Celebrating America's Unity Through Shared Beliefs

America is about to turn 250 years old. That's a big deal! But right now, the country feels more divided than ever. People argue about everything. It's easy to forget what brings us together. Maybe this birthday is a chance to focus on unity instead of division. Think about the Declaration of Independence. It starts with a famous sentence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident. . . " This sentence wasn't written in one go. It went through many changes. Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams all had a hand in shaping it. Jefferson first wrote, "We hold these truths to be sacred. . . " But Franklin changed it to "self-evident. " This change was important. It showed that the new nation was built on reason, not just religion. But then, they talked about rights coming from a "Creator. " This balance between reason and faith is something the Founders understood well. At the signing of the Declaration, John Hancock famously signed his name with a big flourish. He said, "We must all hang together. " Franklin replied, "Yes, we must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly we'll all hang separately. " This was a warning. They knew that if they didn't stick together, they would fail. Today, the challenge is the same. How can we stay united when so many things try to divide us? Maybe by remembering our shared principles. The ones written in that great sentence of the Declaration. It's a reminder of what we all believe in.