The Birth of the Republican Form of Government: Protecting Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness (Illustrated)

By Stephen L. Corrigan

The author has divided the book into three sections. Each section has a mechanical illustration that describes the context of a fundamental law or principle used by the founders when creating this republic and its levels of government. The first section describes the context of the fundamental principles found in "the Laws of Nature." The Laws of Nature restrict man's freewill and identify the areas of criminal law to be enforced by State governments in America. These principles of liberty provide the foundation for the two capacities of all citizens in the new republic. The second illustrates how these fundamental principles are represented in the design of "The Great Seal of the United States." The third uses mechanical illustrations to explain the context of the fundamental principles and terms used in each stage of development of the new republic and the powers at the different levels of government.The author uses the timeline found in the first constitution of the State of New York to explain the power the people had to control their government after joining the Republic. By establishing the requirement of consent from the People before any law was legal, the People of New York established a new form of government in their State. They could now control all law made by lawmakers and the size of the government in their State. This timeline also represents the mindset of the people in every state united as one people. Each person as a member of the new republic is equal in standing as a citizen. Each person, being a member of the republic and under the laws of liberty defining their freedom, can exercise both capacities at all times as a citizen regardless of his origin or the color of his skin.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 19, 2021
• ISBN: 9781636302201

Book preview

The Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God Illustrated

The following is taken from the Declaration of Independence. It states,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation."

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. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed—that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to Affect their Safety and Happiness.

Under the New Testament, our founders believed God created all men as equals and gave to each the gift of life. When God gave each man the gift of life, He also gave him the ability to keep his life. Being afraid is a gift from God and is the only motivation to get man to act. This motivation is referred to as self-love. It is the foundation for self-government. When man sees a threat to his life, his fear causes him to act and resist any actions that he sees are a threat to his life or freedom. Because our founders feared God more than they feared man, they believed this ability would keep them honest when honoring their pledge to their fellow citizens.

Our founders were Christians who were Protestant concerning their political and religious stand concerning authority. They recognized God’s laws as being supreme. They were against any human authority that they could not control. They used God’s Laws of Nature to establish an internal standard of conduct for all citizens. This pledge to follow God’s Commandments recorded in the Declaration created an internal law, which resulted in a common conscience among all adults in the new republic.

They believed all men were created equal by God and that He wrote His Laws in their minds and hearts. He then gave to each individual the ability to discriminate between right and wrong based upon those Laws. They referred to this new sense as a common sense because it was common among all men.

This common conscience guaranteed every adult would have the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It gave every person in the new republic a new sense of security, concerning his neighbors and a common purpose to keep that security alive.

As a result of this belief, all external laws made in America could not amend or void any of these Laws of God. Our founders being Protestant meant they had made an internal law (an internal commitment to Christ) as adults to make Him Lord of their lives.

His Laws were now supreme. They as disciples were now required to strive to be faithful in following His Commandments.

As Protestant citizens, they believed that no human or entity could make a law concerning their conduct unless that entity had their consent. This doctrine was based upon a statement made by the Roman Catholic priest, Martin Luther, who was the author and father of the Protestant movement. He stated the following:

I say, then, neither pope, nor bishop, nor any man whatever has the right of making one syllable binding on a Christian man, unless it be done with his own consent. Whatever is done otherwise is done in the spirit of tyranny…I cry aloud on behalf of liberty and conscience, and I proclaim with confidence that no kind of law can with any justice be imposed on Christians, except so far as they themselves will; for we are free from all. (John B. Noss, Man’s Religions, fourth edition [The Macmillan Publisher] 483.)

Every authority—both religious and political—since the birth of Christ, has seen the Lord Jesus Christ as a threat to their power and authority. Since the birth of Christ, authorities have tried to change the consciences of all Christians by using the threats of fire and the sword.

As stated above, our founders believed God under the New Testament created all men as being equal and that He limited their free will by writing His Commandments on their hearts and minds. This limited free will was what our founders defined as liberty. When He created man, He also gave him no other motivation than self-love. This self-love is the motivation of all men to protect the life that God has given to them and protect their right to exist as free men.

This self-love or desire to protect both characteristics is the universal principle for action. It caused individuals in 1776 to come together from thirteen colonies under the control of England and bind themselves together in a social compact as a nation of individuals and separate from England as a compound association or confederation of thirteen free and sovereign States.

In their Declaration as a new Republic, they declared their rights in two capacities. As a member of the new Republic in their individual capacity, they had the right to be controlled by God’s Laws, according to their own conscience as long as it did not harm or bring harm to another citizen.

In their sovereign capacity, they had the right to create and control the governments in the sovereign State where they resided. They stated these actions were necessary in order to protect their beliefs about God and how He influenced their lives. Their self-love motivated these men to agree upon God’s Commandments as their common standard for Truth.

They believed each man had the right to use that standard to discriminate his own conduct and the conduct of others, concerning right and wrong as each pursued his own happiness. It allowed each man to worship God according to his own conscience and join any group that he felt did the same. Our founders believed that each man’s happiness was the result of that man’s obedience to God’s Commandments.

Under the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God, they believed it was their right to separate as a sovereign State within the new compound Republic and defend their rights and the rights of their neighbors to live as free men in the state where they resided. They also believed as a member of the Republic, they, in their sovereign capacity, had the right to create a form of government that reflected the principles of the new Republic as stated in their Declaration.

Every State government was required to respect the "Laws