Sunday's Story: Freedom to Sing!

When I was a kid my Dad was in a play written by a friend, Steve Alvis. It was a play called "The Magna Carta" that was about the Magna Carta, the Declaration of Independance, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and so on. Some of the music was original but also of this musical took songs from well known musicals and changed them up a bit.



Like:


Musical: How to Suceed in Buisness Without Really Trying
Song: I believe in You


Changed to: I believe in this (The Constitution)
"There it hangs, just by a thread. This land somehow I Trust. It maybe out of date to hear me say, but say it I must... We have the cool, clear, do-cu-ment of wisdom and truth.

...oh I believe in this, I believe in this!"

(Something like that...I used to have this memorized because we went to every single practice.)

Musical: Damn Yankees
Song: You've gotta have heart....


was changed to: "You've gotta have Clout"
(It made fun of big wig political strong arms who tend to gain from political policies they push.)





The play went though various key points in time. In the very end of the play my Dad was Congressman Decatuer from Illinois who gets shot because he was defending freedom in a speech.
Wow this was like 1987-ish. I can't believe I can still remember all this.








---> The point here is we live each day in freedom because good men have willingly gave all that we, the generations to come, could have a government that was accountable to the people. We need to remember that.



But what is even more important is that we do not loose the remembrance of why that call to separate and be independent had to be made.





They were called British colonists but had no representation of themselves in Parliament. After the French and Indian war, Parliament decided that in order to show it was still fully in charge of the colonies it would tax them 78,ooo pounds for the French and Indian war.


The colonists were also not allowed to form their own defensive militias to guard themselves against any foe or even join up with the local British army.


Then came the Sugar Act, The Currency Act and the Quartering Act and that last one was a doosie!! They had to allow troops to come in at any time and live off of them in their own homes at the colonists own expense.


Soon after there was the Stamp Act and the Townshend Act which was more taxes and the boycott was formed which led to the infamous Boston Massacre.


Then the Tea Act which sparked the infamous Tea Party.


Every "Act" alienated the colonists from the land they came from. Britain began to give orders closing ports, making town meetings illegal. Even though they felt Parliament was acting illegally colonists sent numerous petitions, pleas to the King. The King then declared that the States were "in rebellion" ...and it was then that we stepped forward making


the Declaration of Independence.



I believe that just because I'm an American I can still look at this objectively. I see how to begin with the colonists paid less taxes than regular people in London. They were allowed autonomy for so long that when Britain stepped back into their lives it was like a Dad who had birthed you then took off and when you turned 18 decided to step back in as your Dad and tell you that he was in charge of you and, oh yeah, you need to pay the rent for both of you.





But I see the hard choice that they had to make in the midst of losing everything. They were every bit by bit becoming slaves. They became desperate, resorting to violence when violence was brought upon them. They had no avenue for justice. The Magna Carta became their silent advocate and battle cry.

Written 575 years earlier the Magna Carta is an English legal charter which declared:

No freeman shall be taken, imprisoned,...or in any other way destroyed...except by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land. To no one will we sell, to none will we deny or delay the right of justice.



It became the framework of the Bill of Rights...to be exact the 5th Amendment.


I believe the colonists made the right choice. I love America. I also love England. My family was still in England during 1776 up till the late 1800s.


BUT America is my home and the Land I LOVE!


I will never say that people here are more righteous than those of other countries because that's simply not true. There are many things that are becoming more morally wrong about America everyday. I hope that we all will stand up for those things that are important to us.


Let us keep the thoughts of those who wanted to create a better tomorrow for us forever in our hearts.


Let's not say, "Well it's wrong but that's how things are done now days."





We have the FREEDOM to judge righteously according to the dictates of our own conscious!!


I reverence the documents that the founders of this nation made. Not because I feel they are as Holy as the Holy Scriptures but because I am inspired by them and the cost at which they were made.



Happy Birthday America!!

As a family tradition we sing as many songs about the country as we can. I'm sure we'll do it again today! I am happy to be alive and to live here. It's wonderful life!