View previous chapter The Pilgrims: Who Are They
Sometimes the ignorance is so great you feel like you need a hammer and a chisel to free someone’s mind! Such is often my frustration as I talk with people about the Pilgrims and Puritans who laid the foundation of this nation. They have been so maligned by the media and liberal educators that almost no one knows the truth about them. This is why I’ve chosen to share with you Dr. Billy Graham’s words this whole month. His article in Decision magazine, November 2002, really reveals who the Pilgrims were and how they thought. His article would be great for you to read around your Thanksgiving Day table! Let's continue Dr. Graham’s writing:
He says, “Third, the Pilgrims have left us the example of freedom under law. The Mayflower Compact, forged before the Pilgrims left the ship, was the wedge that opened the door to a government controlled by the people; a government that has endured in the United States for centuries. Most historians agree that the Mayflower Compact was the forerunner of the Constitution of the United States. This little band of people searched for an equitable manner of earning a living and for a way of survival. They tried living a communal lifestyle, but according to Governor Bradford: ‘This communal system conceived by Plato was found to breed much confusion.’ When communal living failed, they assigned a parcel of land to every family; with individual enterprise, prosperity came to the colony.”
“In some parts of the world rebellious young people live, enjoying what they call ‘absolute freedom.’ They are free to take narcotics, free to experiment with sex, free to go unwashed, free to dress as they please, and do what they like. They remind me of a man in a hospital who had to be fed through a tube. Having tired of the tube with its discomfort, the man tore the tube from his body and declared that he was free. Free? He was free only to die, because he had removed himself from his hope of life.”
“The freedom exercised by the Pilgrims didn’t degenerate into license. Theirs was a liberty under law. The lawbreakers...dissidents, and criminals of our day would have been rejected by the Pilgrims. To them, freedom under the law meant judgment for the lawless. To them, retribution was not only a tenet of their faith, but it was also the practice of their commonwealth. They made laws in keeping with Biblical convictions. They not only feared those laws and their judges, but they also obeyed them. If they did not obey, they could expect a penalty.”
“Fourth, the Pilgrims left us an example of a people who had keen social concern. They believed that every person was made in the image of God; that each one was of infinite value and worth in the sight of God. They lived with Native Americans who had a different religion, a different skin color, and a different culture. In March of 1621 Chief [Massasoit] visited the Pilgrims’ village and signed a peace treaty that lasted for many years. It was a treaty with high social and ethical content, showing a deep concern for the social, political and spiritual needs of neighbors.”
“Though the Pilgrims knew that they were citizens of another world, they sought to improve the world they were passing through.”
“The Pilgrims made their new world better, not by tearing down the old, but by constructive toil and fair dealings with their neighbors.” End quote.
The Bible says,
“Remove not the ancient landmark which your fathers have set.”
(Proverbs 22:28)
Do your children know the landmark which the Pilgrims set for them---because you taught it to them?
Think About It. Because if you don’t, someone will do your thinking for you---
and for your children! And you won’t like what that brings to you. I’m Don Pinson, this has been Think About It.
and for your children! And you won’t like what that brings to you. I’m Don Pinson, this has been Think About It.
