Pilgrim Church

The Saga of Reverend John Lyford

To set the context for this story, we need to rehearse the theology of the Pilgrim Church in relation to its minister. Pastor John Robinson had taught them in Leiden that “a company of faithful people thus covenanting together are a church, though they be without any officers among them.” Robinson had taught that “if…

Pilgrim children

Accusations and Answers from Plimoth

In the spring of 1624, the Pilgrims realized that changing the “common course and condition” (communal farming) to a private initiative where each family was responsible to produce its own corn was wise. Bradford writes, “…Having found the benefit of last year’s harvest, and setting corn for their particular, having thereby with a great deal…

Alamo

“Remember the Alamo!”

Battles inspire us when we rehearse the ideas worthing dying for. Texas was initially owned by Spain, but as George McAlister writes, “Three major independent factors changed the destiny of Texas.” They were U.S. independence from Britain in 1781, U.S. acquisition of the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803, and the independence of Mexico from…

James Monroe

The 200th Anniversary of the Monroe Doctrine and the Turning Point of American Foreign Policy

On December 2, 1823, the Monroe Doctrine was proclaimed by President Monroe. It was the culmination of key ideas drawn from the Bible and articulated in the Reformation. Three words came to define the foreign policy of America and the application of the Monroe Doctrine: independence (rejecting interdependence), neutrality (rejecting intermeddling), and interposition (rejecting interventionism.)…

USS Constitution

The Legacy of the USS Constitution

On October 21, 1797, the USS Constitution was launched in Boston Harbor after two previous failed attempts. The Naval Armament Act, signed by George Washington on March 27, 1794, authorized six frigates. She was the third to be completed, preceded by United States and Constellation. The other three were Congress, Chesapeake, and President. Essentially this…

Bill of Rights

The Pursuit of Happiness

Genesis 1:28 states: “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it.” The word “subdue,” from the Hebrew, is a word that indicates authority to steward the earth. Interestingly, we are not to take dominion over people. Also, we are accountable to God for our stewardship. The first piece of real estate was the…