Things of the Spirit – President Coolidge’s timeless speech from 1926 –
In 2013, Lydia England recited a portion of President Coolidge’s “Things of the Spirit” speech. She was ten years old at the time she recited Coolidge’s speech.
President Coolidge gave this speech in 1926, on the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
It is a timeless speech, and Lydia delivers it beautifully.
In many ways, our country faces the same challenges today!
Click here to read President Coolidge’s full speech on that day.
Our new kind of government had developed over time –
Here is another portion from the rest of Coolidge’s speech that is especially meaningful today –
It was not because it was proposed to establish a new nation, but because it was proposed to establish a nation on new principles, that July 4, 1776, has come to be regarded as one of the greatest days in history.
Great ideas do not burst upon the world unannounced. They are reached by a gradual development over a length of time usually proportionate to their importance.
This is especially true of the principles laid down in the Declaration of Independence.
Three very definite propositions were set out in its preamble regarding the nature of mankind and therefore of government.
These were the doctrine that all men are created equal, that they are endowed with certain inalienable rights, and that therefore the source of the just powers of government must be derived from the consent of the governed.
We need to always remind ourselves of these words.
