LIBERTY! Freedom! In the annals of the nations few words have stirred the hearts of liberty-loving men and women more than these.
Democratic nations are generally considered to be great proponents of liberty. But in recent years there have been dire happenings in these nations. Some, through force of arms, have been compelled to surrender their liberty to tyrannical oppressors, others forced to make enormous sacrifices of human life and accept drastic curtailment of individual rights in defense of liberty—conditions which indicate a great need for spiritual awakening in these nations. It is axiomatic that the only true safeguard of an individual or a nation is spiritual power. Engrossment in material thinking and living forfeits this power, and paves the way for enemies of free government gravely to jeopardize both its freedom and its security.
A notable American statesman once declared that all free government must rest on the four great truths set forth in the Declaration of Independence, which are declared to be "self-evident." He referred to them as "four pillars quarried from the mountain of eternal truth." The symbolism is worthy of consideration. The first "pillar"—the truth that all men are created equal—is in a large measure disregarded because of materialism and its misconception of God's true nature and of man as His image and likeness. But for this misconception such unchristian conditions as political chicanery, deceptive diplomacy, selfish nationalism, and racial prejudice could not exist. Entrenched in a democracy they greatly weaken its structure. The great need is for more of the stimulus and strength of spiritual understanding among the citizenry, so that there will be placed in office only those who have a high concept of free government.
