franklin was exiting the Constitutional Convention in 1787, he was asked what kind of government the Convention had decided on. He replied, "A republic, if you can keep it." I hope to share with you over the next few posts some of my thoughts about how the foundations of that republic have been and are in great danger and what the only means are by which there is any hope of keeping it.