"The Signing of the Declaration of Independence - July 4, 1776"by John Trumbull (painted circa 1786-1820)
July 4, 1776 - The day the Declaration of Independence was signed - we can only surmise that it had to have been a day of exuberance! A day of gratitude! A day of elation! Yet a sobering experience knowing that from that day forward they would have to do it all on their own. To form a government that was not totalitarian and/or a monarchy. That it was a government, as Abraham Lincoln so poignantly and eloquently phrased during his Gettysburg Address some 100 years later, "....of the people, for the people and by the people..."
The Declaration of Independence was a new beginning, a re-birth of sorts, a 'turning point for humankind' with a government deeply rooted 'in sensitivity to Divine Truth.' It also became a blueprint for moral government that had never before entered the consciousness of nations.
In other words a DEMOCRACY - FREEDOM.
The sacrifices our forefathers had made were insurmountable given the time, the way of life, the primitive technology. All they knew was that they needed to be FREE of the great power of the time - Great Britain - England. But do we all realize the path that was taken prior to that day?! The lives lost in battle, through sickness, through starvation and being frozen were great. Not to mention those who were maimed whether it was due to loss of limb, loss of sight, loss of compassion for their fellow "Americans" and/or loss of mental stability due to the grave circumstances they experienced.
And yes, there were the visionaries, who had a knowing of what was to be and they too bore witness to all the atrocities that took place and having empathy, experienced it all as well as fighting along side their fellow countrymen. Yet they stood tall with bravery and courage, moving forward to run the new country with a new government. They took responsibility for their actions creating one of the greatest powers in the world - the United States of America. Of course they weren't aware of what they had done or started then...Or were they?
A particular event took place while in battle in the dead of winter 1777. General George Washington was beside himself for he did not know how to proceed or how to protect his men from the bitter cold, from starvation - they were facing inhuman odds as the battle of Valley Forge loomed. He being a God fearing man, a believer in a higher being relied on his Faith and began to pray. He knelt down in the snow as his men watched him seeking an answer.
Below is an account of the actual event General Washington experienced. His "colleague and an eyewitness of what took place, Anthony Sherman, recounted the story of Wesley Bradshaw. The oral history was originally published in the "National Tribune," December 1880." Read on...for who knows... (the following was taken from "Angel Power" by Janice T. Connell, 1995, Ballantine Books, New York)
"George Washington. . .would hardly have been the type of man one would expect to be seeking visionary manifestations, or easily be taken in by them. From he opening of the Revolution we experience all phases of fortune, now good and now ill, one time victorious and another time conquered. The darkest period we had, I think was when Washington, after several reverses, retreated to Valley Forge, where he resolved to pass the winter of 1777. Ah! I have often seen the tears course down our dear commander's careworn cheeks, as he would be conversing with confidential officers about the condition of his poor soldiers. You have doubtless heard the story of Washington going to the thicket to pray. It was not only true but he used often to pray in secret for aid and comfort from God, the Interposition of whose Divine Providence brought us safely through the darkest days of tribulation.
One day, I remember it well, the chilly wind whistled through the leafless trees, though the sky was cloudless and the sun shone brightly. He remained in his quarters nearly all afternoon alone. When he came out I noticed that his face was a shade paler than usual, and there seemed to be something on his mind of more than ordinary importance. Returning just after dark, he dispatched an orderly to the quarters of another officer, who was presently in attendance. After a preliminary conversation of about half an hour, Washington, gazing upon us with that strange look of dignity, which he alone could command, said:
'I do not know whether it is owing to the anxiety of my mind, but his afternoon, as I was sitting at this table engaged in preparing a dispatch, something disturbed me. Looking up, I saw standing opposite a singularly beautiful female. So astonished was I, for I had given strict orders not to be disturbed, that it was some moments before I found language to inquire the purpose of her presence. A second, third, even a fourth time did I repeat my question but received no answer from my mysterious visitor, except a slight raising of her eyes. By this time I felt strange sensations spreading through me. I would have risen but the riveted gaze of the being before me rendered volition impossible. I essayed once more to address her, but my tongue had become useless. Even thought itself had become paralyzed. A new influence, mysterious, potent, irresistible, took possession of me. All I could do was to gaze steadily, at my unknown visitor. Gradually the surrounding atmosphere filled with sensation and grew luminous. Everything about me seemed to rarefy, the mysterious visitor herself becoming more airy and yet more distinct to my sight than before. I now began to feel as one dying, or rather to experience the sensation which I have sometimes imagined accompanies dissolution. I did not think, I did not reason, I did not move. all, alike, were impossible. I was conscious only of gazing fixedly at my companion. Presently I heard a voice say,
"Son of the Republic, look and learn!"
while at the same time my visitor extended her arm eastward. I looked and beheld a heavy white vapor rising, at some distance, fold upon fold. This gradually dissipated and I watched before me lay spread out in one vast plain all the countries of the world: Europe, Asia, Africa and America. I saw rolling and tossing between Europe and America, the billows of the Atlantic Ocean, and between America and Asia lay the Pacific.
"Son of the Republic," said the mysterious voice as before, "look and learn."
'At that moment I beheld a dark shadowy being, standing, or rather floating in mid-air between Europe and America. Dipping water out of the ocean with his right hand, he cast it upon America, while that in his left hand went upon the European countries. Immediately a cloud arose from these countries, and joined in mid-ocean. For a while it remained stationary, and then it moved slowly westward, until it enveloped American in its folds. Sharp flashes of lightning gleamed through at intervals; and I heard the smothered groans of the American people. A second time the angle dipped water from the ocean and sprinkled it as before. The dark cloud was then drawn back to the ocean, in whose heaving bellows it sank from view. A third time I heard the mysterious voice say:
"Son of the Republic, look and learn."
'I cast my eyes upon America and beheld villages, towns and cities springing up one after another until the whole land, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, was dotted with them. Again I heard the voice say,
"Son of the Republic, the end of the century comes. Look and learn."
And with this the dark, shadowy angel turned its face southward, and from Africa an ill-omened spectra approached our land. It flitted slowly over every town and city of the land. The inhabitants presently set themselves in battle array against each other.
'As I continued to look I saw a bright angel, on whose brow rested a crown of light on which was traced the word UNION, place an American flag between the divided nation and say:
"Remember ye are brethren."
Instantly the inhabitants, casting from them weapons, became friends once more and united around the National Standard. Again I heard the voice of my most beautiful and mysterious visitor say,
"Son of the Republic, look and learn."
At this, the dark shadowy angel placed a trumpet to his mouth and blew three distinct blasts; and taking water from the ocean he sprinkled it upon Europe, Asia and Africa.
'Then my eyes beheld a fearful scene: from each of these countries arose thick black clouds that were soon joined into one. Throughout this mass there gleamed a bright Red Light, by which I saw hordes of armed men, who moving with the cloud, marched by land and sailed by sea to American which country was enveloped in the volume of cloud.
'And I saw these vast armies devastate the whole country and burn the villages, towns and cities that i saw springing up. As my ears listened to the thundering of the cannon, the clashing of the swords, and the shouts and cries of millions in mortal combat, I again heard the mysterious voice say:
"Son of the Republic, look and learn."
As the voice ceased, the bright angel, for the last time, dipped water from the ocean and sprinkled it upon America. Instantly the dark cloud rolled back, together with the armies it had brought, leaving the inhabitants of the land victorious. Once more I beheld villages, towns and cities springing up where I had seen them before; while the bright angel, planting the azure standard he had brought in the middle of them, cried in a loud voice,
"While the stars remain and the heavens send down dew upon the earth, so long shall the Union last."
'And taking from her angelic brow the crown on which was blazoned the word UNION, she placed it upon the National Standard, while people kneeling down, said. Amen.
'The scene instantly began to fade away, and I saw nothing but the rising, curling vapor I had first beheld. This also disappeared and I found myself once more gazing upon the mysterious beautiful visitor who said,
"Son of the Republic, what you have seen is thus: three great perils will come upon the Republic. The most fearful is the third, but the whole world united shall not prevail upon her. Let every child of the Republic learn to live for God, His land and the Union."
'With these words the beautiful visitor and the bright angel accompanying her disappeared from my sight.'
"Such, my friend were the very words I heard from Washington's own lips and America will do well to profit by them," concluded the narrator of this Oral History."
Two hundred thirty four years later we still struggle to keep our freedom in tact. We deal with threats from outside our country as well as threats that have infiltrated our country. We also don't realize how our rights are being slowly changed as laws are passed which are for the good of all. The old saying "it takes only one bad apple..." is the best way to describe the reason for the changes.
Remember the apparition General Washington had...perhaps we are actually partaking in what he had seen more than 240 years ago...perhaps we should re-evaluate some things so that we can have the outcome he was privy to so long ago.
As stated before, "...of course, they didn't know it then the country they formed was the greatest power in the world or did they?"
