36° and Overcast
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By Olympia Caswell
Part2
As mentioned in my previous article, I came to the US from Romania when I was 20. Growing up, our father told me and my three siblings about the promise and exceptionalism of America. Himself uneducated, he learned from Free Europe and Voice of America (radio stations the communists forbid us to listen to) about America’s exceptional form of government and the freedom people in America enjoy – including religious liberty.
As Baptists, there was plenty of persecution and harassment because of our faith. One thing I remember vividly was being mocked in front of my classmates for “being stupid” and “believing fairy tales” - referring to the Bible and other things like that… As a child that affected me a great deal.
I dreamed of coming to America for a long time… I often thought that God had a special place in His heart for America, and that the Great Experiment (as people called it), was a great blessing for America but also for the entire world. In other words, Americans were the good guys…
A Changing America
People who lived in Romania, me included, recognize coercion and censorship for the sake of silencing opposing voices, enforcing conformity brainwashing, attacks on freedom of speech, and other elements of Marxist ideology which are unfortunately pervasive in American culture today. These are prevalent in our schools, the press, corporations, Hollywood, even some of our churches… It scares me to death.
When I came here, the majority of people believed America to be the best country in the world. This is no longer the case. A recent survey shows that only 37% of Democrats and 69% of Republicans still believe this.
Compared to when I arrived here, the country is very divided. In the name of tolerance, people are actually very intolerant of other people’s beliefs and opinions. Social media cancels opposing ideas and political convictions, wiping them away as if they never existed… no, this is definitely not the same America as when I first arrived.
Recently I read "If You Can Keep It," by Eric Metaxas, a book whose title references a comment about the Constitution attributed to Benjamin Franklin. This helped me deepen my understanding of this country’s founding and its uniqueness. I knew the general history, but never understood in what specific ways the Constitution and America’s form of self-government are simply without equal.
Martin Luther King in his” I have a dream” speech, said the following: “When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to full heir. This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” The promise of America was for all past, present, and future Americans.
What I understood from this book is that to keep and maintain this unique republic requires the participation of all citizens.
Unfortunately, however, many of our children are uneducated about the principles behind the founding of our country and its exceptionalism. While they may know bits and pieces, they often rely on feeling rather than fact regarding the faith aspect of America’s founding.
Our founders believed that good morality was insufficient to keep the average American honest and virtuous and that people needed religion and a God-fearing belief system in order to flourish. America is exceptional because of its faith-based roots and its basic foundational principle of loving God and neighbor. I agree with Eric Metaxas when he says, “Freedom requires Virtue; Virtue requires Faith; Faith requires Freedom.”
Reagan says this in one of his speeches: “…for I believe that Americans in 1980 are every bit as committed to that vision of a shining city on a hill, as were those long-ago settlers ... These visitors to that city on the Potomac do not come as white or black, red or yellow; they are not Jews or Christians; conservatives or liberals; or Democrats or Republicans. They are Americans awed by what has gone before, proud of what for them is still… a shining city on a hill.”
I recommend this book to everyone in America, no matter your political affiliation, age or socio-economic background. It’s a fabulous means to comprehend the founding of America and the means of keeping our beloved republic so that it can remain that city on the hill for the entire world.
I hated the politics in Romania and had no desire to become involved in politics when I came here – I thought I could just enjoy freedom without having to do anything. That’s what I believed until a few years ago, that is. But no more.
Now I’m extremely motivated to help restore the values my parents risked their lives for.
Several months ago, I joined the local Republican Town Committee in Franklin. While I don’t pretend that this party has all the answers to every question; they clearly believe our Constitution is the best place to start, and they actually respect people’s right to have differing opinions. In fact, they not only respect the right to have differing opinions; they actually think it’s healthy!
Above all, they believe the Great Experiment has only begun, and that we can improve our society and world without giving up everything to an all-powerful government.
I plan to work hard to help this town and state become more tolerant, not less, and to honor and support all the people that work so hard to help their families and communities.
Indeed, the dream of the “Founding Fathers” is still compelling and important to me. I only hope others will choose to join me in rebuilding our shining city.
