Celebrating American Values on Independence Day
Happy Fourth of July!
Let's take some time today to celebrate the values that made America great.
Here are a few:
Religious Freedom
Our founders created a nation where we can self-determine our religious beliefs and live according to those beliefs.
Reject Christian Nationalism
Our founders rejected the idea of becoming a theocracy or a nation where one faith is privileged above the rest.
Pluralism
Our founders created a nation of diversity, where we can all live side-by-side with our differences, bound together by our Constitution. Even those who reject pluralism are free to live here.
Tolerance
Our founders knew what intolerance looked like from their recent history of religious civil wars in England, where Catholics and Protestants were killing each other over their differences. They wanted none of that.
Limited Government
Our founders wanted a government stronger and more active than the Articles of Confederation, but not a government that would be central to our lives. They knew what it was like to live in a monarchy and wanted none of that.
Rationality
Our founders didn't believe humans were naturally prone to authoritarianism, incapable of self-governance. They believed in the ability of "we the people" to be able to work together in determining our shared destiny.
What else? What values are you thankful for today? Let us know in the comments.
New Book!
Do you have a friend, neighbor, or family member who embraces the unamerican and unchristian views of Christian nationalism? Pastor Caleb Campbell, an AVC board member, has written a book for you. Disarming Leviathan: Loving Your Christian Nationalist Neighbor, published this week, will help you better understand Christian Nationalism, why someone would be drawn to it, and how to confront it in a loving way, with compassion and hospitality.
Want to hear more? Join us in Atlanta where you can meet Pastor Campbell and hear more about loving your Christian nationalist neighbor …
Sale Ends Today!
FOURTH OF JULY SPECIAL: Use code “July4” for half-off!
What Else We’re Reading
Katie Sexton and Caleb Campbell: “As Arizona pastors, we can’t let a GOP official use Christianity to ‘lynch’ someone”
As pastors in the state of Arizona, we are concerned about the toxic polarization that has taken hold in our state and the weight it is adding to the souls of our neighbors.
A video recently surfaced that showed violent rhetoric toward an Arizona public servant. It deserves the rebuke of Christians in our state — and all people of goodwill.
Maricopa County Republican official Shelby Busch told an audience that if Republican Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer were in the room with them, she would “lynch him.”
Axios: Behind the Curtain: Trump's imperial presidency in waiting
Former President Trump, if re-elected, plans to immediately test the boundaries of presidential and governing power, knowing the restraints of Congress and the courts are dramatically looser than during his first term, his advisers tell us.
Why it matters: It's not just the Supreme Court ruling on Monday that presidents enjoy substantial legal immunity for actions in office. Trump would come to office with a Cabinet and staff pre-vetted for loyalty, and a fully compliant Republican coalition in Congress — devoid of critics in positions of real power.
Reason: “How the Libertarian Party Lost Its Way”
The Libertarian Party's biennial national convention in Washington, D.C., last month was a snapshot of a minor political party in the midst of a major identity crisis.
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and independent challenger Robert F. Kennedy Jr. each spoke on stage, the former landing a coveted prime-time keynote slot. Fourth-place GOP presidential finisher Vivek Ramaswamy, who keeps trying to make a "libertarian-nationalist alliance" a thing, also gave a speech.
Michael Rectenwald, the favored presidential candidate of the Mises Caucus faction currently running the party, failed to secure the nomination after making a bumbling, post-Trump speech on stage while stoned, having made a spur-of-the-moment decision beforehand to pop an edible. Longtime party activist Starchild was dragged out by security for heckling the Republican headliner. In short, it was exactly what you might have expected had you been following L.P. drama over the past few years.
…
"I'm not even comfortable using the word 'libertarian' to describe myself, after all the damage the [Mises Caucus], LP, and MAGA have done to the word and scene," Bradley says. "At best, members of Mises Caucus are willing to tolerate and associate with known white supremacists, antisemites, Holocaust deniers….At worst, they are those people."
What We’re Watching
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