Why Faith, Freedom, and Family Are More Relevant Than Ever

Commentary

As America celebrates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence this July 4, the question must be asked: “Do Faith, Family, and Freedom Still Matter?”

All three of these values were instrumental in the founding of our Great Republic, and yet, over the past several decades, we have seen each slowly erode in our society.

We turned from a nation that extolled faith, and the morals and values accompanied by it, as good to a nation that often vilifies those who seek to live out their faith and those values daily.

We have replaced the family—the cornerstone of any civilized society—while celebrating “alternatives” that have led to generations of broken children and societal dysfunction.

And meanwhile, our basic First Amendment freedoms—freedom of speech and freedom of religion—continue to come under assault by angry voices seeking to silence any dissent to their particular worldview.

Personally, it grieves me when we, as a nation, have seemingly lost our way, particularly when it comes to these values—the foundations upon which our country was built but now abandoned as we chose to go our own way—often with disastrous results.

So much of our current cultural and political problems have occurred because we, as a nation, have chosen to exalt ourselves over our neighbors. This focus on “self” has led to great division and the relentless, and ultimately fruitless, chase for instant gratification over communal spirit. This has created and perpetuated a cycle of broken marriages, fractured families, societal cynicism, and government dependence—all of which continues to pick up speed like a hurricane sitting off the Florida coast.

In my heart, I know these values are not lost, they just need to be restored to their former place of prominence as the foundation of our society, and that is the crux of my new book, “What Really Matters: Restoring a Legacy of Faith, Freedom, and Family.”

As a nation, we can bring that destructive cycle to a halt and restore our national health by returning to the values upon which it was founded. Strong marriages will result in strong families, strong families will raise healthy, successful children, and strong faith will restore a society based on civility and human dignity, rather than division and blatant disregard for life.

In 1953, at his first presidential inauguration, Dwight D. Eisenhower uttered these prophetic words: “A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both.”

I do not want to see us become a nation that loses its principles because we abused the privileges those principles made possible. Faith, freedom, and family still matter, and will always matter if we want to survive another 250 years and far beyond, as a nation. If we abandon these basic principles, we will no longer have a foundation upon which to stand, and like a building with a weak foundation, eventually it all comes tumbling down.

We need to point people to the light—the light that made us a “shining city on a hill”—as President Reagan used to say—for the world to follow and emulate. While the hour may seem late, we can still steer the good ship America back on course. But we can’t just wail against the darkness.

If we do so, we will be a society that honors God, loves its neighbors, and seeks to encourage each of its members to live up to their God-given potential, rather than a society with no hope, anger, and despair. By remembering and restoring these principles—“what really matters”—we can chart that course to a glorious American future.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.