We Pledge Our Sacred Honor

The phrase "sacred honor" is not commonly used anymore, so I will define the words using Noah Webster's 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language.

Two hundred years ago, the noun honor meant "reputation; good name; true nobleness of mind; magnanimity; dignified respect for character, springing from probity, principle or moral rectitude; any particular virtue much valued, as bravery in men, and chastity in females."

The adjective sacred meant "holy; pertaining to God or to His worship; separated from common secular uses and consecrated to God and His service; inviolable, as if appropriated to a superior being; as sacred honor or promise."

Since people once used a larger vocabulary than we do today, a few more terms contained in the definitions also need defining to make this phrase crystal clear:

Magnanimity was defined by Webster as "greatness of mind; that elevation or dignity of soul, which encounters danger and trouble with tranquility and firmness, which raises the possessor above revenge, and makes him delight in acts of benevolence, which makes him disdain injustice and meanness, and prompts him to sacrifice personal ease, interest and safety for the accomplishment of useful and noble objects."

Probity meant "primarily, tried virtue or integrity, or approved actions; but in general, strict honesty; sincerity; veracity; integrity in principle, or strict conformity of actions to the laws of justice."

Inviolable meant "not to be profaned; that ought not to be injured, polluted or treated with irreverence; as, a sacred place and sacred things should be considered inviolable; not to be broken; as an inviolable league, covenant, agreement, contract, vow or promise; not to be injured or tarnished; as inviolable chastity or honor."

Wow! When you consider what this phrase really means, it seems the embodiment of men like George Washington. None of the founders were perfect, as they were human beings and not God, but they certainly held themselves to a high standard, and that standard has been all but lost today.

I am humbled yet encouraged to hold (or pledge) myself to that same standard. If even a fraction of our fellow Americans would do the same, what a revival of honesty, integrity, respect for the rule of law, and sacred honor would shine to illuminate our way!

We Pledge Our Fortunes

Until the 2008 election, I had never before contributed money to a political candidate. I reasoned that (1) they didn't need my money, or (2) whatever pittance I could send them would be laughable in the scheme of things.

I believe I was not alone in such thinking. The political realm, especially on the national level, had become corrupt in part, I now believe, because ordinary Americans like me believed they couldn't make a difference. So corporations and leftist organizations stepped in to fill the coffers of very human politicians, appealing to their dark side and causing them to lose sight of the true nature of public service.

Since 2008 I have sent as little as $25 and as much as $100 to individual candidates. Those are drops in the bucket, but if just 10,000 of us "little people" sent a candidate $25, that's $250,000, a quarter of a million dollars. That's a lot of advertising money, especially for a Congressional race.

It's time we all did our part to take back our nation and restore the Constitution. Alone we can't accomplish much, but if each of us does his or her small part simultaneously, imagine what things we can accomplish! Each vote, each dollar contributed, each phone call, letter to the editor, or acquaintance persuaded to join with us will be democracy in action, the way our Founders intended.

George Washington and other leaders during the Revolutionary War never expected that they would have to dig deep into their own pockets in order to finance the cause of freedom. They were willing to sacrifice their own comforts to ensure that their posterity (and that includes us) would enjoy the fruits of their labors. How can we do any less in the face of mind-boggling debt and erosion of personal freedoms happening on a daily basis which will turn our children and grandchildren into slaves of the government if we don't do something about it?

Choose one or more local, state, or national races that you feel passionate about. Study the candidates, and when you find one you can fully support, do more than lip service; open your wallet to help them defeat the progressives!

Judas was a Democrat!!!

It never ceases to amaze me how liberals self-righteously invoke "the poor" in order to rob all of us of our hard-earned wages when they have no intention of making things easier for the truly needy. The merchants of racism (i.e., Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton) come to mind, as well as any liberal politician during election time.

If they ever "solved" the problem of poverty these crafty people would have to find an honest way to make a living.

Sadly, this is not a "new" problem:

"Jesus, therefore, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they made Him a supper there, and Martha was serving; but Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him.

"Mary therefore took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

"But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, 'Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii, and given to poor people?' Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it.

"Jesus therefore said, "Let her alone, in order that she may keep it for the day of My burial. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have Me." (John 12:1-8)

We Pledge Our Lives

I remember when I had a life that didn't include hours of waking moments spent in political discourse--re-learning the history of our nation's founding, reading the news, listening to talk radio, reading conservative blogs, writing emails and letters to elected officials, attending or planning to attend T.E.A. party events, sewing costumes for my fife & drum corps and for George & Martha Washington re-enactments, and now helping precinct chairs encourage others to vote Republican (as county secretary).

And then I remember those who gave up their normal lives, some very reluctantly, in order to make the necessary sacrifices to ensure that this country was born a free Republic. George and Martha Washington, John and Abigail Adams, Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock, Thomas Jefferson, Samuel Adams, and countless thousands of others pledged their lives to the cause of freedom, one that took many, many years to come to fruition.

That's one of the responsibilities of a free people--to make the sacrifices necessary to guard our liberties which have been bought so dearly by those who came before us. After all, we are only holding these blessings temporarily as guardians for our children and their children to enjoy.

This is no time to be selfish! It is vitally important that we pledge our lives to the cause of freedom or it will surely be taken from us forever.

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free." --Ronald Reagan