Freedom and Forgiveness

After declaring independence from England on July 4, 1776, on this day in 1776 word arrived to King George III that it had been done. It was no longer just a colonial rebellion, but instead a full blown declaration of freedom that featured these immortal lines:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

This week when I gather with a group of women who can trace their heritage back to men (and the occasional woman) who held leadership roles in this rebellion and the formation of the new government, I am wondering how we should pray? It occured to me that we are descended from people who "made America great" from the beginning. And yet with the words above and the actual conditions in the colonies/new country how can we say we were great? Even the great make mistakes, we might say.

We are a great nation when we admit our mistakes, ask for forgiveness and continue to make the changes necessary to be a beloved community where we admit ALL PEOPLE are created equal and endowed by their Creator with...Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. Though we must not call ourselves a Christian nation, we are a nation where religious differences are allowed and must be embraced. Thus I might use this confession of sin from Morning Prayer, Rite 1:

Almighty and most merciful Father,

we have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep,

we have followed too much the devices and desires of our

own hearts,

we have offended against thy holy laws,

we have left undone those things which we ought to

have done,

and we have done those things which we ought not to

have done.

But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us,

spare thou those who confess their faults,

restore thou those who are penitent,

according to thy promises declared unto mankind

in Christ Jesus our Lord;

and grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake,

that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life,

to the glory of thy holy Name. Amen.