[Part I] -- Introduction to the DoD:

A New Declaration; The Same Revolution
Declaration of Dependence

In a remote corner of the New World, the people of 13 vulnerable colonies, knowing that God had blessed their enterprise, and daring to dream that their fledgling nation would stand unique in the history of mankind, on July 4, 1776 put their knowledge, faith, and dreams to paper. On that date 56 of their leaders signed a document they called a Declaration of Independence.

More than breaking with the mother country, these Patriots clearly were also declaring their independence of outmoded ideas of history, old social patterns of obligation, and the entrapping bonds of suppressed expectations. From the very first settlers, many people from various backgrounds and different countries boldly had claimed this new land for God. Countless compacts and covenants clearly acknowledged that the American Experiment was clearly to mean the full and joyful exercise of biblical principles from the organization of the smallest village to -- yes -- the creation of the mightiest nation.

This was no game: these leaders knew full well the price of failure, or even partial success. "We mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." All was in jeopardy for these leaders and their descendants if this inspired revolution failed. "So help me God," George Washington spontaneously added to his Oath.

To these Founders, the Bible was the purest essence of deliberations, the blueprint for a democratic republican system, the soul of public and private conduct. Never before attempted in the world's history, such is the stuff of legend... yet this legend is true. Our forefathers succeeded in their endeavors. With pride and passion, American Patriots often should recall our nation's bold and tenacious beginnings, our precious dreams and bitter sacrifices. Like salvation itself, we were bought by blood.

Unfortunately, the United States has largely forgotten the part of the Declaration of Independence without which it is a mere piece of parchment: its official acknowledgment and pledge of our nation's reliance on God. The God of the Bible is identified as the source of mankind's rights: citizens are"...endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." At the close of the document is a prayer invoking "a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence." The Framers made agreements with each other, but also made a Covenant with God.

Our American ancestors and foreign observers alike recognized the onetime suppositions to undergird our culture, our government, and our public policy with Christian principles... and that the success of the American Experiment was precisely due to remaining true to these principles. The United States Supreme Court confirmed this in 1892: "This is historically true. From the discovery of this continent to the present hour, there is a single voice making this affirmation... that this is a Christian nation. We find everywhere a clear recognition of the same truth."

Today we live in a changed America. Patriots, traditionalists, and people of faith know this, and grieve. Enemies of America's Christian heritage, cultural nihilists, and those who hate our biblical foundations know this, and rejoice. But they are not content to stop in their destructive crusades. No area of American society has been spared the onslaught of the secularists -- not government, nor courts, nor media, nor education, nor family life, nor entertainment, nor religion itself.

The fears of the Founders -- about a people ultimately exchanging liberty for license, and sacrificing a spirit of noble challenge for self-indulgent ease -- has come true. Bibles have been taken from classrooms; God's Commandments stripped from courts of law. References to the Lord are prohibited; yet pornography is granted the right of "free speech." Social chaos is the result of so much dissolution. Christian Patriots see misery and a self-destructive downward spiral. The enemies of America's Christian Heritage see liberation and encouragement to pull down more standards.

Clearer than the chaos is the source of it -- America's abandonment of biblical foundations of its freedom and liberty. And clearer than the cause is the solution -- the United States of America needs a rebirth of its commitment to Christian principles. It is essential not just for the sake of reform, but for our survival as a nation, that leaders arise who commit themselves to a new Declaration of Dependence. Without common acknowledgment of a grateful reliance on Almighty God, America surely will accelerate its rendezvous with ruin.

We the People of the United States of America must once again agree in Covenant to restore our nation to its original form and purpose of the Founders, and we look for leadership -- not just in government and pulpit, but in families, classrooms, communities, associations, and business -- to rise up. This culture must be reclaimed. And just as the revolution of 1776 was spread by leaders who signed a Declaration, and urged its adoption in the hearts of citizens, so the New Declaration of the Same Revolution must go forth.  

America has come to the point in our existence where crisis compels us to act; when citizens need to acknowledge and embrace the truth about our Christian Heritage in all its facets. We need to start by praying Thanks to God for the blessings He has bestowed in the past, and for His forbearance in staying His displeasure for our sins and straying. Then we need to commit ourselves and our leaders -- and, in so doing, to become a new generation of leaders -- to restoration. By recapturing the precious principles of the past can we successfully capture the future.

Accordingly, Rare Jewel Magazine invites all citizens to read and sign the following Declaration of Dependence. Share it... urge neighbors and leaders to sign it... use it as a standard to measure candidates for public office, community leaders and elected officials, authorities in churches and schools... and make it your meditation, thereby engaging in this new Revolutionary War for the soul of our nation and its citizens.

 

[Part II] -- The core DoD:

The Declaration of Dependence

Our Nation Is Dependent Upon God

The United States of America is a nation founded on Biblical principles, sustained by reliance on God, and nurtured by its Christian heritage.

God bestows mankind its rights. The primary role of government is to protect those rights. Our Republican form of government's sources of wisdom and foundations of law are derived from the Holy Bible.

America's Original Covenants Must Be Restored

The United States of America is a Republic, not a Democracy, and hence ought not be ruled by popular feelings but by the rule of law. Christian principles, Western traditions, and common law have established that reliance on God, a commitment to limited government, and public policy based on moral standards are beneficial to our culture's happiness.

The First Amendment was intended to prevent the Federal government from establishing a single Christian denomination as a national religion; it was not intended to restrict the Christian faith or the free exercise thereof in any venue private or public.

Our Faith Compels Us To Stand Strong

Not for the narrow good of Christians alone, but for the good of society, as was proved by the early history of America, Biblical truths and Christian principles must be applied to public policy and social concerns.

The Holy Bible, its Ten Commandments, its sacred symbol of the cross of Christ, and prayers in the name of Christ must be allowed in American public schools.

The family is the building block of a happy community, as ordained by God. Citizens, government, and all institutions should work to honor the traditional marriage and family structures: one man, one woman unions; the sanctity of human life; care for the innocence of children; respect for parental rights and educational freedom.

The Federal Government should not assume the role of an employer of last resort, the provider of sustenance or special wisdom, or the dispenser of health decisions or wealth management. Christ has admonished us to care for the weak and sick ourselves, and to be responsible citizens in all ways.

To these ends, I sign this Declaration and affirm the following points:

	I declare that beyond the rights and responsibilities of independence that are mine as an American, I am very much Dependent on God -- for knowledge, for wisdom, for guidance.
	I acknowledge that, despite differences of some opinions, and variations of emphasis, the settlers of this land, the founders of this nation, and the framers of our Constitution shared a belief that the principles of the Biblical God -- as revealed in the Old and New Testaments -- were not just several preferred building-blocks of a just Republic, but essential foundation-stones.
	I believe that Christian principles have been responsible for the moral, social, and material blessings that birthed and sustained this nation. I also believe that the continued respect for these traditions is essential for our people's well-being. I further believe that abandonment of Christian principles will guarantee decay, discontent, and disaster for America.
	I trust Eternal Truths and not passing trends. Truth is truth and does not change by party, manifesto, or latest advocate; and we can know these Truths from the revealed Word of God.
	I know that life begins at conception, and should be protected. I know that life at all points is precious, and the destruction of fetuses, the experimentation with cloning, and the practice of euthanasia promote a Culture of Death that I firmly reject.
	I agree that all schoolchildren should be allowed public prayer, and that all citizens should enjoy this right in all public places. I agree that teaching that God is our Creator should not be banned from classrooms. I agree that public commemoration of our Christian heritage and traditions should be unfettered.
	I finally declare that I will in all ways be bold and not vague about my Declaration of Dependence. I owe it to myself and my family; my friends and my church; my community and associations; my nation and my government; and to my God.

 

[Part III] -- Action Plan:

We are Dependent Upon God

The Responsibility is Ours!

Responsibility for the well-being of the United States of America lies in the hands of its citizen patriots and under the sovereign authority of our Creator God. We pledge our efforts, as did Abraham Lincoln, "that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." If we are to have proper impact on the moral tone of our culture, and on the decisions and policies of government officials, then we must engage in the grassroots methods of our predecessors.

• We must have full faith in our God
• We must have full knowledge of our nation's foundational principles
• We must appreciate our strength and agree to act together
• We must become leaders in our own spheres; seek out leaders; encourage leaders
• Then we will Restore our Land

Only with a united voice can Christian Patriots restore America to its original foundations and reclaim the vision that God ordained for our nation... and upon which America once acted.

Jesus Christ warned that a "divided house will not stand," and we must be careful to discern the things that can unite us, and put aside the things that can divide us. Carefully maintaining purity of heart and generosity of fellowship in this common challenge to restore America, we look for a creed to which citizens might subscribe.

The Declaration of Dependence provides Christian Patriots with a document of common agreement for meditation, encouragement, and action.

Begin to use the Declaration of Dependence as a tool for a variety of grassroots efforts, to enlist allies, to multiply our strength, and to achieve success in the battle to redeem our culture and our government.

Take Action!

Step 1: Become a Signer -- Join the Revolution!

Sign the "Declaration of Dependence"; available at www.DeclarationOfDependence.org -- sign it now; it takes just a moment.

Step 2: Enlist More Troops!

After signing the Declaration, you will be e-mailed a confirmation that you can forward or download for your friends and family, church and community leaders, public officeholders and candidates. Urge them to follow your lead by signing the Declaration, to enlist and likewise to spread the message!

Step 3: Encourage the Troops!

All Signers will be kept abreast of news about the Declaration of Dependence, special events, announcements, etc. Signers are also members of the exclusive Declaration of Dependence Forum -- a "town meeting" on the Web -- to share their hearts with fellow Signers; encourage and advise; relate personal experiences; suggest ideas on how best to expand this grassroots effort; and more!

Step 4: Pray

Pray for our nation, its leaders, and its people, and our posterity. Pray that we will once again see the day when the United States of America officially and humbly recognizes the Christian God as our sovereign authority. Ask God to open hearts and minds to be receptive to the Declaration of Dependence and that His hand will guide this grassroots effort.

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

-- 2 Chronicles 7:14