Eagle Forum Celebrates 50 Years With A Tribute To The Declaration of Independence

From Rev. Michael J. Brooks

“The Declaration of Independence is like a symphony, with parts and harmony,” said Dr. Matthew Spalding of Hillsdale College. “It is the seminal document in American history. Without it, we’d have no Constitution and no country. It’s a remarkable work.”

Spalding was keynote speaker at the Eagle Forum of Alabama annual banquet on Aug. 25, celebrating 250 years of American independence and the 50^th birthday of the forum. Scott Beason of Alabama Unfiltered Radio served as master of ceremonies for the evening. 

Alabama Supreme Court Associate Justice Will Sellers, a Hillsdale graduate, introduced Spalding.

Spalding is Vice President for Washington Operations, overseeing Hillsdale College’s Allan P. Kirby Jr. Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship, where he also serves as dean and instructor. His most recent book, “The Making Of The American Mind—The Story Of Our Declaration Of Independence,” was published last December. 

Spalding said the Continental Congress met in Philadelphia in 1775 and into the next year. The “large presence” in the room was George Washington who was “tall, erect and noble.” But a new 33-year-old Virginia delegate arrived in May as an alternate, and his work took on great significance.

“The Congress appointed a committee of five to write the Declaration, and they asked newly-arrived Jefferson to be the major writer,” he said. “The committee edited him and the Congress cut one-third of the final document. Jefferson never liked this, as no writer does, believing his original was superior!”

Spalding said there are only two characters in the Declaration: George III and God.

“King George was all-powerful and a tyrant, and God was all powerful, but not a tyrant,” he said. 

“The Declaration mentions God five times. He’s not specifically the Christian God but he is the biblical God who is the divine source of rights, and on whom they pledged ‘firm reliance.’ The delegates were overwhelmingly men of faith, and they trusted God to direct them in their quest.”

Spalding said Abraham Lincoln debated Stephen Douglas in Chicago in July 1858, calling the Declaration “an electric cord . . . that links the hearts of patriotic and liberty-loving men together.” Douglas believed only the descendants of the patriots were American, while Lincoln argued that all who commit to its principles are Americans; thus principles, not lineage made America.

“There was no ‘relativism’ here, but principles guided by prudence,” he said. “America is still guided by prudence. We are a good people who overcome the past and strive to do better.”

“It’s a remarkable document,” Spalding said, “and it outlines enduring truths. I invite you to join me in falling in love with America again.”

The Forum presented the Olive Spann Award to nurse anesthetist Christine Carr who has been an outspoken proponent of more stringent controls for medical marijuana in the state. 

The Alabama Eagle Forum website is AlabamaEagle.org.