Part 1 — Events and People Who Prepared the Way

  In order to appreciate the historical setting of God’s hand in the building of America, we need to review some of the little-known or forgotten events that led to the discovery and development of the Western Hemisphere. The Founding Fathers would probably consider this one of the most important parts of our study of American history, because it covers the tempestuous historical period that gave birth to our great American heritage. During that great formative period of the United States more than two centuries ago, the American Founding Fathers became acutely aware that all mankind is seeking the same three things

1. Freedom
2. Prosperity
3. Peace

They set out to find a system of government that would provide these things for the people of America. Unfortunately, in their own day no such government existed. They therefore determined to sit down and invent one. It was fortunate for the Founders that they were able to build upon the sacrifices and hardships of those who had preceded them. It became very evident to them that without God’s help, freedom never would have become a reality. Even though many nations contributed to the establishment, development, and settlement of the United States, there were three that had the greatest impact on historical America. The contribution of France was the great belief that freedom was a gift from God. This was manifest in the marvelous story of the life of St. Joan of Arc, a personage of history, highly revered by the American founding Fathers. From Spain came the great concept of the mission of spreading the religion of Christianity throughout the world to uncharted lands. This led the great Columbus to declare, “It was the Lord who put into my mind (I could feel his hand upon me) the fact that it would be possible to sail from here to [the New World]….I did not make use of intelligence, mathematics or maps. It is simply the fulfillment of what Isaiah had prophesied.” England’s great contribution would come in their documents of freedom, especially: The Magna Charta, The Petition of Rights, and The English Bill of Rights. Although the Magna Charta preceded the Founders by more than 500 years, they were all thoroughly familiar with it, and 17 of them had memorized it entirely. Today, many of these religious truths have been eliminated from our public schools and college textbooks. As a result, most Americans are floundering and don’t know where to turn during these troubling times. Many are giving up hope. However, renowned author W. Cleon Skousen, as the co-founder of the Thomas Jefferson Center, explained:

• • I am not pessimistic about the future. I think the soul of America is going to be cleansed by events which will humble the whole nation and put us back on our knees where we can talk with God and recommit ourselves to lives of virtue and morality. I am a great believer in the promise o God which appears in 2 Chronicles 7:14 which says:
    • “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

Dr. Skousen went on to explain:

• • Of course, I know the skeptics, the immoral, the political sophisticates and the cynics might laugh at this scripture, but I believe it. And I further believe that God will not be mocked and that if this nation does not seek God and turn from their wicked ways — their crimes, drugs, abortions and political corruption — there will be a crisis and a cleansing that will turn the people from their wicked ways and put them on their knees.  I have lived long enough to see this happen several times before.But we need not be pessimists, just realists. Every family needs to do whatever it can to put its house in order. A home can become a refuge against the coming storm. The love developed between parents and among children for their parents is God’s supreme formula for his kind of social security. Wherever I find families struggling to build these bonds of trust and love I know they are paying the dividends for a kind of insurance that will hold them together through the pressures an trials that may reach their peak one of these days.Now I know you may have heard me say this before, but sometimes people say, “Dr. Skousen, you have studied the problems of our country most of your adult life, and yet you remain optimistic. How can you be optimistic when you know from your own experience how serious thing are?”My answer is rather simple. I tell them, ‘I have read the book, and in the end we win!’

We at the Thomas Jefferson Center agree with Dr. Skousen. Americans WILL win – but only if we do our part. All of us need to appreciate that the God of heaven did not establish the first free people in modern times just to see us collapse into oblivion. We believe America can and will be saved. It must be saved, however, by individuals, who will take the time and energy to learn about the Founding Fathers’ principles of freedom, and then work diligently to see that they are restored and implemented. The Thomas Jefferson Center for Constitutional Studies has developed a seminar called “The Healing of America” where the steps to take in getting America back on track again are outlined in detail. This “Healing of America” series reveals the documentation as to what is really happening to our beloved America — not so we will fret over the problems, but so we can know how to help fix the problems. In Seminar 1-1, “Events and People Who Prepared the Way,” you will be able to receive in-depth training on this vital subject of America’s beginnings.